Slugs are herbivorous and feed mainly over the remains of plants, fruits, flowers, and vegetables. They are small in size but are highly dangerous if overlooked for a longer period. Furthermore, they are among the primary threats if you have a pet in your house. Slugs love to feed on cat food. On consumption of the infected foods, the cats are open to multiple diseases and abnormal behaviours, and even death. Here few points that state to what extent they can be dangerous and how to keep slugs away from cat food.
Does cat food attract slugs?
The gastropod mollusks, typically known as slugs, are found living in damp and sloppy environments. Research has shown that these feed on decaying matter. Yet it is vital to see if they are attracted to cat food. It is seen that dog and cat food are an obvious attraction for the slugs. It does not kill them and instead draws them to a small space making it easy for them to dispose of. Slug pellets can be a major threat to cats and their foods. They are inclined to poison and cause various anomalies if left untreated.
Are slugs harmful to cats?
Slugs are expected to appear in wet regions which are on the darker portion and not prone to sunlight. The appearance of these slugs is a major threat to the cats as they love to feed on cat foods as well. Not only do they feed but this has some harmful consequences. Small pellets of slugs feeding on cat foods can cause mild to serious poisoning. The cats are unaware of the fact and on consuming them they are entitled to certain diseases. These may include muscle spasms, twitching, seizures, tremors, and incoordination of body movements. Even death is not a surprise if the behavior is not predicted and the consumption is not treated for an hour. Hence, despite being one of the smallest among the creatures, it can cause life risks if misjudged.
How do you keep Slugs away from cat food?
As discussed already slugs are prone to cat food. There are numerous ways to solve this common issue. A few suggested ways are listed below:
1. Keeping eggshells around the food bowl of cat
This idea works the best in keeping slugs away. The logic behind this is simple and interesting. Slugs usually don’t prefer rough surfaces thus making the egg shells a natural repellent for slugs. Place the eggshells in proper surroundings in the whole area around the food bowl of cat to avoid slugs slipping through.
2. Putting coarse salt
Usually, slugs glide over the bowl surface to reach the food. If we can manage to stop them from gliding through the bowl surface then automatically, they won’t be able to reach the food. Slugs get burned if they come in contact with coarse salt. So, rubbing coarse salt all over the bowl surface will keep the slugs away from the food. Moreover, coarse salt is not harmful to cats. So, it can be used without any problem.
3. Placing cat food in an elevated area
The most humane and easy way for keeping slugs away is to keep the bowl away from the reach of slugs. Place your cat food in a tall place like over a flower pot and then spray the external surface of the pot with water or oil which will make it slippery. Due to this, the slugs won’t be able to cling to the surface but your cat will easily get there. This technique won’t harm anyone.
4. Creating a water barrier
This is the simplest method of keeping slugs away. Put the food bowl inside another bowl full of water. The slugs won’t be able to cross the water. Hence, won’t be able to reach the food of cat. One thing to note here is to keep the food bowl upon something which will elevate it within the water barrier to avoid water getting mixed with cat food.
5. Using a pressure pad lid for the food bowl
It is wiser to use pressure pad lid for the cat’s food bowl. Here, the lid opens when pressure is applied to the lid else remains closed, keeping the food covered. Thus, the slugs won’t be able to reach cat food. The only thing to note here is you have to give training to your pet for using the pressure lid pad.
6. Using copper wire
This is an effective as well as a trickier method of keeping slugs away. Copper is a material that is somewhat unpleasant to the slug’s skin. So, they tend to stay away from copper materials. You can purchase wide and long copper wires from a local hardware store and then just wrap them around the food bowl. This will act as a barrier for slugs. Just be aware that your cat doesn’t lick the wires often, if so, switch to a different method because it is poisonous for cats.
What do Slugs feed on?
If we are looking for slugs, then here is the basic information that defines it. They are herbivores who love to feed on plant decay. Several vegetables, fruits, flowers, and even other slugs. Although people think that slugs are attracted to salts, they are not. Instead, they avoid it as much as possible. Besides, they love feeding cat food. Slug infestation is a major concern. Since slugs are herbivores, they consume most of the edible food and leave very little for the cats to eat.
Why do cats eat slugs and snails?
The simple answer to this is slugs are easy to prey on. Slugs being very small and sluggish makes them very easy to catch especially for cats. Cats are wild and their predator mode always remains on. This small creepy crawlies like slugs tend to hit the cat’s predator nature. Eating slugs is very normal for cats but is harmful at the same time.
Summary
Slugs are carriers of parasites that are harmful to cats. A pet owner must keep an eye on keeping slugs away from their cats. There are numerous suggested ways for keeping the slugs away from cat food. Using chemical pesticides turn out to be harmful to cats so it is better to use natural repellents like eggshell and water. Methods which does not harm the cats or slugs are advisable to use.
Image Credits:
https://depositphotos.com/4573117/stock-photo-cat-eating-dry-cat-food.html
https://depositphotos.com/42171383/stock-photo-british-long-hair-kitten.html
