Cats insatiable appetite - help and also some support

[Bucketlistticked]

This is such a stupid problem but I really do need some understanding as well as advice.

We got our cat last year from the cats protection league. He was a stray, and I think this might be the source of a lot of the problems we’ve been having as I think he just ate what he could, when he could.

He never stops eating. He won’t eat dry food and he has actually been sick after he’s eaten it - not sure why. So it’s wet pouches. He just wants one pouch after another after another. I feed him in the morning when I’ve gone down to get milk for the toddler, he then wants another pouch before we leave maybe an hour later. Then I come in from work at 4, he wants a pouch, then another, and another, and another.

It is constant. He won’t leave you alone - follows you around staring and standing over his bowl expectantly. I know it sounds such a stupid thing to get upset over but we were away this weekend and he was in the cattery and since we didn’t get back until late Sunday night we picked him up Monday evening and it was just so nice being able to sit and walk around the house without him following you and trying to grab you.

if someone’s eating he stares at them, he tries to take food from the toddler as she’s eating. It’s constant. He’s had thyroid checked and teeth, all fine.

I am so fed up. Trying to clean today and he’s following me around so I’m tripping up all the time. I end up having to put him out as it gets me so irritated.

He’s a lovely cat in all other ways but the constant demands for food are really getting me down.

Do you have any idea how old he is? I have an elderly cat like this which is quite common and probably linked to his thyroid. It is probably best to get him checked by a vet. Any signs of worms? Is he a reasonable weight?

if you don’t have insurance, get it now!
it could be a thyroid issue.

Diabetes? Does have a strange smell about him?

Strays are like this though, they become like children who have been neglected and source food all over the place.

Ive had cats who try to steal food off plates too and bore through you when you're eating.

Dry food is often regurgitated by cats, its not that good for them to be honest

Our cat was a rescue. He ate 8 pouches a day for six months. He’d been starved for months and was hungry. Once he trusted that the food was always going to be given and I think learned when he was full he settled and now eats a normal amount. He is a healthy weight. I think some cats it just takes time.

Ah that’s interesting @bellac11 , I thought it was just ours. I thought my previous cat was a greedy git but nothing like this one.

I don’t know why it stresses me out so much, it just feels like a constant demand and pressure, somehow.

We’ve had him over a year and it’s showing no signs of stopping!

I have exactly the same with my cat also from Cat Protection. It does sound petty but it really isn’t, it honestly drives me mad.
interested in the replies you will get.

Thanks for saying that @Littlesticklebrick , it’s really stressing me out and making me feel permanently irritated and annoyed at home! And I promise I’m not an irritable sort by nature.

We’ve nearly had ours for 3 and he’s still the same!

I find tabbies and gingers the worst

A friend of mine had a cat who used to steal whole sausages off people's plates, I mean quickly swipe them when the owner of the sausage was distracted, also eating spaghetti off plates too, a quick swip

I had a tabby who would sit and stare, slowly lifting her paw towards the dinner table, then jumping on the dinner table and pushing her way towards the plate with her face. She particularly liked bits of cake which is unusual because cats arent thought to taste sweet or like sweet.

I had another who would go crazy for crisps

Our current cat is food oriented, will play me and my OH off against each other pretending that she hasnt been fed by the other. Eating on the sofa is difficult because again she will come and push her face into the plate or bowl. then sit staring until you're finished so that she can then lick the bowl out, particularly if its something cheesy or creamy

I think they are worse than dogs to be honest, at least the dog knew it was naughty and he pretended that he didnt steal food. the cat couldnt give a toss.

My ex-stray was like this. They just think that every meal is their last one so they take it while they can.

I've had my cat for 5 years now and it's only in the last year that he will actually leave food in his bowl if it's not hungry.

Make sure you keep an eye on his weight. My cat ended up putting on over a kg because I had never had a cat that overate before - I just assumed they all stopped when they were full!

