Slower eating + toy obsession

[Gem90]

Hi, all!

I'm coming up to 2 months with my new cat, Toebean, and as a hyper-alert new cat parent I'm curious what kind of behavioural changes I'll start to see as he settles in according to the 3-3-3 rule.

One thing I've noticed is he's starting to walk away from his food sooner. There's one food he will always scoff in one go, but everything else, even his kibble, he's begun to nibble and leave for later. I could feed him his favourite at every meal, but I obviously don't want to be reliant on one brand. Unless he really hates the food, he finishes a portion within an hour or two. He's gone from a multicat household to being an only cat — is this a sign that he's getting more comfortable with his resources? Is he just revealing a picky nature (he was kibble-only until we got him)? Or is there something else going on??

And I'm learning that he looooves wand toys and feathers. A new Da Bird-style toy arrived today and he's never run and jumped after a toy quite like that before! He's just over a year old and has a lot of energy, and with this toy it feels like he could play indefinitely — but he had about half an hour strenuous play until he was panting hard, and I figured that was enough. He didn't seem to think so. He meowed for more when it got put away, and tried to claw the toybox!

So with energetic cats and their favourite toys, how do you know when they've had enough play? And how do you encourage them not to fixate on that one toy (as I have a feeling he'll not have eyes for any others now)?

Thanks, and hope everyone's having a good week!

 

[ArtNJ]

What to expect? Well 1 1/2 (ish) years is about when the play drive starts to noticeably dip a bit, but the amount and rate of decline is totally variable. For example, when you hear about a cat playing so roughly with a new kitten that the owner is scared, its almost always a 1 - 1 1/2 year old. Stupid enthusiasm for play is normal.

I'm not going to talk eating with ya, because honestly trying to figure out why cats eat what when is almost rocket science. My personal philosophy is that If kitties are eating the right amount, and not whining for more, then I give thanks and don't question it. Well, thats a lie. I've certainly questioned many odd food related behaviors over the years - tough not too - but answers are a whole nother thing. For example, I am a strong believer in cat telepathy, where one cat will telepathically tell the other cat ("oh no, trust me, you DO NOT WANT TO EAT THAT") as to certain flavors, brands. Its the only explanation! ... and that is the sort o maddness that happens when you question food behaviors in more detail than you need too!

 

[Gem90]

Hah, thank you!