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The litter tray

Join our community of cat lovers on the Mumsnet Cat forum for kitten advice and help with cat behaviour.

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Original poster

Cat obsessed with food

23 replies

crassula · 15/04/2015 18:20

We have a rescue cat. He's a year old, neutered, goes outdoors. We rescued him at 4 months. We got him from a sanctuary, where he'd been taken because his previous owner was going through chemo and couldn't cope with him.

He is totally, utterly, obsessed with food! He has never lived on the streets, never been denied food, we leave dry food down for him all day, and he gets wet food too. He's not remotely over or underweight, but it's got to the point where we can't eat in front of him.

He will jump up and snatch food out of our hands, or from our forks, he will rummage through shopping bags and rip things open to get at the food. I can't leave any kind of food out on surfaces, and if we've been baking I have to lock him out of the kitchen. He tries to jump in the fridge when it's open.

What's going on? Will he grow out of this?

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niceandwarm · 15/04/2015 18:32

Have you had his thyroid checked. Our cat was like this and was found to have an over active thyroid, treated successfully with medication (life long).

Original poster

crassula · 15/04/2015 18:38

Thanks - that hadn't occurred to me. Would he show any other symptoms, though, with an over active thyroid? He's not thin, but he is definitely hyperaactive - I would say way more than the average cat his age - I've fostered loads and loads of cats from all sorts of circumstances, and his food and bounciness do seem to me to be outside of the norm. Is crazy hyperactivity a sign of thyroid problems in cats?

I will get him tested

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niceandwarm · 15/04/2015 18:58

Our cat was ravenously hungry and hyperactive all the time. Every time I got up to go to the kitchen (where his feeding bowl was kept) he would race ahead to the bowl. It drove me nuts as he got under my feet and was in danger of tripping me up. I can't remeber if he was getting any thinner but he certainly wasn't getting fat despite all the eating he was doing.

Original poster

crassula · 15/04/2015 19:05

I'm not even sure it's hunger that's motivating him - he will leave his catfood and try to eat our food instead. Surely if he was truly hungry he would be wolfing down his own food?

Just been googling and 1 year old seems unusually young for thyroid problems. I will get him tested nevertheless.

In my heart of hearts I think he wants to be a wild cat who runs around hunting and ripping mice to shreds. I think he struggles with being a pet, even though he's very very friendly and extremely tolerant of children (he's amazingly gently with children). And loves his warm home and cuddles.

But it does feel a bit like he feels confined.

I'm hoping he'll settle down as he grows older. I guess 1 is still very young.

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Fluffycloudland77 · 15/04/2015 21:25

Is it his first spring "out" though? Maybe once he's got a few fledglings under his belt he will calm down a bit.

ragged · 15/04/2015 21:27

Sounds like bad manners, he needs training (gentle discipline). At least he must be amusing to live with.

Original poster

crassula · 15/04/2015 21:33

It is his first spring out, and yes, I think he does need training. He's a total nutter though. Seriously - I've worked with cats for years, and have had a gazillion cats in my home, and I've never met anyone as mad but gentle as this.

He is amusing to live with, and also very very beautiful. But he's very destructive.

How do I gently discipline him? I've recently resorted to squirting with water - a last resort, not one I'm proud of, and definitely done as training rather than punishment. Turns out he's discovered a love of water, and now rushes frantically to any tap he hears running, and when I'm showering, actually bangs on the shower door. And when my son takes a bath, the cat jumps right in with him. (Did none of these things until I started the water-squirting)

Should I just accept he's "a bit of a character"?

I don't think I'll ever be able to stop him jumping all around. He scratches furniture like there's no tomorrow, but we're not really worried about that. I'm more worried that this kind of behaviour could be a sign of distress.

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ragged · 15/04/2015 21:50

Water lover? What a hoot! Have you seen the Siamese who howl at the lady showering on Youtube?

Physical removal might be essential.
Put him in the other room when he's being a determined pest (with a litter tray, we got protest poos from one moggie).
Put him down or away with bit of a scold without scaring him.
Apparently hissing is fine (cats discipline each other that way). Kind of a 'This is MY food so Sod off and Wait your Turn' rebuke in Cat-Speak.