Once I realised that he was eating too much, we just worked out how much we should be feeding him to get to his target weight and stuck religiously to that in two meals at set times. There was a lot of begging at first but it does get better as he started to learn the new routine. Consistency is key. Occasionally I would need to shut him out the room where he got fed if it was getting near to his meal time and he was getting a bit frantic.

I am having this issue with a nearly one year old male. I was just thinking about making a post. He is not my first cat by any means so experienced but he is so greedy - watches us all the time when eating, tries to butt in on food preparation ( have to shut him out now) , wakes us up in the morning early for wet food ( biscuits available). I'm hoping he grows out of it. Following this in the help of some advice.

What do you feed him? Supermarket brands typically have a very low meat content so if that's what he's getting, it's no wonder he's hungry all the time.

Has he had a blood test to rule out any deficiencies or thyroid issues?

Also agree with @Hdkatznahtw125sgh - many strays take a long time to learn that they'll always be given food and won't have to go hungry again.

Ours is ginger!

Last cat got really hefty - he was a six dinner Sid and also used to steal food from other cats by going in through cat flaps. I seriously thought no cat could be greedier but this one is terrible.

Not a stray or rescue.

Typical ginger.

I think you need to try to switch off a little bit and have the noise and pestering in the background as like white noise. I know its hard, I did get irritated with my diabetic cat from time to time and feel awful about it now, she couldnt help it and would constantly meow for food, it was constant.

But I echo making sure its high quality food, there seems to be this trend in pet food for 'whole grains'. Its cheap crappy filler, they need meat (or cake, crisps, sausages, spaghetti......)

Have you actually calculated how many calories your cat needs vs. what he gets? If you haven't, that would be my starting point. With supermarket pouches, he might be getting a lot less than you think and they will be full of rubbish that he can't even digest properly.

Have a look at this site to work out how many calories he should be having, then buy good quality cat food and feed the suggested amount. Not all cat foods display calorie content, but you can easily work this out yourself by adding up the protein (1g = 4kcal), fat (1g = 8kcal) and carbs (1g = 9 kcal) content listed on the tin.

https://vet.osu.edu/vmc/companion/our-services/nutrition-support-service/basic-calorie-calculator

The cat can't be hungry if it's refusing dry food. Stop all wet food and try on cheap dry stuff. If the cat turns its nose up and refuses food then you know it's not hungry just fussy/greedy.

Our cat like this was diagnosed with over active thyroid.

I was doubt to ask what you are feeding. It would be worth changing to sheba maybe, higher protein, lower sugar. Might keep him fuller longer. And if not, at least he won't end up diabetic like mine is.

Get his thyroid checked. It's a classic sign of hyperthyroidism which is common in cats and is easily treated with meds

What are you feeding him and have you had him checked over for thyroid issues and diabetes?

Assuming he gets the all-clear in terms of his health, I would go for a good quality dry food and a decent quality wet with a good meat content. Cheaper foods are more appealing to them but they're not the most filling unfortunately.

I also think you need to learn to tune him out a bit more - mine will shout for food whenever I'm in the kitchen but that doesn't mean he's going to get any.

I’m not sure he’d eat dry food - he just leaves it. What is a decent quality wet? At the moment he is just on Felix.

Tuning him out is easier said than done!

Look at how many pouches he should actually be having per day, sometimes it's 4-6 . If they're not having dry then it's going to be a lot. Can you split the pouches up so he has food throughout the day? My stray is the same,it's taken years for him to realise there will always be food. He settles with raw meat which I give him 3x a week and also cat milk. Also distract him with play if he's following you around, he needs to get breathless and pounce with a feather type toy. As far as I know Felix is like MacDonalds ,you need a high meat content food.

I’ll look into that; the worry is the cost if he eats the same amounts! He’s already costing a fortune!

He can easily eat ten pouches a day. I don’t generally give it to him but could, easily. As soon as he has one he starts pestering for another.