Many of us unknowingly make mistakes when it comes to feeding the cat: here’s what you should do and what to avoid in the cat’s diet.
Feeding the cat correctly is one of the most important activities we can do to ensure the health and well-being of our domestic feline: just think that over half of the house cats around the world are overweight, with all the associated diseases and health problems to this increasingly widespread condition.
Feeding the cat in the right way is essential, but there are still too many mistakes that the majority of those who have chosen to adopt a cat make, obviously without wanting to, but because they believe they are doing the good of their pet. Feeding errors in cats are not only strictly related to the food we choose to put in the bowl: we often make mistakes on other equally important but unsuspected aspects.
Feeding the cat: an unexpected mistake to avoid
Most people choose to feed their cat food in a bowl, often leaving dry or wet cat food available to the pet for the whole day. The basic idea is that cats can regulate themselves independently, without eating everything at once but consuming only what they need at the moment (which is also true).
The problem lies in the fact that in this way the cat consumes its meals in an “unnatural” way and often exaggerating the quantities: with the food at its complete disposal, it is possible that the cat feels in a certain sense authorized to do nothing to get what he needs as he would in nature and therefore tend to eat without getting the right amount of exercise. Hence, the growing number of overweight or even obese cats.
In practice, cats are born as predatory animals that have to hunt to eat: life in the apartment, with a bowl always available or even with meals administered at set times, is in a certain sense too sedentary compared to what it should be. A cat that needs to get dinner is forced to jump, chase, wander around in search of prey: a house cat, on the other hand, does not need it.
How to feed the cat by activating its hunter part
Even if it is not necessary to go hunting at home to find food, there are some small tricks that can help us awaken the predatory instinct of a cat: just think of the mouse-shaped toys in which to hide the kibble. In order to eat, the cat will have to manipulate the fake prey: in this way, feeding the cat will be a fun way to stimulate his hunting instincts.
To make it even more fun and stimulating, you can buy various toys and divide the cat’s daily ration of food equally, in each of them. By hiding the toys full of kibble around the house, the cat will have to hunt for his food by finding the kibbles and trying to get them out of the small dispenser. Another useful idea is the maze bowl – a simple and inexpensive way to make your kitty’s meals more stimulating.
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