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A new study from Iwate University in Japan has explained why cats often leave their food while eating, and it’s not because they’re full up.
Pet owners are pretty well accustomed to having to buy different brands of food every few months for their furry friends. It can be an annoying time when your dog or cat decides that they no longer want to eat the same food they’ve been eating for the past year.
It’s also annoying when, after setting their food down, they decide that they don’t want to eat it after taking a few bites. As much as you might try to strike up a conversation with them about it, they can’t actually respond and tell you what’s up.
Cats are especially prone to this, often leaving their food and deciding to go back to it hours later. And while you might think that they’re just full, that’s not the case.
Cats don’t stop eating because they’re full
As per new research from the Iwate University, they found that cats simply need to have a new smell put in front of them to help.
According to their findings, which have been translated by NHK, cats will stop eating because the “familiarity with the smell” of their food temporarily reduces their appetite.
In their testing, the university used 12 cats, which were fed with the same food at 10-minute intervals. When a new scent was added for a sixth feeding, the cats began chowing down once again, proving they weren’t full.
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UnsplashCats aren’t full, they just want a new smell.
“When developing pet food, even if the taste and nutrients are the same, developing something like a ‘scent topping’ could create variety in a cat’s diet,” Professor Masao Miyazaki of Iwate University’s Faculty of Agriculture said.
“It could also be used to get sick cats that can only eat prescribed food to eat more.”
Cats are also able to eat In-N-Out Burger’s secret Pup Patty, which is just a burger without salt added.
