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Cats exhibit many perplexing and unexplained behaviors. For example, many owners wonder why their cats scratch around their food bowls. The cat finishes their meal and then gets to work clawing at the floor. They are often incredibly focused on the task, scratching at lightning speed, and the owner laughs at the silly behavior or scratches their head in confusion.
While this behavior seems funny to us, cats take it seriously, as it’s something that used to help with the survival of the species. The purpose of this behavior can range from the instinct to protect their kittens or hide the smell of an unfinished meal to the desire to clean up after themselves. That is to say, it helped ensure the species’ longevity when all cats were wild and didn’t have fluffy human-made beds to retreat to at night or owners to provide regular meals.
Keep reading to learn more about this baffling behavior and the five common reasons that your cat is scratching around their food bowl so intensely.
The 5 Reasons Why Cats Scratch Their Food Bowl
1. To Hide the Scent of Their Food
Felines are obligate carnivores and need a diet that contains animal protein to survive. Wild and feral cats need to hunt and kill their own food. While you provide food for your housecat so they don’t need to hunt for their next meal, their hunting instincts are still intact. Felines in the wild can easily fall prey to bigger predators, so they may bury what’s left of their food when they’re full to protect themselves. This is known as food caching. Buried food won’t smell as strong as food out in the open, so it will not attract scavengers or predators.
If you’ve recently adopted a second pet, you may notice your first cat food caching a lot. This is likely their attempt at hiding their leftovers and the scent of food from your new kitty.
2. To Protect Their Kittens
If you have a mother cat that recently had a litter of kittens, you may notice her burying her food more often or for the first time. Researchers in Germany have found that female cats are quick to respond to calls from their kittens that convey greater urgency, meaning that mother cats can evaluate the emotional context of their kitten’s mews and respond accordingly.1 Since a mother cat is in tune and protective of her offspring, it only makes sense that she won’t do anything that could jeopardize their safety. So, she may try burying her food in order to avoid attracting predators, so she can protect her kittens.
3. For Pleasure
Behavior that you may think is scratching might actually be kneading. Your kitty may be kneading around their food dish as an act of pleasure. Kneading is a sign of contentment and is something your pet might do when they anticipate a pleasant experience (like eating a delicious meal). It is also a behavior that begins in kittenhood, as a kitten will knead on their mother’s stomach as they’re nursing. Many cats will carry this behavior into adulthood, kneading on their humans, blankets, carpets, or their other furry siblings.
You may notice this behavior more often if the flooring around your cat’s food dish is carpet.
4. Because They Have Something to Say About Their Food
Your kitty might be scratching at their food bowl because you’ve served too much. It really comes back to your kitty trying to protect themselves from predators. If your pet sees their uneaten food as something that may attract unwanted attention, their instincts tell them to hide it by burying it. Predators cannot find what they cannot smell. Even though your cat’s food stays perfectly still in the dish, no matter how hard they try to bury it, you can bless their sweet heart for trying to protect themselves.
Your cat might also be scratching the floor because they simply are displeased with what you’ve served. Some cats will tell you they don’t like their food by not eating it, while others like to make a big show of it by trying to cover up the food as they do their feces.
5. To Clean Up
Cats are professional self-groomers, a behavior they learn in kittenhood. A mother cat’s first job is to remove the amniotic sac and lick her kittens to stimulate breathing. As the kitten is nursing, the mother will lick at their hind end to encourage them to urinate and defecate. Kittens will start self-grooming within a few weeks of being born and will continue to groom themselves throughout their lives. In fact, cats often spend most of their day grooming.
Since felines are so inherently neat, they do what they can to keep their favorite spots tidy and spotless. Your kitty may be scratching at their dish to try to clean up the area.
Can I Stop My Cat From Scratching the Floor?
While pawing or scratching the floor aren’t harmful behaviors, you might want to discourage your cat if they start ruining your flooring or carpet. The easiest way to prevent floor scratching is to monitor your cat during meal time and remove the bowl when they’ve finished. You might also consider providing smaller portions to avoid any leftovers. Also, ensure your cat’s food bowl is in a safe and quiet place, so they don’t feel threatened when they’re eating.
If you prefer to free-feed your kitty (leaving dry food portions out all day long), a puzzle feeder is a great investment that can stimulate their instinctive need to hunt. This distraction may be all your cat needs to stop scratching.
Never punish your cat for scratching. Remember, while slightly annoying, this behavior is entirely natural and not harmful. Punishing your cat for doing what they were born to do can lead to problematic behaviors and make it difficult for the two of you to bond.
For help managing these behaviors, we recommend speaking with a veterinarian.
Final Thoughts
The reason your cat is scratching around their food bowl boils down to protection. Even though your indoor cat is now safe from predators that once preyed on their ancestors, this natural and instinctive behavior is something that’s been carried through their genes for centuries. Furthermore, scratching around the bowl is generally harmless and cute, so there’s really no need to worry if you notice your kitty doing this. The next time that your cat is furiously pawing away around their food dish, you should think about their ancient ancestors and what they needed to do to survive in the wild. However, make sure not to overfeed your cat, as this may predispose them to obesity and a range of related health issues.
- See Also: Why Is My Cat Scratching the Floor?
Featured Image Credit: Svetlana Rey, Shutterstock
