# How does your cat behave around meal time?



## kaylan (Mar 1, 2012)

My cats are very much routine cats. Their bodies are locked into eating at 4am and 4pm. Which sucks because we feed them at 5am and 5pm, but daylight savings time has kinda messed things up. So they are still adjusting for the season.

Usually if someone is not awake yet, they start meowing outside bedroom doors if no one is awake and downstairs yet in the morning. (they are not allowed in bedrooms at night because they sneak into beds and its a pain cleaning fur out of my hair before going outside). 

If someone is asleep in the living room, the cats start jumping on the top of the sofa and scratching the sides of it. They dont normally really scratch furniture of their scratching post much...so I always thought it was funny that theyd do that to signal that its meal time. Heck, if its the afternoon and Im awake sitting on the couch...they start hopping on it and scratching until I decide to feed them. They just keep on being annoying sometimes until I relent and feed them early.

How bout your kitties?


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## BrittyBear (Feb 4, 2014)

Mines different because since my cats are allowed outside alot we keep food down for them... since the kids are in school and i'm taking care of my little brother most of the day. I dont fill up the bowl of course, i put enough down for the day and they eat when they get hungry. They gave themselves a schedule pretty much and only eat a few bites at certain times. But one of my cats- Shadow- is an oddball. And likes to be watched during his meal times. He will walk up to me and let out this pathetic sounding meow until i get up to see what he wants. He leads me to the bowl, and i'm thinking its empty. Then he will start eating. As soon as i walk away though he will follow and start crying again. Its always in the mornings after he comes in from his walk and at night before bed- thats the times he eats. (Each cat has developed a different schedule.) I find it quite funny. I know he will eat even if nobody watches him, he just likes to be watched if me or my sister happens to be around. Thats Shadows mealtime habit xD 

Ashes has this habit of his when he is eating. He takes out one kibble at a time with his paw. Drags it to his mouth and eats it. Like he is a person using his hands. 

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## Blumpy710 (Feb 24, 2014)

Mine are allowed in my bedroom and start driving me nuts at 6:00am. They step on me and tap my cheeks with their paws. If I ignore them for too long my oldest starts meowing like crazy. It's kind of cute.


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## TabbCatt (Mar 26, 2014)

My cats sleep with me on my bed too. One cat is like Blumpy's, wakes me up at dawn (about 6am), starts purring, steps on my face, hair, pillow, and sits near my face, :!: ugh. He'll then use the litter box (also in my bedroom), and then start pouncing on my dresser, jump back down, and try to chew my lamp cord or cell phone charger (if it's there) . Cat number two always wakes up later, but has developed a bad habit of scratching the corners and underneath my box spring mattress to shreds! :cussing Ugh, really frustrating, as I placed a scratcher there but they still prefer to scratch on the bed! I may buy sisal mats now, to correct that bad habit and place it there instead.

Love them regardless but their morning wake up routines drives me nuts! :sad


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## cat face (Apr 4, 2013)

*In the morning* - 99% of the time its Belle and all she does is put her head under my hand so I have to give her a head pet. She will go from side to side, over and over, switching hands till I wake up.
On occasion it will be Sadie, doing the wake up call in a simular way. 
Even more rarely I will get Harry who will jump up on the bed, but doesn't know what to do once he is up there. lol

*All other feeding times* - They will sit around like cat statues, dotted randomly around the room, facing me and staring. No meows, no drama, just quiet stares lol

IF I don't notice _"The Children of the Corn"_ approach (which is hard to ignore lol) then someone will walk over and get my attention by acting like they want to be petted. 

That's it. 
They are all very well behaved little kitties lol .. well, at least when it comes to meal times.

_While I prepare the food, they have their little routine;_
1. wander over and nibble on some grass. (this is a must)
2. quietly and thoroughly groom oneself before being served.
3. sit quietly and wait till their bowl is set in their appropriate place.

4. when finished eating, move to another spot in the room and groom self again.


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## Heather72754 (Nov 1, 2013)

cat face said:


> IF I don't notice _"The Children of the Corn"_ approach (which is hard to ignore lol)


LOL - I could visualize this, so funny. 

My 3 are quite civilized, although Sunny who is my raw fed guy is very vocal when he sees me getting to the final stages of prep - dumping his meat chunks onto a plate. He meows so loud he actually gargles lol. Mystique and Penny are little ladies about it, but they waste no time running down the stairs to be fed. Mystique is my little 'social eater'. She will walk away from her dish if I leave the room and really wants company while she eats.


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## NBrazil (May 16, 2013)

Mine are well behaved. Sometimes they sleep with me, other times I lock them out (depends on whether or not they are into their nightly Olympics when I'm getting ready for bed - or how I'm feeling as I'm dealing with a chronic illness and some nights I'm more sensitive than others).

But if locked out, they quietly wait just outside my door (even on a weekend when I may sleep late). If sleeping with me, they just wait until I get up without disturbing me!

Evenings, they are again very good. They may meow some when I'm in the kitchen, but until they hear that subtle sound of a can being popped open - they are well behaved. Now, once they hear that sound, they begin their chorus!

So far (at about a year old, each) they have been very well behaved. But one thing I've learned is that their behavior can change overnight.


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## gurujad (Feb 21, 2014)

I feed Blacky in the morning and in the evening. Only two times a day. It is becoming a habit for him and he is adjusting just fine. But lately, when at night I put a table for myself to eat, he is developing a habit of hopping on the sofa and trying to reach my food!!! I guess he has acquired this habit while he was away (he ran two times out of the house and spent what calculates a month). This is getting sick everyday and I am not sure I am finding a way to keep him away from my table and my food although I feed him before I feed myself!!!!


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## BrittyBear (Feb 4, 2014)

Mystery always begs me for food, and i usually give him scraps if its something he can have. But i can understand how you feel gurujad, today i was eating rice, which is one thing i wont let him have. So when he realized he wasnt getting any he decided to jump up and lay right by my plate! And stare at it. I was like, oh No no no mister. Picked him up and put him back down. After two more tries he finally gave up xD 
on jumping up at least. He still begged of course. Ashes has a bad habit of trying to get your food with his paw. We are still trying to teach him not to do that. And we know they arent hungry. They just want what they cant normally have cuz its new xD

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## gurujad (Feb 21, 2014)

You are right BrittyBear.. 
And I believe more nowadays that "Curiosity Killed The Cat" is not a proverb from nothing!!


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## 10cats2dogs (Jun 16, 2013)

I have a swarm of landsharks, all very attentive!!


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## cat face (Apr 4, 2013)

Oh lord!, I can just imagine what THAT must look like! A zillion tails all straight up and milling in frantic circles with a range of meows that spread across several octaves! :yikes LOL


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