What Gives with Food Aggression in Cats?
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Cat looking lovingly at her food.
“I wish that my writing was as mysterious as a cat.” – Edgar Allan Poe
Yes, who knows what goes on in the minds of your darling kitties? Why does food aggression in cats suddenly become an ugly reality in your own home?
For instance, two cats can be living and playing in complete peace and harmony – but bring in a third cat at mealtime, and all hell breaks loose. Or your cute kitties are sleeping peacefully – but mealtime arrives – and oh my! We have a full-blown display of cat food aggression!
It’s relatively rare to have a food aggressive cat – but when a food fight occurs in your home, it can be alarming, frustrating and even dangerous – not just to the cats, but to YOU if try to break them apart. When two or three otherwise normal kitties suddenly turn into hissing, clawing street brawlers as they fiercely guard their portions, it’s time to dig into cat psychology and find a solution.
Why Cat Food Aggression suddenly occurs.
Cat being aggressive to another
The cause of your cat’s food aggression may sometimes be as mysterious as they are. Think about your feline situation and see if any of these could apply to your angry cat:
- Too early a separation from Mother Cat:Cats who were separated from their mothers too young and never properly weaned may be prone to food aggression.
- Cat aspires to be Alpha Cat:Guarding a food bowl or stealing from another food bowl is a common intimidation technique. Does your cat have aspirations to be the alpha kitty in your house?
- Insecurity issues:Or it could be the sign of an insecure cat who growls to warn other cats to stay away – and even prevent bullying.
- Survival Instincts come into play:Cats have an instinctual need for survival, and as solitary hunters, they may feel they need to protect their food from competitors – even if they’ve known the other cats forever.
- Panic over scarce food availability:Cats who have lived outside and were forced to hunt for their own food, or who lived in shelters, may evince food aggression tendencies as they fight for what they think are limited resources.
- Overly possessive personality:Some cats are just plain possessive and consider food to be something that needs to be protected.
- Cat Medical Issues :There’s always the possibility that sudden food aggression in cats could have something to do with your cat’s health. It may be a good idea to take your kitty to the vet to get him checked out.
- New cat Introduced:And, of course, there’s the situation where a new cat is brought into a multi-cat household. This can bring out territorial instincts.
How to Stop Food Aggression in Cats
Cats sharing food without aggression
While you may never be able to plumb the depths of your cats’ mysterious minds and psyches, you may not need to. With patience and creativity, you can change the behavior and have peaceful mealtimes. Here are some tips and tricks to help you resolve issues with your food aggressive cat:
- Common sense is always the first place to start. Provideseparate feeding areasfor each cat, so they each have their own space and don’t have as much opportunity to fight over kitty kibble.
- You can try the gradual method of getting them used to eating their own food without issue.Separate the cats at some distancefrom each other, then over time decrease the amount of separation. As they get used to eating side-by-side with their feline companion and realize their food dish will not be threatened, their food aggression may disappear.
- When cats are not in a pampered home and have to forage for their own food, they eat small meals throughout the day. Tryfeeding them smaller mealsat scheduled times rather than leaving food out all day. This can help reduce a cat’s drive to claim and fight for his or her food.
- If you do leave food out all day,add another feed dish in a separate roomso the cats are not obsessing over protecting one site.
- Take the focus off the food byusing puzzle feeders or interactive toys, which provide mental stimulation while they eat. A little distraction can go a long way!
- If none of these techniques work,ask your veterinarianor animal behavior consultant for help. They may have additional behavior modification techniques (or even recommend medicinal solutions) to resolve these disturbing food fights.
Whatever solutions you try. Even if you have to try ALL of them. Remember that patience, understanding and a positive attitude are key to curing food aggression in cats and resolving the behavioral mysteries of your feline friends!
How to handle a Cat Fight Safely
Cat getting aggressive with food
So, the worst has happened. You have a nasty cat fight on your hands. But wait! Don’t Jump in …trying to break up a catfight can end up being worse for YOU than for your cats. Bites or claw marks can result in bloody scratches and/or serious infections for you! Don’t sacrifice yourself – try one of these options:
- If you hear a fight developing, get ahead of the game bydistracting the cats. A quick spritz of water can do the trick. Ordivert their attentionwith a favorite squeaky toy or a loud noise. These are also good techniques once the fight is in progress.
- Don’t let them fight it out.They won’t solve their issues by themselves.
- Don’t stick in your handto grab or separate the cats. Use a sofa cushion or big towel as a barrier between the fighting felines.
- Once you’ve gotten the cats to stop brawling,separate themto give them a chance to cool down and re-think their contentious ways.
- Check them over carefully for injuries.
- Don’t punish them– that could end up making aggressive tendencies worse.
Purrfect solutions for your Cat’s Wounds or Injuries
Cats hungrily waiting their turn for food
Treatments for your Cat’s Health and well-being.If you have a cat or several cats, it’s a good idea to keep a bottle ofBanixx Pet Careon hand. Use it for anycat wound,cat rash,cat ear infectionor felineringworm– It’s one soothing solution perfectly packaged inOne Bottle.Our vet-recommended Pet Care solution has no odor, sting or burn to traumatize your kitty, and it’s totally safe around the eye, alleviating any concerns about overspray. It has a 3-year shelf life. So it will serve your felines well as a First Aid solution for quite a while.
Blogs for the Cat Lover.We know you want to keep your purr-fect furball friend happy and healthy, so suggest checking out our catblogarticles. You’ll learn all sorts of interesting and useful information. For example, ever wonder why doesCatnip have such a hilariouseffect on your cat? Or want to know how totreat cat hot spots? How about more quirky questions likewhydoes my cat get hairballs? Yep, you can find those answers and more on our Catblogpage. Check back frequently for updates and new articles.
Sources
https://www.catster.com/lifestyle/how-to-identify-and-stop-food-aggression-in-cats
https://excitedcats.com/how-to-break-up-a-cat-fight/
