To really regret getting the cat?

@LynetteScavo exactly!!

The thing with Whiskas is it's like McDonalds for cats. People might feed their DC nothing but McDonalds and say their child is perfectly fine and healthy, but it's not an ideal diet.

Cats can learn a routine quite well. My cats know they get food at 8.30 and 17.30, and on queue daily they show up for that food and meow if its even a few minutes later, they always have biscuits down too (which they will turn their nose up at and prefer the wetfood, but will they so eat them too), but set wet food times. They know, just as they always appear at 3.20 when my teenage kids who are obsessed with them come home.

Just stick with set times, dont demand feed, put them by biscuits when they meow between. Cats also prefer running water, so a fountain water bowl between too can help. But you have to be strict and stick to a routine and they will learn.

my kids love McDonald’s but I wouldn’t feed it to them everyday. You’re lucky you don’t have issues at the moment.

My cats love it and have no issues!

My experience with cats, and I've had a few over the years, is that they all have different eating requirements. Some are pickers, some wolf it all down in one go - as an owner, you can't change this.
However, all cats like a routine, they are creatures of habit.
What works for me and the cats is they get fed twice a day - first thing in the morning and again in early evening. Wet food in one bowl (1-2 pouches depending on size of cats), dry food/kibble in a separate bowl and access to a water fountain - an additional treat or two goes down well too in the evening 😊. However tempting it is, don't give extra meals in between the two sittings.
I truly believe that routine is key here and will take time to establish, but it's worth a try.😀

@ChristmasFluff I'm not bloody starving my cat, nor am I competitively underfeeding him. And, 'fluffy prick' is a term of endearment for a feline I love more than anything in the world, apart from my DC.

The dry food he has is of high quality from an independent supplier, as his wet food. And, by 'some' I meant a sufficient amount for his size, weight and lifestyle.

🫡🫡🫡

Oh just seen he's wormed.

Is he a former stray? He may forever be obsessed with food if he used to be starving I'm afraid.

Worms?

Some pouches have hardly anything in them. I thought 4 a day was the recommended amount for adult cats. Tiny kittens can get through even more.

An active cat with no dry food could easily scoff down 5 pouches. Mine would, with dry food on top, but only the most expensive pouches.

I tried leaving dry food down, as some have suggested and my cat got fat. I think the thing to do is feed Cat of Regret twice a day until he learns those are his only meal times. This could be a long time, and personally I'd be too weak to persevere.

sorry but whiskas is terrible, look at the ingredients!

@Novatherova My cat easily had this much a day, plus a good quality dry food.

There's no fat on him, he's outside a lot.

Every cat is different.

He probably needs better quality food. Feeding cheap pouches is like feeding your child McDonald's then wondering why he wants more junk later. The cat isn't getting the nutrients he needs which is why he's still hungry.

DONT FEED YOUR CAT 5 POUCHES!

That's really not normal. Take to the vet ASAP.

My cat is greedy like and will always want more food but I'd never feed 5.

Good quality, natural, grain-free food is best as it’s nutritionally dense and fills them up.. All our cats have been different- one supplemented his wet food with sparrows, one had a large kibble dispenser and would just graze all day, our last cat, a young Maine coon cross, would eat 6 sachets a day plus large Maine coon kibble, whereas our current rescue girl only has 1-2 sachets plus a bit of kibble and a LOT of Dreamies! We put some inside toys to keep her entertained but she has them emptied in minutes.

Get him a toy that you could put dried food in.

Okay, firstly don't ever mix water or wet food with dry.
Dry food develops bacteria very quickly.

Dry food is okay, but not great for male cats especially as it increases risk of urinary issues.

The general rule is that if you're going to choose one to be the best quality then make it the dry.
Thrive (which you can get on Amazon is the best).

Cats prefer to eat smaller meals often. I find 3 meals a day suit mine. I feed at 9am, 5pm and 1am. Cats are smart, so setting an alarm on your phone will not only help him get into a routine of when to expect wet food, he will also associate the alarm with feeding time.

I would put Thrive dry in an automatic feeder that he can access and then I would get regimented with the wet.

Zooplus is a great site for cat food.

Brands like Bozita, Feringa, Yarrah and Wild Freedom are all good.
They don't work out too expensive because they come in larger cans.

