Reddit Users Try To Answer The Question About Why There Isn't Mouse-Flavored Cat Food

It's an important question that needs to be discussed.

May

• Published in Animal Stories
• December 4, 2021

Cats love chasing and sometimes eating mice. So it's no wonder why people are wondering why there isn't mouse-flavored cat food.

User Taira123 is among them. They asked Reddit the question, and people have a variety of interesting answers.

Some of the responses were from a marketing standpoint, while others were also looking for answers.

Countless pests, including mice, exist in this world. So why aren't humans hunting them down and turning them into meals for felines?

The quick answer is that it's illegal. FDA doesn't allow it according to Shaun Belongie, the national brand manager for Friskies.

Producing pet food has the same standards are producing human food. In other words, both industries practice safety standards and sanitation.

Since the USA doesn't authorize mice as a food source, the country's Department of Agriculture never designed manufacturing standards for these creatures.

If you're a cat owner, would you want to feed the cat, whom you worked so hard to pamper, with a pest? It's just unthinkable, isn't it?

Manufacturing it isn't feasible for psychological reasons. Humans expect to smell something decent (if not pleasant) when they open a can of cat food.

Now imagine what would canned mouse smell. It sure isn't appealing!

We have compiled posts of what Redditors think is the reason behind cat food not having mouse-flavored variants. Let's check them out!

A Reddit user asks

Cats just love preying on smaller animals says this user.

If we were smaller than cats, do you think they'd prey on us too?

A practical answer

Mice are used for something else.

Makes you wonder too.

Not a popular answer, but probably among the best answers.

Some users want to take some answers literally.

We also have curious ones.

An added knowledge.

Yes, indeed we do. We wouldn't want to buy mice, would we?

This is why there will never be mouse-flavored cat food.

Apparently this user wants another cat food flavor.

This user was shocked to see the title.

Think about it. Even if the cat food manufacturer thought of something creative for the name, the word "mouse" doesn't sound appetizing, even if it's for the felines.

Indeed.

Another curious user

Some cats eat mice, and some only play with it.

Now we know!

Would mouse-smelling food entice our beloved felines? People will probably throw up at the smell, though.

What are the other reasons why there aren't any mouse-flavored cat food?

Logistics-wise, manufacturing mice as food for felines isn't practical. Most of them are very tiny, weighing only about 2/3 ounces.

In other words, filling a standard cat food can will require four mice. That's more than a hundred mice each case of 24 cans.

If Friskies or some other cat food company go through this route, they'd have to capture millions of mice. Then look for a method of slaughtering them the humane way.

Moreover, these companies would have to secure permits with the government (FDA is an example) to ensure that everything is safe and up to standard. Given FDA's policies, that would be a complicated process to go through.

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