It’s not just your cat being weird, eating grass is a natural instinct most cats have. It’s not really clear as to how cats know that they are supposed to eat grass. They are carnivores after all, and grass doesn’t really fit into that category.
You might have seen it before, your cat outside in the garden nipping the grass, you might be thinking he is crazy and then a short while later your cat starts throwing up on your brand new carpet.
Well fear not this is a normal behavior in cats… And, oh, sorry about your new carpet. There is a few different reasons as to why it is good for cats to eat grass.
Upset Stomach
One of them is that it helps relieving your cat from an upset stomach, they groom themselves all day long and as a result they usually swallow a lot of hair, the hair will then get clogged down in the digestive tract. Eating grass usually results in vomiting so it’s a good way for the cat to get rid of these hairballs.
natural laxative
Grass, consumed, also act as a natural laxative. This is very useful for carnivores since they often eat fur and bones but have issues digesting it. The grass adds a bit of fiber to their diet and helps expelling all the stuff he didn’t manage to vomit out earlier.
Their bodies can’t actually digest the grass since they don’t have the right enzymes to actually be able to digest plants. However, the juices from the grass contains Folic Acids, that’s a vitamin essential in a cats diet it’s also presents in their mothers milk and it helps producing oxygen in the cats bloodstream.
So what to do if you live in an apartment and don’t have a garden available for your cat or if you don’t let your cat out?
Well you should know that if your cat isn’t eating grass he will look for something similar to nipple on such as your pot plants, this can be poisonous for your cat. Cat grass is a thing and it is commercially available and would be the best solution. It can be found in most pet shops, otherwise you can contact your vet and see with him if your cat would benefit from Folic Acid supplements.
So there you have it, next time you notice your cat pretending to be a rabbit or a cow, don’t stop him from it and don’t be mad at him. Just put away your stained carpet and be prepared to clean up a little mess a little later.