Feb 16, 2021 15:00:00

What can I do to curb my cat's hunting instinct?

Cats, which have been loved by humans for a long time, are carnivorous animals like tigers and lions, and sometimes hunt wild animals. In recent years, it has been

regarded as a problem that cats kept outside are accelerating the extinction of wild animals, but in order to suppress the hunting instinct of cats, it is effective to increase the playing time and change the type of food. A new study has shown that.

Provision of High Meat Content Food and Object Play Reduce Predation of Wild Animals by Domestic Cats Felis catus: Current Biology
https://www.cell.com/current-biology/fulltext/S0960-9822(20) 31896-0

Scientists have found a way to stop your cat from killing so much wildlife
https://www.zmescience.com/science/scientists-have-found-a-way-to-stop-your-cat-from-killing-so-much-wildlife/

According to the research team, there are more than 600 million cats inhabiting the world, and cats are one of the most abundant carnivorous creatures on the planet. It is reported that such cats kill 30 billion wild animals annually in North America, and that rare animals are rapidly declining due to hunting by cats. In addition, hunting by cats also carries the risk of spreading the plague, so there is a need for ways to control hunting.

The number of wild animals killed by outside cats is 30 billion a year in North America alone, experts say, 'Keep cats indoors' --GIGAZINE

The simplest way to control cat hunting is to keep your cat indoors, not outdoors. However, many owners do not like to limit the behavior of cats.

Robbie McDonald , a member of the research team, said, 'Restricting the behavior of cats is not accepted by their owners and does not address the cat's desire to'hunt'. We have many. We aimed to curb the cat's desires in a way that was easy for the owner to practice, 'he said, looking for an effective way to reduce the frequency with which cats hunt.

The research team worked with 219 households in South West England to experiment with 355 cats. The cats that were the subjects of the experiment were 'A. Put on a collar with a bell', 'B. Give food rich in animal protein', 'C. Give normal food using a

puzzle feeder ', 'D. Wear a colorful collar ' Birdsbesafe ' that makes it easier for birds to recognize cats. '' E. Play with the owner for 5 to 10 minutes a day with a rat or fish toy. '' F. Control group (do not do anything special, usually The frequency of hunting was recorded over 12 weeks, divided into 6 groups (living on the street).

As a result of the experiment, the frequency of hunting was reduced by 36% in the group fed with food high in animal protein. In addition, the frequency of hunting is reduced by 25% even in groups that play with their owners for 5 to 10 minutes a day. In the 'Birds be safe' group, the frequency of hunting mammals did not change significantly, but the frequency of hunting birds decreased by 42%.

'Some cat foods contain soy-derived protein, and such cat foods contain soy-derived proteins,' McDonald's said of the significant reduction in hunting frequency in groups fed animal protein-rich foods. It has a good nutritional balance, but it lacks important nutrients for cats, and seems to be driving cats to hunt. ' ... apparently ...