Can "finicky-ness" Be A Learned Behavior?

Once upon a time we had six cats who were not finicky and pretty much ate whatever wet food they were given. We would alternate brands/flavors so they had some variety and they ate fine like this for many years.
Then Buddy came along. He is a Very Picky Kitty! He has been this way since he was a kitten. So we usually had to open several cans before we hit upon the brand/flavor combo that he preferred for that meal. The other cats would eat his rejects.
Over the past 6 months the other cats have been growing more and more picky themselves. We open sooo many cans now, trying to get everyone to eat! They very rarely will eat leftovers out of the refrigerator either, even if I warm them and add a topper. This is resulting in a LOT of wasted food.
There probably isn't a solution to the problem, but I was wondering if the others learned to be finicky from Buddy (who seems determined to be the alpha cat even though he is the youngest) or did I possibly teach them to be picky by offering too many options?

I don’t know that I have an answer, but I know my boyfriend learned to be picky as a child because his mom would make him special dinners if he didn’t like what she made everyone else. I’d imagine your cats are holding it for favorite foods.

Will the original unpicky cats eventually eat the rejected food? Or is feeding that many too complicated?

Olive used to eat everything: any type of wet or dry food, the human’s chicken dinner, bacon, bowls of egg that were intended for humans ...

Over time she realized that she would always have food, so it was over six months before I found out she hates turkey and prefers pate. She stopped going after human food. I find if I hold out and don’t give her anything else to eat, over time she finishes the “rejected” food. I’m fortunate that my cat food budget isn’t very tight, so an unopened rejected food gets donated rather then fed again since she has many other foods she likes. But I usually make her finish the opened can (I am mean lol).

There is no doubt that cats closely observe what is going on in their world. I know that they DO learn behaviors. I had a cat many years ago whom I rescued after she was hit by a car. She had some brain damage, but could still have a good quality of life. She was also heavily pregnant when hit, and could not be spayed/aborted at that time. She recovered in record time, except for a tendency to be walking along, jump in the air, spin in a circle, then continue walking as if nothing had happened. She successfully gave birth, and within 8 weeks, every one of those kittens would walk along, jump in the air, spin in a circle, and keep walking. So yeah, your other cats learned that they could get what they wanted from your picky child.

What to do about it? Other than starving them out (without risking hepatic lipidosis...no more than 48 hours), I have no clue.

It might help if they were a little hungrier, so I would extend the time between meals and reduce the amount they are fed. Most healthy cats will not starve themselves so I wouldn’t be so quick to provide a substitute food. Perhaps they are learning if they don’t eat there will be other choices coming?

Hi!
On the one hand, I know there are some veterinarians and others who believe that those of us owners who work to give a reluctant cat what it will eat actually do cause finickiness.

On the other hand, I have a cat who is older, and he must eat or he will lose weight. If that means opening up some cans and having some waste then of course I'll do that. In his case, I could leave a food out for days, but if he won't touch it at first, he's done with it.

In addition my boy would never eat refrigerated foods, I could absolutely rely on that.

weebeasties said:

We would alternate brands/flavors so they had some variety and they ate fine like this for many years.

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weebeasties said:

The other cats would eat his rejects.

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However, in your case due to the fact that your cats were just fine with variety and would eat the "rejects", I personally think that some of the problems you are running into is that the manufacturers frequently change the recipes of their foods.

Things have finally gotten better in this house lately due to a LONG, three-year search through different brands.

I really hope I don't jinx this LOL but I have even found a brand that is a pate --which he has NEVER been willing to eat no matter what, and he'll eat it after it's been refrigerated - a first.

So, I think, in your case, I'm pointing the finger at the food

I dunno, but if one of my current two won't eat a flavor, the other won't either. Always. And they are not siblings or even close in age.

There are two of them that take medication and HAVE to eat at mealtimes. I suppose it wouldn't hurt anything to try and wait out the others though. Maybe give them an hour to see if they change their minds before I offer something else. It will never work with Buddy, I'm afraid. He is the most STUBBORN cat I have ever known. Completely loveable, but stubborn.

Furballsmom said:

However, in your case due to the fact that your cats were just fine with variety and would eat the "rejects", I personally think that some of the problems you are running into is that the manufacturers frequently change the recipes of their foods.


So, I think, in your case, I'm pointing the finger at the food

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Normally I would be inclined to agree with you, but we have so many different brands here that they eat one day then refuse the next. BFF, Core, Fancy Feast, Sheba, Halo, Iams, Muse, Taste of the Wild, Authority...
There's no way that many brands have changed the formula all at once.
I sort of think that Buddy put the idea in their heads to be picky, and then I reinforced it by caving in to their demands. Sigh...my spoiled little bunch!

Juniper does the same thing with many foods. She is allergic to chicken, so we're somewhat limited in the foods she can eat, but we try to give her some variety, and we often cook little unseasoned pieces of whatever safe proteins we're eating for her to try. Often, she'll seem enthusiastic about something one day, and then reject it the next, as if the novelty has worn off.

So I guess she's stuck with her kibble....

FWIW,
I put down some food yesterday and didn't offer an alternative. Only one of the cats was eating what I put down. I had to get ready for class so I couldn't watch them, but an hour later almost all the food was gone.
I don't know if everyone ate, or if the one kitty just pigged-out! I'm going to wait until my next day off to try this again.
I will have time to observe and know if everbody eats.

I'll be super curious

Cats are very much like kids...they'll do whatever they know they can get away with. Hekitty KNOWS I can't let her go more than 2 days without eating, and she'll hold out on me. YES, a cat will starve itself, at least to the point of hepatic lipidosis, if not actually to death. Stubborn brats.

Ailish is a pretty good eater. but we do have our moments. My rule is that she gets a meal and it's available until the next meal. At the next meal if the food isn't finished it gets tossed and she gets the next meal in full. If she hasn't touched the uneaten meal I may try something else. This is rare in the extreme. If she's eaten some of it and the can was fresh I just feed her more of the same. This usually gets eaten. If we're getting to the bottom of the can I may toss it and open a new one. Generally she cleans her plate, but it may take a few mini-meals. She gets four meals a day, but I think if she had her way she'd get even more, but smaller, meals. With this set up I waste very little food, but that said, she really isn't a picky eater at all. Hoping it stays that way.