How to Help Your Cat Satisfy Its Hunting Instincts

That cat of yours might be a cute little furball, but hiding inside is a skilled hunter. Cats are, at the end of the day, predators. They are born to hunt, but that might be a problem once you’ve domesticated him/her.According to veterinary experts, the predatory instinct in cats doesn’t disappear once they’re domesticated. You might be providing them with all the nutrition and comfort possible, but natural instinct is natural instinct.Therefore, it is necessary to provide your cat with the necessary amount of stimulation and environmental enrichment. Though it’s possible that your cat might not let his/her instincts take over, it is still possible that a threshold may be crossed at some point in the future. The animal in your cat cannot be caged in for long and any forceful attempt to do so will only make him/her more frustrated.So, the right thing to do is engage your cat’s hunting instinct. Here are a few tips to help you with that.

Don’t let your cat be indoors all the time. There are ways in which you can bring him/her outside without risking the safety of other animals in the area. For instance, you can set up a cat enclosure with a fine mesh cover.This will help your cat enjoy the outdoors, while also protecting his/her typical prey from being harmed.

You can also try training your cat with a leash and harness. Take him/her for walks like you would do with a dog. However, make sure you’ve got an eye on him/her. You must supervise. Leaving a tied cat unsupervised can lead to several problems.For starters, your cat might end up becoming prey to a larger animal.

Cats are hunters and hunters love to move. So, how do you get your cat to make the most of his/her hunting instincts within a domesticated environment? Well, you can engage in what is called “Interactive Play” using certain toys.There are remote controlled mice and other unique toys that move. Your cat might find such toys engaging. You can also try hiding such toys and making your cat hunt for it. This can help satiate his/her inner hunter/huntress instinct.

Once the above-mentioned steps stop working, you should actually consider setting your cat free to do his/her hunting. It is part of a cat’s natural biological programming and not letting him/her satisfy those killer instincts is actually cruel.So, let your cat out of the house once in a while for a real hunt. This will help your cat satiate his need to follow the natural script.