Evolution is to blame for making your cat turn away from the bowl of food you've placed in front of them. Cats as it turns out are driven to eat foods with a preferred ratio of protein to fat: 1 to 0.4. This translates to about 50:50 in terms of percentage of energy from protein and fat, according to the authors of a study published June 15, 2016, in the journal Royal Society Open Science.

"Cats can display neophobia," lead author Adrian Hewson-Hughes told Discovery News. "This means they are unwilling to try a food that is new or different to their normal food, which may make them appear fussy."

Prior research has found that cats and minks have almost identical food needs. Both are known as hypercarnivores, since they have evolved to eat a diet of almost exclusively meat, as opposed to omnivores like dogs. In the wild, eating a new food can lead to stomach upset or worse, making neophobia a lifesaver outside safe home environments.

More research is on-going.

More Info: www.livescience.com