I own two precious cats, also referred to as my whole world. My boy cat, Chandler, eats EVERYTHING and ANYTHING.

My girl cat, Buffy, is a whole different story.

This true diva of mine has decided in the past few months that none of the cat food I serve her is up to scratch. I will try loads of different flavours, but when I serve her dinner, all I get is a judgemental glare, a swift sniff, and she struts off in the opposite direction. The audacity!

So what gives? Is she just trying to slowly psychologically torture me (wouldn't be the first time!), is she just plain fussy, or is there something else going on?

I spoke to veterinarian, Dr Brooke Schampers, about why some cats (*cough* Buffy *cough*) are so hard to please. "It's not a fun feeling. You go to all this effort to get them their beautiful food, you put it down, and then you just have that instant feeling of rejection. But for these cats, it's not necessarily a hunger issue; it's them running their own quality control," she told Mamamia.

"When we think of cats as fussy, and their behaviour is fussy — they're actually responding to an environment."

Dr Schampers wants to reframe the idea that some cats are 'fussy', but rather they're instinctive eaters who judge food by aroma, texture and temperature, not looks or flavour.

She told me a few of the major factors why your cat might be acting 'fussy' — and how to fix it.

Pay attention to the sniff and walk off.

If you've ever served your cat a meal and they've just sniffed it and walked away — same! But don't take this as rejection; it's a way to gather intel.

"They use smell to assess food before they eat. If the aroma, the freshness, the temperature, the environment feels off — they will refuse a meal. That behaviour is them communicating, rather than giving attitude [laughs]," Dr Schampers said.

The choice of cat food is crucial here. "It's really important that we have diets designed specifically for palatability. Royal Canin diets undergo really extensive palatability testing to optimise that aroma, texture and taste, which does help remove a lot of the guesswork for some owners."

This trusted brand can be found in pet retailers in your area, and have created pet diets designed specifically around palatability. "As vets, we naturally gravitate towards things that are backed by science and Royal Canin has over 55 years of experience in nutrition," she said.

"They offer over 100 cat diets formulated to meet specific health issues and life stage requirements, and formulated by board-certified nutrition specialists."

Food variety is important.

It can be helpful to include both dry and wet food in your cat's diet to ensure your cat gets the right balance of nutrients.

"Owners often ask, is it really 100 per cent necessary to feed wet food? But it does really support hydration in cats, because they have a lower thirst drive, and their kidneys are less robust compared to dogs, unfortunately," Dr Schampers said.

To ensure your cat is getting enough hydration, the vet advises that "adding wet food into their diet is a really easy way to do that, plus wet food does add that extra level of texture variety, which will encourage cats to eat — dry food just isn't going to always do it for them."

Dr Schampers advises testing out popular Royal Canin products based on the lifestyle, age, breed and sensitivities of your cat, like their Kitten Chunks in Gravy Wet Food, Sterilised Adult Jelly Wet Food, Instinctive Chunks in Gravy Wet Food and Indoor 7+ Chunks in Gravy Wet Food.

Check your temps.

Are you serving your cat's food straight out of the fridge? Big mistake, apparently!

"Their smell affects their appetite, so if they can't smell the food — they won't eat," she said.

"From a veterinary perspective, for cats that are unwell, we actually tell owners to slightly warm up the food to increase the aroma, which will encourage them to eat. That's why food at room temperature tends to smell a little bit stronger for them, because aroma really is like a key driver of appetite for cats. Really cold food can reduce their smell and therefore reduce their interest in food."

(Sidenote: I gave my cat's food a few seconds in the microwave and she practically inhaled her bowl of food. Buffy-approved!)

A cat's environment is everything.

Just like it's a must to be having dinner in front of the TV with Love Island playing (just me?), your cat has specific preferences on how they want to eat.

Everything from being in a safe, quiet place away to being far away from their litter tray counts. "They need a calm, predictable feeding environment where they feel safe. A busy, noisy area will make cats feel uneasy, and they can't focus on eating," she said.

"They're incredibly sensitive to feeding surfaces, too. They don't necessarily want to be fed up on a bench that might be a little bit slippery, a little bit high and have a fall risk. They want to be down on the ground in a calm, secure area."

Mealtime consistency is key.

But above all, feeding should be consistent with a set meal time, location and regular diet. Small shifts, such as changing a serving bowl, can turn certain cats away.

"They have done a little bit of research around this... in some cats, we found that they prefer wider, more shallow bowls so they don't keep knocking their whiskers on the edges of a deeper bowl. Their bowl shape, depth and material can definitely influence comfort."

Finding the right feeding routine — and repeating it — is super important. "They just thrive on routine and predictability. Keeping things consistent with a high-quality diet does reduce the variables that can influence appetite," Dr Schampers said.

"We often tell owners if they're struggling with feeding behaviour, simple things like keeping feeding times calm and predictable, and serving a nutritionally complete diet like Royal Canin can really remove uncertainty around the food itself."

"It's really about making them feel calm and safe, plus giving them food that they actually want to eat."

Try the Royal Canin range for yourself, and register to claim three free samples, in-store only at Petbarn. You can also go in the draw to win a year's supply of cat food.

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Featured image: Instagram/@doctor_brooke.

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