Alimenta-la a menys que el veterinari digui que no.

Catalan often leaves subject pronouns out when they are not needed. The verb form itself already shows the person.

• Alimenta = feed addressed to you (informal singular)
• So Alimenta-la naturally means Feed her/it

Including tu would usually only be for emphasis or contrast.

Alimenta-la is the affirmative imperative form of alimentar (to feed) plus the direct object pronoun la.

Breakdown:

• alimenta = feed! / you feed
• la = her or it (feminine direct object)

So Alimenta-la means Feed her or Feed it, depending on what feminine noun is being referred to.

In Catalan, object pronouns are often attached to affirmative commands.

So:

• Alimenta-la = Feed her/it
• not La alimenta in this context

This is normal with affirmative imperatives. English speakers often notice this because English keeps the object separate.

Very roughly:

• affirmative command: pronoun attached
• many other verb forms: pronoun usually before the verb

The hyphen is the standard written way to join them here.

La is a feminine singular direct object pronoun. It can mean:

• her, if the referent is female
• it, if it refers to a feminine noun, such as a female animal or a noun that is grammatically feminine

In a sentence about a pet, it could refer to a female dog, cat, or other animal.

Related forms:

• el = him / it (masculine)
• la = her / it (feminine)
• els = them (masculine or mixed)
• les = them (feminine)

A menys que means unless.

It introduces an exception:

• Alimenta-la a menys que... = Feed her unless...

It is a fixed expression, so it is best learned as a whole chunk.

Because a menys que normally triggers the subjunctive in Catalan.

So:

• diu = indicative, says
• digui = subjunctive form of dir

After expressions like a menys que (unless), Catalan uses the subjunctive because the situation is hypothetical, uncertain, or conditional.

So:

• a menys que el veterinari digui...
  = unless the vet says...

This is one of the most important grammar points in the sentence.

Digui is the present subjunctive form of dir for:

• jo
• ell / ella / vostè

Here it agrees with el veterinari, which is third person singular:

• el veterinari digui = the vet say

Even though English says the vet says, Catalan uses the subjunctive here because of a menys que.

Que no here means something like that no or that you should not.

So:

• el veterinari digui que no
  = the vet says no / the vet says not to

This is very natural in Catalan. The que introduces the content of what is said.

Compare:

• Va dir que sí = He/She said yes
• Va dir que no = He/She said no

So in this sentence, que no is not strange or redundant; it is a normal way to report what someone says.

Yes. Alimenta-la is the informal singular command, used with tu.

Formal singular (vostè):

• Alimenti-la

Plural informal (vosaltres):

• Alimenteu-la

Formal plural (vostès):

• Alimentin-la

So the original sentence is speaking to one person informally.

A fairly literal breakdown is:

• Alimenta-la = Feed her/it
• a menys que = unless
• el veterinari = the veterinarian / the vet
• digui = say (subjunctive)
• que no = that no / that not

So the structure is roughly:

Feed her unless the vet say-subjunctive that no.

That sounds awkward in English, but it helps show how the Catalan sentence is built.

Natural English would be:

Feed her unless the vet says not to.

Yes. Without more context, la can mean either her or it, as long as the thing referred to is feminine.

If the learner already knows what la refers to from context, the meaning becomes clear. But by itself, the sentence is grammatically compatible with both:

• Feed her unless the vet says no
• Feed it unless the vet says no

Catalan generally uses the definite article more regularly than English does with nouns like professions or roles in context.

So el veterinari is perfectly normal and expected here:

• el veterinari = the vet

Omitting the article would usually not work in this sentence.

Not usually. In negative commands, Catalan normally places the pronoun before the verb.

Compare:

• affirmative: Alimenta-la = Feed her/it
• negative: No la alimentis = Don’t feed her/it

This contrast is very useful to learn:

• affirmative imperative → pronoun attached
• negative imperative → pronoun before the verb