It is ever so often that when owning both dog and cat pets, one eating from the other’s bowl is almost inevitable. Dog’s enjoy cat food and foods of all kinds.
And perhaps the reason why dogs enjoy cat food so much is that cat food has higher levels of protein, fat, and other nutrients than dog food.
With such strong scents, it’s no surprise why dogs are so drawn to it. And although it is completely safe for dogs to eat cat food, all the protein and fat within the food might cause some quick weight gain and your cat would also be pretty upset.
Now, as it comes to finding a solution to this problem, the answers are pretty simple.
-DISTINGUISH THE BOWLS-
Dogs right off the bat may not know the difference between their meal and the meal of their cat neighbor, and so a great way to train your dog in understanding what’s theirs and what is the cat’s is by better distinguishing the food bowls. Using different bowl sizes of different colors and styles might be a great way for your dog to tell the difference. Train your dog to leave the cat food alone and perhaps separating them during feeding times might be good as well.-ACCESSIBILITY-
As aforementioned, separating the two pets might make for the best option. Say you’ve lost patience in trying to train your dog to understand the difference between their food and the cat’s food, separating them during mealtime is optimal. This can look like having your cat eat in one room of the house and the dog eats outside or another room. Make sure it’s a spot that your dog would have a hard time getting to. Here are some other ways to keep the two separate:- For small dogs, a sturdy baby gate that an agile cat can hop over might just do the trick.
- For large dogs, installing a small cat door or baby gate onto a door would also help keep a dog away from nagging the cat.
- When your cat has finished their meal, putting away any leftovers in a place your dog will never reach is also a good idea.
- Placing your cat’s bowl on a high surface like the fridge or a washing machine might work. Even a mountable cat platform that once installed 6 feet from the ground, your dog will have no chance at stealing the cat’s food.