Eating Habits...

[Squirrel]

Sometimes I have to laugh at Cloud and the way she chooses to eat. In other ways, it's interesting, and am guessing that there is something in genetic wiring which causes her to do this. Am mostly just pleased though, cause I feed her on a small coffee table, and she can eat as messily as she pleases without it going on the floor...

What am I on about? Well, sometimes when I'm watching cloud eat she'll pick a mouthful up out of the bowl, turn round and deposit said mouthful on the table next to her, and then eat it off of the table.

She seems to do this regardless of whether she's eating wet or dry, and regardless of bowl shape (though that may be partly cause I've only got a few shapes of bowl, so if there something in that causing it then maybe they all do!).

So... First of all - thoughts/comments on that, and secondly, any strange eating habits of your own cats?

[Phoenix]

Some cats just don't like eating out of bowls. Dylan likes having his dry food on the floor believe it or not :roll: although at the moment he's convinced dry food is toxic and will only eat wet food :roll:

Dylan also likes making as much mess as possible when he's eating so we end up with cat food everywhere (including places like his - sorry! - litter tray and - strange boy - his drinks dish when it's full :? :roll:

[wilbar]

You might want to consider the type of bowl you are putting the food in. Some plastics give off noxious smells to cats, some materials are more porous & perhaps retain the smell of detergents, some are reflective & cats may not like seeing reflections in the bowls, some may be too small or deep so that the whiskers touch the sides etc etc.

But if it doesn't bother you & your cat is eating happily, then perhaps leave thing alone?

[Squirrel]

Thanks Wilbar.

I don't see any problems with this really. If that's the way she wants to eat that's the way she wants to eat. It's not harming me - though I may want to be extra careful how I clean the table.

I might try different bowls as time goes on - mostly I use plastic bowls - and I've heard that some cats find that it's uncomfortable to put their heads into their bowls when they aren't large enough to accommodate their whiskers?

Thank you for the thoughts anyway. :)

[Shelley123]

Tom and Jerry eat out of shallow metal bowls and they don't tend to drag food out onto the floor. I have however had other cats in the past who have done this.
Malaika sometimes removes the first few mouthfuls of food from her dish and takes it a small distance away before eating. I wonder if this is a trait from the wild when they would grab meat of a carcass and then leave the main food source to ensure no other dog got it.

[dandysmom]

That's odd behavior for Cloud; possibly she doesn't like a bowl? Mine have always been fed on a plate rather than a bowl. Fortunately, none were messy eaters, and I have a plastic place mat under the plate and water dish.

[angieh]

Kizzy is a very clean eater, but Pip is the "take it out of the bowl first" sort - but not always! They both have stainless steel bowls and I have often wondered, especially with the water bowl whether the reflection might be off-putting. Neither actually drink from the water bowl though - I just can't adjust to not using it for them! Kizzy has her fountain and Pip just asks for the tap turning on.

[Squirrel]

I find all of this very interesting!

Hadn't thought about that shelley - I can follow that reasoning though.

Very possibly Eileen - at some point I'll try her on a non plastic something. The coffee table I feed her on has ceramic tiles on it, so no huge deal her scattering her food round there before eating it!

As for the water bowl, I think Cloud's a bit atypical that way as well. She has a metal bowl with water in which she drinks from a fair bit. I did try her on a water fountain for a while, but she seemed scared and began to loo in the wrong places... Just think she couldn't get used to the noise, and didn't see the ripple effect as soemthing to drink from. Maybe if she doesn't like eating off of plastic I'd need to try one made from different materials, or a different way of delivering water = but it's very expensive to buy and then find you can't use!

As for taps - she's still at the watching cautiously stage, when I turn a tap on. Maybe if she's very brave she'll get quite close to the water, but actually touch it? No chance!

[cats' staff]

Cleo drags her food all over the place as and we feed her in the bathroom this can make mornings unpleasant as I wander in there barefoot and without specs. You'd think I would learn!

[Squirrel]

Oh no!!! Yuk! Sounds like you really need slippers on of a morning... But I can so follow with the bare footed bit. Haven't been over the door today and I've still nowt on my feet!

[angieh]

2 pairs of socks and woolly slippers here!

[paulinef2]

Tiger eats some food and then tries to hide what's left over! He has a mat which his bowl sits on to catch the spills but also to protect the carpet from his scratching :)

[dandysmom]

As I mentioned I've always used plates, and have picked up a very nice assortment over the years at flea markets/yard sales. Some are quite posh - bone china! :D

[cats' staff]

As I mentioned I've always used plates, and have picked up a very nice assortment over the years at flea markets/yard sales. Some are quite posh - bone china! :D

Perhaps I should try Cleo with bone china- she may be objecting to the tacky plastic!

[Squirrel]

Weird thing with Cloud is that there seems to be no rhyme nor reason to how she eats. Sometimes it all comes from the bowl, other times the first mouthful and select others are scattered and then eaten. This time she dropped one bit of dried food on the table and ate that, took the next mouthful from the bowl, and I think only did the same as the first with another cause I distracted her!!! :roll:

[Velvet]

Mostly ours eat from their bowls or each others :) However sometimes Amber lifts food out to eat beside the bowl. They have a plastic bowl each for dry food & ceramic bowl for wet, its the latter Amber would take out of.

Pic below of said dishes & yes Tim does have dry kibble from a pink dish :)

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y108/rosievelvet/7a91c3f8.jpg

[Shelley123]

Glad to see you don't stereotype Helen ;) :D

[calismum]

Isn't it interesting as to all their little habits and eccentricities? Both mine leave a disaster zone after they've ate their wet food and sometimes there is more dry outside the dry food dish than left in it.

I do agree with DM that sometimes a flat dish is a good idea. My Misty and Sid both ate well from a flat dish.

I did try that with mine - it was just easier for them to push it out of the dish. Never thought about scent in the bowl, I tend to put them in the dishwasher and that can leave a nice lemony smell - perhaps not appreciated by Izzi and Breagh though. I may try hand washing see if that helps.

As you say if you're not overly bothered then no big deal, but this has turned into quite an interesting thread.