My Cat Eats Grass - So What's the Big Deal?

I've owned lots of cats my whole life. Two things I know for sure is that they sure are finicky and they love to eat grass. What I also know is that they never got sick just from eating grass. It's what they do. So really why do they do it?

There are lots of reasons they want to eat the grass and many pet owners feel they need to stop or prevent them from doing so. They feel since there cat isn't a cow why let them do it. They also think that after seeing them do it the first time, besides being odd it only makes them throw up anyway. Unfortunately since kitty can't talk we can only watch and theorize about the whys.
 

What people tend to forget is that this is a pet, not a cat from the wild. It's a natural instinct for them to graze and then throw up right after they chow down. This is especially true for cats that are not just confined to being a house cat. Outdoor cats will eat just about anything they can catch and this is just one of the reasons they "need" to eat the grass.

One of my cats loved to catch and eat field mice. He wasn't particular about what he ate so he pretty much ate the whole thing. There are lots of parts that he ate that he could not digest. Although some of this indigestible material would take nature's course and pass through his system a lot could not.

So how does a cat get rid of materials in their stomach so it doesn't continue to cause discomfort or worse yet some type of obstruction? They eat grass to make themselves throw up. It's really not a big deal for them. I'm pretty sure they don't enjoy it but it's also part of their natural instincts to do so. It's a cycle of removal they go through during the natural processing of their food.

Cats will throw up whatever they can't pass. One of the most important thing is does is remove fur balls from their system. During the natural cleaning process of their coat their very rough tongue does a great job of removing not only any dirt or mess but retains lots of hair. It forms large fur balls in their stomach. If not removed or passed they cat the pet a lot of discomfort.

Since Cats almost continuously clean themselves they need to have an outlet for removing these fur balls. In the absence of grass they need something to take its place. fur ball additives for their pet foods are available for this if need be. One of the best things I found to aid them in getting rid of the fur in their stomach is to give them some type of oil with their food. But a lot of cats do not like this and even if they do be sure not to overdo it.

My cat used to only eat dry cat food. He didn't care for any of the wet products. Even though I moistened it to his liking it didn't help pass the fur he would ingest. I saved tuna fish oil and would give it to him. He got a tablespoon about every 2nd or 3rd day. This helped him pass the fur naturally through his system. Besides that he loved the taste.

Grass won't harm your pet and they may actually like eating it. Just watch that it is not full of insecticides. It could harm them in the long run if it contains any toxins.

Like anything else if it is a continuous thing, a brand new behavior, or if they constantly throw up this may be a sign of a completely different problem. A trip or at least a phone call to your vet may be in order. They may want to have the pet brought in or a few questions may give you're the answers to ease your mind.

Cats are awesome but tremendously secretative. Finding out about them a little more in depth will help you and your feline get closer.

Get "Ultimate Cat Secrets" that will help you understand them and just maybe they'll understand you better too!

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