Feline Nutrition: Facts, Fun And Physiology, Cats Are Different Than Dogs

Behaviour

Domestic cats have not evolved far from the wild cat model;

they display a much narrower diversity of phenotype than

dogs. They are anatomically and physiologically adapted to

eating 10-20 small meals throughout the day and night. This

allows them to hunt and eat when their prey are active. Small

rodents make up the majority of their diet, with rabbits,

birds, insects, frogs and reptiles making up a smaller proportion.

The average mouse provides 30 kcal of energy,

which is about 8% of an average feral (i.e. active) cat’s

requirements. Repeated hunting behaviours thoughout the

24 hour period are needed to meet this need; this has evolved

into the normal grazing feeding behaviour of domestic cats.

Cats eat their prey head first. This is a tactile response to

the sensation from the direction of the hair. Cats are very

sensitive to the feel of a food (physical form), its odour and

taste. When offering novel foods, this should be kept in

mind. Most cats prefer foods that are solid and moist, like

flesh. They prefer their food at fresh-killed body temperature

rather than room temperature or out of the refrigerator or

hot. They dislike foods that are powdery, sticky or greasy.

Flavour preferences include those which are similar to

those of prey, namely fat, meat extracts, protein hydrolysates

(„digest“), and certain amino acids that are abundent in muscle

(alanine, proline, lysine, and histidine). Cats cannot taste

sweet; they lack the second gene required to do so. Generally,

cats avoid eating plant materials, even expressing the

ingesta from entrails before eating them. Variations on these

basic preferences occur and are a result of early experience.

Under stressful situations, cats will refuse a novel food;

under other circumstances, the same cat may be very adventuresome

and chose a new diet over their familiar food.

Anatomy and Physiology

As a true carnivore, cats‘ teeth are for tearing, not for

chewing. Cats have 30 adult teeth; they have fewer premolars

and molars than dogs. They don’t have fissured crowns,

which is a hallmark of omnivores. Their jaws have limited

latero-medial and cranio-caudal movement, resulting in limited

grinding ability. Additionally, they lack occlusal surfaces

for grinding. The scissor-like action of the caranassial

teeth is ideal for delivering the cervical neck bite used to

transect the spinal cord and immobilize or kill prey. The

grooves on their canine teeth are called “blood grooves”.

Feeding dry food has little impact on dental health as cats do

not actually chew. Unless the diet has an enzymatic formulation

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