My kitten doesn't hunt at all. It just keeps lying lazily in the carton box and when it feels hungry, it meows and we feed her. Even when insects or rats go in front of it, she just looks at them and doesn't even try to catch them.
Is this behavior normal?
How do I teach her to hunt?
Long ago, I had a kitten with similar behavior. I had gotten it particularly to catch mice. It just had no interest in chasing things. I even put the kitten in a large area with a live mouse and the kitten just ignored the mouse.
I gave the kitten to some friends who wanted a cat for a pet, and I adopted an adult cat who was a proven mouse catcher.
A few months later the kitten grew into a cat, and the family who had it now, said she grew up to be a great mouse catcher.
To answer your questions:
Is this behavior normal?
It is not abnormal.
How do I teach her to hunt?
Keep playing with her, and encouraging her to chase toys. Rewarding chase behavior with treats will likely help.
I taught my kitten how to hunt by balling up a piece of paper and fluttering it around in her face in an obnoxious manner until she'd bite and pounce at it in annoyance. After a while it turned into play and shed come running the moment she heard a paper crinkle. I started tossing it around and she would very aggressively chase and attack it. Eventually she became highly interested in pursuing anything small and twitchy/fluttery and I haven't had an issue with rodents since. (excepting the time she decided to teach ME how to hunt and released a live squirrel in the bathroom while I was showering.)
