My cat runs away when I'm about to serve his food. Why is that?

It may just be that your cat enjoys your company and feels safe while he eats. If you don't want to be there, you can start feeding him and then taking a step back further away at each meal gradually until he is comfortable eating with you out of the room.

Some pets get in the habit of eating a certain way. They become conditioned in a sense to doing things a certain way and feel safer with their owners there for them. Cats in particular like to have flat dinner trays to avoid any rubbing of their whiskers when they eat. They are still very much un-domesticated in a lot of ways and so they want to make sure they can see around them while eating as a defense mechanism. This may be why your kitty likes to eat from your flat hand that is raised off the floor, because he/she feels safer in that position. You can try a flat dinner tray that is slightly raised off the floor and see if this encourages your kitty to eat on his/her own.

Some cats tend to do that. Mine do it when they do not like their food. So you may want to try some other brand of canned kitten food. Or canned kitten food if you have been feeding dry food. You should also put the water fountain/bowl a few feet away from the food as cats do not like to drink water that is near their food.

It sounds like Golgie may just get excited and overstimulated when you are trying to feed him. Kind of like me when I get hangry! Given that he's older it may be difficult to train him out of this behavior, but you can try to keep the feeding routine calm and keep him from getting worked up. If you keep it low key then hopefully he will stay that way as well. Good luck!

This is one of those things we may never be able to answer. I suggest you just get a different type of bowl and see if he likes that. I would recommend a low, flat, shallow bowl (kind of like a tray). Some cats develop an aversion to their whiskers touching the sides of a deeper "normal" bowl.

Hi there and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! It sounds like Wilkie, much like my cat, is spoiled. I would say that the reason he does this is likely because he loves your company and eating is a great way to make sure that you stay around. If your preferred eating times and where you eat coincide with his, you may not need to do anything about this, as you can just enjoy your time together. There are several ways to get your cat to eat independently. Not all cats will respond to these but I have had a good majority of cats respond well. 1. Continue joining your Wilkie for part of his meal but not all of it. Put his food down and stand over him as you usually do, but walk away before he is finished. If he complains or stops eating, rejoin him and repeat. 2. Slowly pull back and extend the times you are away from him. Leave him alone to ignore his food for about 5 minutes, then 10 and then 15, etc. He probably won't like this but it will not hurt him to temporarily have an irregular eating schedule. Most cats will eventually eat their food when they are hungry. 3. Work on bonding with Wilkie during non-mealtimes. Plan regular play sessions and brushing sessions. Cuddle with him while you read or watch TV. If you are hanging out in a different room, peak your head in periodically and say hello to him and pet him. I hope this helps! Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns and I would be more than happy to help you further.

Many cats will exhibit this behavior. It's instinctual to cover up any left over food. This 'hides' it from other creatures who may eat it so that the cat can come back later to eat the remainder of the food. Even though Ricco is domesticated, he still has those instincts. I hope this helps and please feel free to post any additional questions.