Super Bowls for a Happy and Healthy Cat!
Jazmine enjoying her dinner in her Dr. Catsby feeding bowl.
Hey everyone! The human is taking a break today, leaving us kitties the responsibly of blogging today, and since it’s Super Bowl Sunday, we thought we’d talk about bowls. We’re not sure why bowls can’t be super on Friday, or Monday, or even Wednesday, because for us, any day with a bowl full of food is a super day. But to be honest, we’d be happy if you put food on a plate, on the floor, or just about anywhere else, if it was something yummy to eat! Our human, she’s a bit more rigid when it comes to eating etiquette, insisting we eat from special, ergonomically correct bowls designed specifically for us kitties!
Why? Well, since you asked, apparently it has to do with our senses and anatomy. We kitties have very delicate and sensitive whiskers. They almost act like another set of eyes to us and are so sensitive we can detect even the slightest change in our surroundings. I’m sure you’ve seen us with that faraway look, seeing something you don’t, and part of it is because we can sense things before you do.
A cat’s whiskers are a marvel of technology.
Anyhow, there are some bowls that can force our whiskers into close contact with the sides of the bowl, causing us stress and discomfort (known as whisker fatigue), which we translate to things like leaving food in our bowl even though we’re still hungry, pulling food out of our bowl with our mouth or paw to eat off the floor, leaving a mess on the floor (a classic favorite of ours), only eating from the center of the bowl, acting aggressive toward each other during mealtime (another favorite of ours), and standing by the bowl before eating for a period of time, pacing around the bowl, or being hesitant to eat.
To remedy this, our human feeds us from bowls made with a wide and shallow design, slightly raised from the floor to promote better digestion for us. One of her favorites is the Dr. Catsby feeding bowl. Its bacteria resistant stainless steel makes cleanup a breeze (for her, never once have we lifted a paw to wash a dish). It also has a removable rubber base underneath it, so our food doesn’t slide all around when we eat.
She likes a bowl that’s elevated because it’s a healthier way for us to eat. This brings our food to a more comfortable eating level – especially for our senior buddy, Zee, who is becoming arthritic and finding it difficult to stoop down to floor level to eat. Raised dishes also help prevent vomiting, something that is caused by a reflex muscle in the throat that reacts when we lift our head after eating from a level below our stomach.
Zee eating from a bowl with a raised pedestal to help with his arthritis.
As we said, we’d be fine eating off the floor, or stealing food from an unsuspecting human’s plate, or even rummaging through the garbage if you’d let us, but I guess it is nice of our human to be so concerned about our health and well-being. And it is nice having a bowl that makes it easy to scarf down every morsel of food, without any of it getting stuck to the sides of the bowl.
Poor Mia…not a single bit of air time about super bowls…
We hope you enjoyed our super bowl post today. And if you’re bored today, we overheard the human saying there’s something on TV later called the Super Bowl. What an odd coincidence. Do you think they know about how super our bowls are? Do you have a favorite super bowl for your cat?
I switched from bowls to small plates for their wet food some time ago but you are right about the elevation and I should find a way to raise them a little. Their dry food is currently in elevated bowls. Not perfect either way.
Happy Super, or should I, Supper Bowl to you all!
Purrs
ERin
With bunnies you don’t get that problem,we’re so close to the ground,xx Speedy
Our elder lady eats from a bowl like Zee’s and loves it. Our younger lady and the “baby” of the family have stainless bowls that give them plenty of room to eat comfortably. Cats deserve dishes that are easily cleaned and comfortable to eat from! Enjoy your Sunday, all!
Really, Mia, we don’t get the football thing either but we hope your humans are enjoying it.
I have a bowl in mind after working out lots of bowls and plates and materials. I much prefer tempered glass, like Pyrex, because the surface is hardened and nothing can infiltrate the tempered surface, bacteria can’t grow in or on i, and nothing in the glass itself can infiltrate or react with the food. Most bowls are too deep, but small plates with a lip work well. Ovals are special, and if I had the materials I’d design and manufacture the bowls of my kitties’ dreams! We do elevate bowls if it’s clear kitties have some difficulties getting down to it. Right now everyone crouches to eat, but we do have a raised water bowl as well as fountains that put the water up higher.
I’m eating off the same set of dishes I got when I moved in here 29 years ago. 🙂
Never heard of the whisker problem while eating, and it does explain some behaviours around here. Thanks!
Good info, thank you! Have fun with the Super Supper Bowl today!
The Super Bowl bores me, but you cuties never do. XO
That’s the kind of bowl we watch closely, MOL ! Purrs
Mia you did make us laugh. Some bowl eh??
Have a good week,
Marjorie and the Dash Kitten Crew
I would LURV to have nice cat bowls, but since The Hubby is chief bottle-washer, he doesn’t want to have to fuss. So, we use low-sided Pyrex baking dishes, that are rectangular. It’s very hard to break them, and there is no whisker fatigue. The Island Cats have lovely cat bowls too; I’ve seen them, and they are tall so the kitties don’t have to bow low.