Eating should be fun. Just stop to think about it for a moment. Humans enjoy going out to eat. Sure, part of it is to satisfy the physical need of given the body that fuel it needs to carry on, but part of the experience is to be enjoyed as well. Families get together at the holidays, for special occasions, and on an otherwise regular basis to eat together. There is just something about the experience that is to be desired. Since humans enjoy eating so much, there is no reason why cats should not have the same pleasure. Animals all too often rush through the motions of eating for a variety of reasons, such as fear that the food will be taken away from them our just out of sheer hunger. That does not need to be the case. Make the experience pleasurable for your cats. They will appreciate it in the end. To help you in this endeavor, continue reading to discover how you can make mealtime fun for your cats.
The Basics
Feeding your cat is actually an opportunity to provide them with some enrichments activities at the same time. Cats have it in their DNA that they are to hunt for their food. Think of them chasing around after a mouse and you will get what we mean. While you obviously do not want your cat out in the jungle hunting their food down (it is a cruel world out there after all), you might want to take advantage of their instincts. Mealtime should encourage them to use their mind and to get physical.
If you are like most cat owners, then you probably feed your cats inside on a set schedule. While this might get them the nutrition that they need, it does little to satisfy their urge to work a little bit for their food. Some cat owners even give their food access to food around the clock, requiring no activity on their part in order to eat. This is not good. If a cat was outside, he or she would eat multiple times a day, consuming just a little bit of food each time. They would also have to work for the food that they do get. Here is the premise for making mealtime fun for your cats. Give them an activity to do and they will be much happier in the end.
Hide Food In Toys or Objects
If your cat is healthy and vibrant, then he or she loves to explore things. You will frequently see a cat pawing something, trying to turn it over, and the like. This is because cats have a type of instinct that has them poking into small areas in search of food. This is understandable. They will look for prey in areas where they are hiding. As a cat owner, you should tap into this desire. Hide food in items that cats like to play with or explore. It will be like a reward at the end of the tunnel. They will see the food and envision that it is playing. They have hunted and they won. For a cat, what could be more fun than that?
Eating should be fun. Just stop to think about it for a moment. Humans enjoy going out to eat. Sure, part of it is to satisfy the physical need of given the body that fuel it needs to carry on, but part of the experience is to be enjoyed as well. Families get together at the holidays, for special occasions, and on an otherwise regular basis to eat together. There is just something about the experience that is to be desired. Since humans enjoy eating so much, there is no reason why cats should not have the same pleasure. Animals all too often rush through the motions of eating for a variety of reasons, such as fear that the food will be taken away from them our just out of sheer hunger. That does not need to be the case. Make the experience pleasurable for your cats. They will appreciate it in the end. To help you in this endeavor, continue reading to discover how you can make mealtime fun for your cats.
It Is Time To Play
When it is time to eat, then it should be time to play. Cats have a mischievous side to them. Put this to work by moving their food to some type of toy that is filled to the brim with their coming meal. The cats will begin to play with a toy or throw it around as they have been known to do. This mimics what they would do with small pretty that they have captured. When they do this with their toys, the food you have put there will begin to fall out. It will be just a few pieces at a time. The cat will learn to eat that food and then keep playing to see what else comes out of the toy. You can hide these all over the house so that the cat can locate them and play with them over time.
Keep in mind that cats can be rather clever. Once they have figured out your tricks, they become bored with them. After all, they will eventually notice that it is not actually pretty that they have captured. So, you will need to keep upping the challenge at mealtime if you wish to keep them engaged. That should be no problem. There are so many different possibilities. You simply need to treat this like a puzzle. Get something that will pique your cat’s natural curiosity. They will continue to be engaged at mealtime, and you will enjoy watching them as they do so.
Make eating fun again for your cats. Give them what they need. They love living with you inside, but they also desire to have a bit of hunting built into their routine. You can do this and they will be forever grateful to you as a result.
