Is your kitten becoming a fussy eater?
Change is an inevitable fact of
life, even for cats. Take the first birthday for example.
That's a real a milestone for a cat, marking the transition
from kitten to
adulthood. Food for adult cats can now be gradually mixed
in with the kitten food over several days to allow her to
become accustomed to the larger kibble and new nutritional
formulation.
Simple stuff. But being an adult
is also about being able to make choices and from now on cats
may become less malleable or more fixed about their likes and
dislikes. It need not cause you a lot of stress if your feline
friend chooses to sleep on the sofa rather than in their
expensive cat igloo but what if they get fussy about food? How
long should you wait before pandering to every feline feeding
whim?
Now, more than ever, you will
start to see your cat as an individual. Some, like people, love
to experience new things - a new variety, a change in texture,
mixing wet food and dry food. This liking for new things is
called neophilia and your cat may show this type of behaviour
depending on their personality, early experiences, their
environment and a wide variety of other influences.
Other cats can be neophobic and
actively dislike new things. Such cats like set routines,
rarely seek variety and often prefer to eat the same thing day
in day out. If they have always had a feeding mat under their
food bowl, taking it away can upset them so much that they
won't eat. This is an important factor to consider if you take
on a rescued or re-homed cat. Try and find out as much as
possible about how the cat feeds, not just what they are fed,
before bringing them home. But keep in mind they may be
neophobic, not just about food but also in relation to
toys or the outdoors.
Knowing how to present food can
also be useful, especially if your cat is being a little picky
over meals. Some cat prefer that any wet foods are offered at
blood temperature and although it might not be a technique you
use day to day, it can be handy to consider if your cat is
feeling a little under the weather. Making a wet food into a
gravy using warm water can also be a handy way of encouraging a
timid cat to try dry food.
One surprising thing that you
might not have considered is to be careful of your own body
language. Your own perceptions about a particular cat food will
be closely observed by your cat. If you simply don't like the
latest pack design your cat could interpret your expression or
stance as a signal that all is not well with the food. If you
'think positive', then there is a good chance that your cat
will too!