Princess has been doing remarkably well on this front, but it's still a challenge sometimes, so I've devised a number of strategies for getting food into her.
One of the most successful is what I call treat chasing. Basically how this works is that I mix up a bowl of cat food - it works best if it's on the mushy end of the spectrum, and then on top I embed a few of her very favorite treats. You have to stick the thing partially in the food so she can see and smell it, but so she can't easily grab it off the top of the food.
Then the chasing begins! She's not very good at picking up food with her teeth, so she tends to push it along until she can get it into her mouth. So in the process of going for the treat, she pushes it along through the bowl of cat food and ends up eating a while pile of real food in the attempt to get the treat.
Anyhow, it occurs to me that this little game is not entirely unlike the one played by most people in this consumerist little society of ours.
We are constantly having tempting "treats" dangled before us (like fancy cars, and houses, and clothes, and toys, yadda, yadda, yadda.)
Yet in the process of trying to get them, we end up swallowing a whole pile of stuff that we really didn't want (like huge mortgages, endless amounts of consumer debt, and horrifically inhuman work schedules.)
Anyhow, on that note, I'll leave you with the words of the incomparable Janis Joplin.
Really interesting post. I like the idea of bribery with the cat and love the pics too.
ReplyDeleteYou're right about people chasing treats as well. So many luxuries we convince ourselves we have to have and we don't actually need them to be happy. I try not to want too much from life, just the basics.
Thanks for sharing and good luck with the rest of the challenge :)
Thanks so much for your thoughts, and thanks for stopping by. Only one week left!!!
DeleteOne of my cats needed more water and would only eat dry food. So I put water in his bowl and floated the kibble on the top. He had to drink the water before he could get a piece of food. Now I do this with all of my cats. The vet's surprised, but it works well.
ReplyDeleteNow, that is just pure genius! I may have to try that with Smoky to see if I can get more liquid into him!
DeleteLove the whole spirit of the post and how you went from "treating" your cat to the treats we humans enjoy. Clever and so on the spot !
ReplyDeleteThanks... I'm glad you enjoyed my ramblings!
DeleteLove the analogy and the picture of the cat with the bribe! I've managed to avoid the worst of the rat race because I'm lazy and don't like to work, so I've had to learn to live small, which really suits me, and my daughter knows she won't be getting a large inheritance when I "go to the fair" ; )
ReplyDeleteLaziness is soooo underrated! I'm sure that the benefits your daughter is receiving from having a mother who actually has time for her vastly outweigh any benefit she'd get from inheriting a bunch of money!
DeleteGreat post and points! Love the treat chasing idea. New follower here. I'm stopping by from the "A to Z" challenge, and I look forward to visiting again!
ReplyDeleteSylvia
www.writinginwonderland.blogspot.com
Thanks so much for stopping by!
DeleteYou mean treat-chasing isn't just for raising kids??
ReplyDeleteHa! So it works with kids too? :-)
DeleteMy lads do not do the treat thing. If it's imperative that they get medicine,food or water it has to be forced down their wee furry throats. so I am always on alert at the least sign of illness to do the preventative thing instead of the "rip Mama to shreds" thing.
ReplyDeleteI don't do the treat thing either. My treat is a day or week of stay at home and sew,garden or knit....and play with kitties.
Marieann
Ha! Well, Smoky is the most finicky of eaters, so when I had to give him meds back during his illness, I was really worried how I'd get them down him. Fortunately, it turned out he didn't mind me shoving my finger down his throat one bit! He even seems to enjoy things like being pilled or having his teeth brushed. Go figure! Anyhow, here's hoping you don't have to fight any of those battles anytime soon!
DeleteHow your mind went from tricking Princess into eating to views on how we are tricked to consume I'll never figure out. I'm glad Princess is doing better and happy both of us have escaped the lifestyle of consumerism. Now for everyone else. Before I moved I happened to get caught in a conversation on the types of shopping and restaurants some people living there hoped to see come into the town. I remarked that the reason I left the city was for the slower lifestyle and didn't want all these stores popping up to change the flavor of the town. Boy did I get yelled at. They wanted a way to shop that didn't involve driving to the city (a whole 13 miles away).
ReplyDeleteHa! I suppose we all have different priorities. The Belmar "new urban" shopping area near my house (the one they built where they tore down the old shopping mall) is one of those places that I have such mixed feelings about. I totally LOVE that the area is walkable and LEED certified and all that, but when you go there, most of the shops are filled with the kind of stuff I just can't imagine ever needing or wanting. I guess I'm just practical to a fault, but I'd much rather have the basic necessities available rather than all of these specialty stores filled with every kind of tea on the planet or crazy weird "fashionable" clothing or cute little trinkets designed to clutter up your home or whatever.
DeleteI do that too for Lucy with treats and sometimes with chicken.
ReplyDeleteOh yes! Princess is a HUGE fan of roast chicken. She'll eat almost anything with roast chicken on top!
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