Enriched environment for the cat: feeding

One of the components of the well-being of cats is the observance of the five freedoms. Among them is freedom from hunger and thirst. How to feed cats so that they are healthy and happy?

Domestic cats are usually fed 2 or 3 times a day and seem to have adapted quite well to this regimen. However, it is better to feed cats in small portions, but often (Bradshaw and Thorne, 1992). Many owners say that this is not always possible at home, and unlimited access to food is fraught with obesity, which means a lot of problems, including health. What to do?

There are ways to enrich the environment for a cat that allows you to increase the time of eating food. For example, a portion of food can be placed in a container with holes through which the cat will extract individual pieces (McCune, 1995). You can hide bits of food for your cat to find, making feeding more interesting and encouraging the purr to explore.

It is also important to properly organize the watering of the cat. Cats often prefer to drink not where they eat, but in a completely different place. Therefore, bowls with water should stand in several places (if the cat goes out into the yard, then both in the house and in the yard).

Schroll (2002) also states that cats like to sink a little when they drink and prefer flowing water, which is why many purrs catch drops from a faucet. And it’s great if there is an opportunity to organize something like a small fountain with drinking water for the cat.