The high meat content from those brands will keep him fuller for longer. (it's like steak, veges and potatoes vs McDonald's for us).

The meowing and constant wanting of food can be VERY draining, but give it two weeks and he should get into a routine and accept it.

I would also get him a water fountain for his water :)

Put him on different food or just let it moan and dont give in. He will get the message eventually. My cats acted like addicts on pouches. Cost me a fortune and i hated the constant begging. I found that getting a good quality dry food that they actually like was the answer. James wellbeloved turkey one seems to be loved by all my cats, and then i started putting a small portion of canned cat food once a day. They got the hint after a few days and dont beg as much.

Zooplus (online pet store) is really good for grain free high protein food - you buy in bulk, but only about £30 for free delivery.
My one loves Cosma, but that's a supplementary food, and we have Wild Freedom and Animoda as well.
She still asks for food a lot - but it's an attention seeking thing, she'd be a barrel on legs if I gave in every time.

Cat appetites vary. We have two female Siamese. One is 4-years-old, weighty (all muscle) and very active, running, jumping, climbing trees. The other is 10-years-old, a much finer build. She gets out and about and climbs too, but now she is older, she isn’t out nearly as much as the other. Interestingly, it’s the older, finer one who has the biggest appetite. She can ask (loudly) to be fed 4/5 pouches a day, plus dried (she’s always had a big appetite, no health problems). She is all muscle though, so obviously needs those extra calories.

I’d suggest getting an automatic feeder if one exists for moist food and fill it twice a day. He can then eat what he wants. Also, my cats historically won’t eat cheap(er) dried food. It’s essentially crap and obviously not appetising. They really like Royal Cannin, Scumbles and another that I can’t call to mind. Try another good quality dried food. He may like it. Then there can always be some there for him.

Mine has one!!

One pouch of wet cat food a day. She has dry biscuits down all day though and she grazes as and when she wants

I’ve had texts from people seeing this post today asking if I wrote it! I was actually wondering if I really had when I read it - I know exactly how you feel and you ANBU.
I took in my parents cat after they died, I was fond of the cat and I liked him - despite him being a bit greedy. We’ve had him 3 years now and he’s a furry dictator who has made mine and my partners life hell.
I have the same greedy puss as you, he follows us round, starts with a miaow that graduates to a howl and doesn’t stop unless his mouth is closed eating. He steals food from our plates and has gone into the neighbours and made them think they were going crazy when their defrosting joint of Sunday meat just vanished, we caught him with it under the bed purring!
He growls if you approach his food and gobbles it down and licks the bowl clean.
We feed 3 pouches a day, he won’t eat dry food and if I mix wet with dry he somehow manages to eat only the wet food, I have no idea how he separates it but the dry is always left in the bowl. He was sometimes eating up to 8 pouches of food a day with pestering me and my partner separately, he’d just follow us terrorising us till we filled his dish, he still tries for more but we don’t give in. It only takes doing something twice for cats to form a habit.
My partner is autistic and struggles with hours of high pitched howling and has even broken down in tears, he’s asked me many times to rehome the cat. We rent and aren’t allowed a cat flap so he comes and scratches at the bedroom window whilst we are in bed, he drags his claws down the glass and it’s a horrible noise, brain torture.
I just can’t bring myself to go back on my promise to my parents and the cat is 15 now so it’s not fair to uproot him again. Now the weather is nicer and lighter nights he’s spending hours outside hunting and prowling.
I went to the vet who just said he’s a gluttonous cat, nothing physically wrong just greedy, we thought maybe grief or depression but he’s always been greedy. We live in the middle of nowhere surrounded by forests and fields so it’s cat’s paradise, he’s out hunting for hours in the day. He eats what he catches too - we’ve seen him walking round with huge rats hanging out of his mouth and he’ll devour it and suck up the tail like spaghetti.
it looks like I’m stuck with this furry narcissist but it’s nice to know I’m not alone in being terrorised.

Nothing wrong with whiskas. My cats love it and don't greed for more

@randomuser2020 if my whole comment sounds 'odd', it's probably because I'm knackered after what feels like an inordinately long week and my communication skills are below par; none of us is infallible.