Don't Let Your Cat Just Survive! Experts Say "Keeping Alive ≠ Keeping Well" – One More Step to Create a Quality Cat Life

In the cat care world, we sometimes hear a common reaction: "How can taking care of a cat be so complicated? Isn't it just a bowl of food, a bowl of water, and a litter box?" Yes, providing these basics meets the minimum survival requirements for a cat, but that doesn't mean they are living well.

Whether every cat owner should strive to provide a great life for their cat is not really for us to decide. What we want to convey here is that doing things beyond the bare minimum-things that might seem unnecessary-can actually improve a cat's quality of life, rather than just keeping them fed and bored.

To put it in human terms: imagine I only eat cheap meals from a local diner and sleep in a tiny room just big enough to survive. That meets my survival baseline, and I could keep living like that without issue. But eating meals costing one or two thousand dollars each, traveling abroad, or buying the latest iPhone-those aren't about survival; they're about enhancing quality of life. Are they necessary? Not always. Are they enjoyable? Definitely.

Cats are the same. Do those "extra" things matter? Very likely, yes. If you don't do them, will the cat definitely have problems? Not necessarily. But our position is to encourage owners with the means to provide a better quality of life for their beloved cats, to help prevent potential physical and mental health issues down the road and to pursue a truly harmonious relationship between human and cat.

These quality-of-life efforts often include environmental enrichment, emotional support products (which not every cat needs), food tailored to the individual cat, and adjustments to reduce stressors. For example, we've noticed that cats who regularly play with a teaser wand or other interactive toys tend to have better overall moods, closer bonds with their owners, and fewer behavioral problems. Supporting this, a 2009 paper by renowned behaviorist Sarah Ellis states that "environmental enrichment for indoor cats can prevent and treat problem behaviors and related physiological issues."

So from this perspective, doing more can be very meaningful. But what if an owner is financially tight and very busy? Is it appropriate to pinch pennies on their own meals to feed their cat premium wet food every day, buy lots of toys, or force themselves to play with the cat after exhausting shifts? That might be putting the cart before the horse. It's more reasonable to act according to your own situation.

Almost every cat has their own important quality-of-life needs, which vary from cat to cat and don't always require extra time or money. If you want to improve your cat's quality of life but lack time and resources, you can explore simple ways to do so. For example, one cat's daily highlight might be rolling around and snuggling with their owner for ten minutes in the morning, which leaves them completely satisfied. Or an owner might regularly collect small objects their cat likes (making sure they're safe to play with) to refresh the cat's toys on the floor. These are quality-of-life improvements that don't require much extra time or money but still make a difference.

What important quality-of-life activities do you share with your cat? Whether they cost time or money, we'd love to hear about them!