10 Ways to Get Your Cat to Eat

1. Heat up your cat’s food. Smell is the first factor cats use to determine if they will even try a food. Warming your cat’s food to enhance its smell can be a very effective way to entice cats to eat.
2. Try a tasty, high-value addition. If you feed your cat dry food, try adding canned food, chicken broth (low or no sodium), or tuna (in moderation due to mercury concerns) to your cat’s meal to improve the smell.
3. Make sure your cat’s plate or bowl is clean. The smell of old, remnant food could be turning your cat off.
4. Check to see if it’s gone stale. If you feed dry food, make sure it isn’t stale and hasn’t absorbed moisture. If your cat has suddenly gone off their dry food, this could be the culprit. The expiration date noted on bags of dry cat food only applies to unopened bags. Once the bag is opened, it can begin to oxidize and go rancid within as little as 14 days. To prevent this, buy smaller bags of cat food or store your cat’s kibble in the freezer.
5. Experiment with different cat foods. Switch dry for wet, or try a different flavour/protein source and see what tempts your cat.
6. Change your cat’s feeding location. Is the location of your cat’s food dish stressing them out? Are other pets or little kids terrorizing your cat while eating? Perhaps it’s too high traffic or too isolated. It could also feel unsafe if your cat feels backed into a corner while eating. Cats also prefer to have their food and water sources separate rather than side by side.
7. Is your cat being bullied? If you have multiple cats, make sure one cat isn’t preventing the other from accessing their food. To prevent this from happening, make sure there are ample resources/dining areas for both cats.
8. Give your cat individual access for a stress-free mealtime. If your cat won’t eat because other pets are stealing their food (looking at you Rover!), try a smart feeder such as the SureFeed® Microchip Pet Feeder ($199, surepetcare.com/ModernFeeder). The SureFeed Feeder only opens for your cat’s existing microchip or RFID tag ($25 – sold separately) and closes when they are finished eating, locking out other pets. Use the included Split Bowl that holds both wet and dry food to help keep your cat’s meal fresher for longer.
9. Don’t let wet food sit out. Toss wet food that has been sitting out for a while. How long it can sit out depends on the climate, but most experts agree it should be tossed after 1-2 hours and certainly if it has sat out for four hours. If it has formed a dry crust, it’s not fresh and the dry exterior is likely dissuading your cat from eating their food. Wet food that has sat out could have had flies lay eggs in it (eww).
10. Work up an appetite. Exercising your cat through play provides important mental and physical stimulation and can help stimulate your cat’s appetite.

PRO TIP

If your cat is not eating as they do normally, consult your vet right away to ensure an underlying illness isn’t at play. Dental pain issues can also cause cats to be reluctant to eat.

This article originally appeared in the award-winning Modern Cat magazine. Subscribe today!