Original poster

crassula · 15/04/2015 21:58

I think physical removal is the way to go - we already have to do it when we're eating. And yes to the hissing! I've been doing that and he seems to respond - used to be when I put him in another room it would be a battle for me to get out the door without his escaping, if he knew we were eating. Now when I hiss, he stops short, looks at me (and makes me feel guilty) and just sits down. Guess I have to learn to think more like a cat. Will stop with the squirting.

Have to say in other ways he's amazing - absolutely fantastic when we have loads of kids over - loves to play with them, very tolerant and very gentle. He seems to relish the chaos and fun. Never ever has he peed or pooped out of his litter tray, even when he's been confined (because of moving house).

We have to keep him out of our bedroom at night, because otherwise he spends the whole night trying to eat our toes, but he, by himself, drags a cushion to right outside our bedroom door and sleeps on it, without moaning at all. He does start moaning when he hears we are awake in the morning and we are not immediately opening the door, but when we do open it he doesn't try to run in - he seems to know he's only allowed in the room once everyone is awake and dressed.

Yes I saw that Siamese!

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ragged · 15/04/2015 22:03

awwwwww....
Vet will probably ask if you regularly worm & deflea, too.

Original poster

crassula · 15/04/2015 22:07

Yes, regularly worm and deflea.

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Original poster

crassula · 15/04/2015 22:08

And feed him food with no additives or preservatives, that is "perfectly balanced"

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LizLemon · 15/04/2015 22:13

One of our cats has always been like this, to the point of eating polystyrene packaging just to see if that was tasty! He can and will open our bread bin, rips through foil to get to cake, tears into melons - he's just very persistent. Like your cat he's also very gentle and loving, and loves his basket. he sounds delightful :)

Unfortunately he's also now diabetic - 7 years of nonstop eating took their toll. He's on a trial with the RVC looking into feline diabetes, and they've discovered that some cats are missing the 'stop eating' gene and are just compelled to eat. So it could be something he just can't help. Hissing, and water sprays sound like a good way to go. Maybe go for timed feeding - we had to switch our fella onto two feeds a day to coincide with his insulin shots and he's been better since then (took to it much better than we expected). We still have to lock away every morsel of food.

oddfodd · 15/04/2015 22:16

He sounds brilliant :o

Sorry, no help. Any chance of a photo?

Momagain1 · 15/04/2015 22:18

Instead of squirting with water, make a loud noise at him. We have an instant cofffee tin with some coins and lego pieces in that we shake to get one cat out of places we dont want her, off the sideboard for instance. The can can also sit on the place we dont want her and she will avoid it.

If you can shut a door between kitchen and dining room and rest of house, that may need to be a permanent arrangment.

Original poster

crassula · 15/04/2015 22:19

Liz, he does eat cardboard and paper. And my nephew sends my son loom bands he's made, which I have to hide away because the cat tries to eat them too.

I do let him rip and play and munch on cardboard, as I've never heard of it doing any harm. We have to hide away all papers, because most of what we have on paper is important! I do think he has some kind of problem with eating - will ask the vet about the diabetes as well as thyroid. We have to put all our bins outside - even the little kitchen one, as he will get into that and rummage through it.

Timed feeding is a good idea - think I might give it a go. Presumably if we've locked away all of our food, and he hasn't had any of his for a while, then he will eat his own and feel sated.

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Original poster

crassula · 15/04/2015 22:25

The day we brought him home

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Maryz · 15/04/2015 22:25

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Corygal · 15/04/2015 22:26

My 4 yr old godson described Mr Cory the fat tabby as 'a real little character' when his overactive thyroid kicked in. He has now had a thyroidectomy. And is still a character.

Get his thyroid levels checked at the vet, and try to enjoy it.

ragged · 15/04/2015 22:34

Wow. There are quite a few good videos on Youtube of cats genuinely enjoying water (who knew?)

Original poster

crassula · 15/04/2015 22:35

Well, they do seem to quite like eating fish, so I guess at some point in their history they must have gotten to grips with water?

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oddfodd · 15/04/2015 22:39

Ooh he's gorgeous!

ragged - my cats love sitting in the (empty) bath and one of them quite enjoys an actual one. We have to close loo lids because they drink from the loo (boak) and leave muddy footprints on the seats

Original poster

crassula · 15/04/2015 22:43

Yep, have to close loo lids here too. He especially likes it when it's being flushed.

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