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Nathalie Sari - Tiertraining & Verhaltensberatung

This article was written by TOBALIE in cooperation with Nathalie Sari - Tiertraining & Verhaltensberatung

Cats are predators, that’s no big secret. From an early age the cute animals sneak up on, hunt and catch their prey, but for domesticated cats there is no longer any reason necessary for survival to hunt. A well cared house tiger who is regularly fed and roaming free roamers also catch their delicacies outside the family meals. Most cats spend two to eight hours a day with typical hunting behaviour.

You often see your cat playing with her food, obviously prepared for consumption: 
This, for cat-like, typical behavior is important and healthy, because according to its nature the cat is the born hunter.

Cats are the born hunters

Playfully, the cat learns from an early age to sneak up, hunt and finally kill. The classic picture of a cat lurking in front of a goldfish bowl or a bird cage says a lot about the basic instinct of elegant hunters. Nevertheless, some cats also make friends with animals that would fit into their natural predator-prey system away from the home. Cats are individuals and will, depending on their character, have more or less need to hunt or not.

Cats love to play with their captured prey. This behavior typical for house tigers is often interpreted as cruel, but has an understandable background: cats  often only want to make sure that the prey is weakened enough to be killed safely. According to other interpretations, this is purely a matter of practice for the hunt, or of having fun with it. Because cats are made for hunting and have fun living out their talents.

Green Rubin - Katzenangel

Die nachhaltige und langlebige Katzenangel aus Sisal und Holz.

How is it done?

In nature, small mammals, birds, insects but also amphibians and reptiles are among their prey. After listening and spying on the prey, the cat lurks and stalks slowly. If she is close enough, she catches the prey and holds it with her front paws to kill it with a neck bite. After the tension of the hunt most cats carry their meal into the own precinct in order to eat it there.  

Be aware that this ancient instinct cannot simply be turned off. If you have a more lazy guy a la Garfield at home, motivate your cat to play the hunting game.  
Besides ringing balls and the good old flashlight most cats have a lot of fun with flying game objects: Even a long piece of string (attention: swallow danger) can provide hours of fun and entertainment. Because of their efficient hocks and muscles, cats can jump very high from a standing position and also fish their prey from the air. Paper balls or battery powered beetles are also popular hunting games. Throwing treats through the apartment so that your cat has to hunt them down is also a super workload.  

Each kitten  contains a perfect little hunter, even if the hunting instinct in cats is limited to a toy mouse or disassembling cartons. If your darling is an outdoor cat and occasionally puts a dead mouse or bird prey on your door mat, don’t be shocked or even angry at your treasure, because this is nothing more than a gift to you and an official proof of love.

Katze frisst vogel

Summary

Apart from the fact that the natural hunting instinct in cats is simply part of their nature, they also enjoy being on the hunt and testing and improving their skills in the game. A sense of achievement in hunting provides additional happiness hormones. This behavior is not problematic for outdoor visitors, unless your faithful friend has chosen the canary of your neighbor as a victim. TOBALIE wishes you lots of fun playing with your little predator.