Maynard’s helpful hint…
Darnit, I’m feeding the cat, not the anthill! I’ve just tried one of these food bowls with a moat (to be filled with water or molten lead, whichever is available), and it seems to be working.
The one I’ve got here is this Lixit 8-inch bowl. It’s inexpensive and American-made. The inner bowl is about 7 inches across, but the moat gives the entire platter an 11-inch diameter. My Internet purchase from PPE Pet Supplies was processed quickly.
Here’s another choice, available on Amazon. This 2-compartment Bergan Bowl costs more and is larger, but people seem happy with it. I believe this is also of domestic manufacture.
Ant attacks are mainly a concern when cats are fed outdoors. The brings to mind the great debate of whether cats should be kept indoors. People take this issue as seriously as our imminent national bankruptcy. There’s a furious and endless discussion on Amazon, consisting mainly of vitriolic ad hominem attacks hurled back and forth between “cat jailers” and “cat abusers”. Personally I favor letting cats out if they’re street smart and the region is reasonably cat-friendly. But staying inside is certainly safer, and some cats are happy with that arrangement. My bottom line is I respect cats as individuals, and I want them to make their own decisions as much as possible. Basically, my philosophy of cats is consistent with my philosophy of humanity. Sentient creatures must be the masters of their destiny; otherwise, what’s the point?
Of course, cats aren’t human beings. I recognize that God created my kind on the sixth day, and thus I am designated steward of our fair planet. This is both privilege and responsibility. I cite Genesis 1:26:
Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.
I once tried showing this text to a cat, but she said she wasn’t in the list, being neither a fish nor a bird nor a creeping thing. I had to admit she had a point. (Note to self: Never get into a philosophical argument with a cat, because they always win.) This is why I don’t have the right to completely dominate a cat’s life. On the other hand, I feel perfectly justified in denying sustenance to bugs, not to mention squishing them.
What a great idea. Thanks. Love the bug gif.
Thanks Maynard for yet another way for me to spoil the kitteh! I had thought I’d found them all…guess not.
Orange1 has been eating out of a “moated” dish for years.
Indoors or outdoors, we have to cut off his food from insects.
There are some cockroaches that jump/fly the moat.
They end up down the drain……
I used to be on the “born free” side of the indoor/outdoor debate even after one beloved friend never made it home again. A few years ago a neighbor complained that one of my cats was soiling his yard. What really astonished the neighbor was that the cat had the audacity to sleep on his deck furniture like she owned the place. I did the neighborly thing and started keeping the cats in. The call of the wild grew faint and they were content to be harnessed to a long lead in the back yard. We check every ten minutes by setting the oven timer. It is somewhat disconcerting to unaware guests when the oven timer beeps and I excuse myself to check on the cat.
I linked to PPE looking for cat harnesses and spotted this—Enriching Your Cat’s Life
They glorify the life of the outdoor cat.
There are suggestions how to enrich the life of the indoor cat including:
They gave no suggestions for enriching the life of an outdoor cat, possibly because they describe that life as idyllic. I’m not so sure. Videos and lava lamps for the bored indoor cat, so how about smart phones and iPADs for the complex and busy lives of the outdoor cat?
That is a great post.
Blessings…