Why do cats cover food?

Felines are animals that always have a compelling reason for each of their actions. In this way, if your cat buries the food rest assured that this is not an act done for pleasure. Also, there are cats that scratch the ground right after eating or place objects on the feeder, why?

In this article we will talk about these issues and we will help you to understand a little better the behavior of your hairy partner, both to offer all the care you need and to improve coexistence and, above all, your communication. Keep reading and discover why cats cover food and dig the ground.

The feline instinct

The cat is an excellent born survivor and his natural instincts prove it. If our furry companions lived in the wild they would have a den or burrow that they would use as a home. In it they would eat, sleep and hide their most precious objects because they would consider it a safe place and safe from predators. For this very reason, and to ensure that their territory remains a completely safe site, once all the food has been swallowed, they will dig and remove the soil to Cover the smell and avoid attracting other animals that could end his life. Likewise, in case of surplus food, they would bury it for the same reason: eliminate the evidence of its passage.

Other behaviors typical of the feline instinct to survive are to bury the feces, also to eliminate their traces, urinate to mark their territory, hunt smaller animals, snort to warn, etc. How many of them does your cat present? Possibly the majority, and that is that the felines are animals that have managed to preserve their wild essence very well, despite the domestication of the species.

My cat digs next to the feeder, why?

Although cats have been living with humans for decades, the truth is that they still have some of their most primal instincts that have helped them to survive. As we discussed in the previous section, one of them is that of hide your trail to prevent larger or more dangerous animals from coming to their lair and devouring them. In this way, some cats tend to dig the ground right next to the feeder when they have finished eating, a fact that leads their human companions to ask themselves: why do they do it?

We return to the same thing, by pure instinct. In the wild the cat would scramble to cover its smell and that of the food that has just tasted in order to stay safe from predators, or other cats willing to snatch his precious home. Since your furry companion is not wild and has no dirt to dig next to his food, he simulates scratching the ground. Of course, not all felines present this behavior, and if you live with more than one cat you may observe that one cat does it and the rest do not.

Place objects to cover your food because.

Want to hide the evidence that indicate that he has been there. As we say, his instinct leads him to protect himself from predators and, if there is not enough food left, he is very likely to try to bury it or cover it by placing objects on top. Yes, although we can think that they do it to protect the food and to finish it after a while or the next day, nothing is further from reality. Your goal is to hide your trace to stay safe, not save the food to eat it again. In this way, many are the cats that cover the food and then do not finish it again, but wait for their human to change it for new food. Of course, there are also cases of cats that do return and have just eaten leftovers, but they are a minority.

My cat covers the food and does not eat it again

If your furry companion is one of those who do not return to finish the leftovers left behind, and you want to end this behavior to avoid throwing away so much food, do not worry. Your natural instinct will not eradicate it, but you can opt for another very effective measure that will allow you to take advantage of all your cat’s food. This technique is none other than that of control the amounts of food that you offer to your feline, in this way you will get him to eat everything his body needs and he will not leave any remains in the bowl. For this, we suggest that you consult our article on the amount of daily food for cats. In this way, you will also favor that you are in your ideal weight, fleeing from the dreaded feline obesity.

My cat not only covers the food, it hides its toys in the drinking fountain

On the other hand, it is also usual to observe cats that, in addition to burying the excess food, submerge their toys in the water of their drinking fountain and even place them on the empty food bowl. As we commented at the beginning of the article, in the wild the cat eats and sleeps in the place it considers safe and has as its lair, in this way, the animal hides its most precious objects in the water because his instinct marks him that they will be safe there. The same happens when you deposit them on the empty feeder.

The cat has started to cover his food suddenly

If your cat before did not tend to cover food with objects, or bury or dig next to the feeder, but has to start presenting this behavior suddenly, most likely is trying to tell you something. Here the instinct of the wild cat does not come into play, but the language of the animal to communicate with you, its companion, and tell you that something is not right. The most frequent causes that can lead a cat to cover the food or scratch the ground in a sudden way are the following:

• You have changed your food and the new food does not like it.
• You have moved your feeder instead and do not consider it entirely safe.

As you can see, both reasons are easily recognizable and simple to solve. If the new food does not quite please you, you just have to keep looking until you find one that meets all your needs. For this, you can consult our homemade food recipe for cats with chicken, a natural food that, in addition to providing many nutritional benefits, they love because it simulates the food they would consume in “freedom”. Regarding the second cause, ask yourself why change the location bowl and if this change is for your own benefit or for the animal’s benefit. If you can put it back in the place where the cat felt safe eating, do it.

If you want to read more articles similar to Why do cats cover food?, we recommend that you enter in our Curiosities section of the animal world.