Cat grass is any

grass Poaceae ( ), also called Gramineae ( ), is a large and nearly ubiquitous family (biology), family of monocotyledonous flowering plants commonly known as grasses. It includes the cereal grasses, bamboos, the grasses of natural grassland and spe ...

that is grown specifically for

cat The cat (''Felis catus''), also referred to as the domestic cat or house cat, is a small domesticated carnivorous mammal. It is the only domesticated species of the family Felidae. Advances in archaeology and genetics have shown that the ...

s, usually indoors. It may be grown in a dish from which the cat chews the grass directly or just added to cat food. The most common stated benefit is to aid the passing of hairballs. Although cats may favor eating the grass, it has no

pharmaceutical Medication (also called medicament, medicine, pharmaceutical drug, medicinal product, medicinal drug or simply drug) is a drug used to diagnose, cure, treat, or prevent disease. Drug therapy ( pharmacotherapy) is an important part of the ...

effect. The most common species for growing this grass are oatgrass (''

Arrhenatherum elatius ''Arrhenatherum elatius'' is a species of flowering plant in the grass family Poaceae, commonly known as false oat-grass, and also bulbous oat grass (subsp. ''bulbosum''), tall oat-grass, tall meadow oat, onion couch and tuber oat-grass. It is na ...

''), barleygrass (''

Hordeum vulgare Barley (), a member of the grass family, is a major cereal grain grown in temperate climates globally. It was one of the first cultivated grains; it was domesticated in the Fertile Crescent around 9000 BC, giving it nonshattering spikelets ...

''), wheatgrass (''

Triticum aestivum Common wheat (''Triticum aestivum''), also known as bread wheat, is a cultivated wheat species. About 95% of wheat produced worldwide is common wheat; it is the most widely grown of all crops and the cereal with the highest monetary yield. Ta ...

'') or ryegrass (''

Lolium perenne ''Lolium perenne'', common name perennial ryegrass, English ryegrass, winter ryegrass, or ray grass, is a grass from the family Poaceae. It is native to Europe, Asia and northern Africa, but is widely cultivated and naturalised around the world. ...

'').

References

{{grass-stub Cat health Grasses