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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.

The very hungry kitten

17 replies

WhatDoWeCallHim · 06/11/2023 16:16

Our old cat was large, long, lean, often got remarked upon, the vet called him panther, he once got mistaken for a dog by a visiting tradesperson. He ate well and was very active until near the end, so I'm used to large cats. He died last year and we now have a kitten.

Kitten is 5.5 months old, eats Royal canin dry kitten food and one wet pouch split over the day, usually Blink, Applaws, Lily's Kitchen, Hi life, seriously good a la carte etc, so those with decent content not just jelly and ash. He demolishes everything put in front of him, he will stand and eat all of his biscuits at once like a dog does. I know there's supposed to be no such thing as over feeding a kitten but he's starting to look a little chunky around the hips 😁

He doesn't go out yet, I can't shake the advice given when I had my first which was to keep them in until six months, and also he is an absolute daredevil/lunatic climbs curtains, shins down the bannister, hares around the house like a whirlwind. He has no fear (also loves water) and when we've taken him into the garden with us he has no recall, even before a meal, so I really worry about him coming back. He is clicker trained indoors. He can give a paw, has plenty of toys and mental stimulation, a cat tower etc, we play with him every day. He is half Bengal if that makes a difference.

I don't want him getting overweight and that having health implications. He meows for food even when fed.

OP posts:
Allergictoironing · 06/11/2023 16:44

May be worth checking with your vet, but do bear in mind that like human children kittens can grow in upwards then outwards spurts. . You say your last cat was very long and lean, so you may be comparing the new kitten to your previous adult (kittens do tend to be rounder than adults anyway). My FWK (friend with kittens) was worried about how much his were eating, they were like bottomless pits, but they've both ended up as just very large cats and not fat.

I had 2 long, lean (we think part oriental) litter mates. Dearest Boycat got CKD & had to be PYS so I bought in a companion for Girlcat. Tobias weight almost exactly the same as Girlcat, but he's a good inch shorter in height, and I'd guess at least 2 inches less lengthwise. BUT - he has short legs and a very chunky build compared to her

DiDonk · 06/11/2023 16:48

We, very briefly, adopted a semi-Bengal cat. It ate a lot, was very active, was an odd mixture of very affectionate and violent and we let it out at about 5 months old - this was the summer.

Was fine in the garden but within days it was going into neighbours houses and it disappeared for good a couple of days later. Think someone may have nabbed it thinking it was a pure bred!

WhatDoWeCallHim · 06/11/2023 17:01

DiDonk · 06/11/2023 16:48

We, very briefly, adopted a semi-Bengal cat. It ate a lot, was very active, was an odd mixture of very affectionate and violent and we let it out at about 5 months old - this was the summer.

Was fine in the garden but within days it was going into neighbours houses and it disappeared for good a couple of days later. Think someone may have nabbed it thinking it was a pure bred!

This is very accurate! Incredibly loving but will randomly bite, not with any real savagery and seems to know he can go harder with DH than I will tolerate and doesn't do it to DS , so seems to be play related.
I do worry about him being taken too, although he is clearly neutered. I definitely wouldn't put him past going into other houses, he opens draws, cupboards, doors etc, I thought I was going mad for a while finding things left open, until I found him asleep in the bathroom cabinet

OP posts:
WhatDoWeCallHim · 06/11/2023 17:03

Cat tax

The very hungry kitten
The very hungry kitten
The very hungry kitten
OP posts:
OrderOfTheKookaburra · 06/11/2023 17:07

OMG, how can you resist those pleading eyes??!! He's gorgeous. (Sorry, nothing helpful to add!)

fantasmasgoria1 · 06/11/2023 17:15

I'm not sure I would let him out. People may think he is a full breed and steal him. He is beautiful.

dementedpixie · 06/11/2023 17:15

I've always just kept dry food out and given wet food 2 or 3 times a day. I've never weighed the dry food

WhatDoWeCallHim · 06/11/2023 18:40

@dementedpixie that's what I've always done in the past but whatever I put down he eats immediately!

OP posts:
FormerlyPathologicallyHappy · 06/11/2023 18:58

Bengals eat a lot all their lives ime. Just feed him lots of food.

NitroNine · 06/11/2023 19:07

If you’re worried about letting him out, have you space for an exercise wheel for him? I’ve a friend with Bengal cats & they’re leash-trained but still need lots of exercise so they’ve a wheel to run in.

As for his size & weight, have you weighed him/tracked his weight gain? Would your vet practice provide advice/support [without charging you a fortune]?

Cat Wheels - Do you need one? If so, which one?

Updated January 2022 
 Cat wheels are a relatively new concept for most cat owners.  Naturally, people want to know if they should get one and, if s...

https://quality-bengal-kittens.com/blogs/information-for-bengal-owners-about-health-behavior-and-other-interesting-bengal-related-subjects/posts/5599345/cat-wheels

ButterMyParsnip · 06/11/2023 19:10

My British shorthair used to be a greedy kitten. I fed her a pouch at 11pm and had to wake at 6am to feed another pouch or else she puked from hunger. I was worried but she's turned into a tiny 3.5kg adult cat who happily grazes on an endless supply of dry food between two pouches of wet food per day.

unvillage · 06/11/2023 19:32

There's not really a lot of benefit to feeding dry food (apart from price), and it shouldn't be left out for them to graze on. You can safely cut it down if you're worried about his weight. Try and feed in set meals rather than letting him graze all day.

FormerlyPathologicallyHappy · 06/11/2023 19:56

Bengals grow till 18months so he’ll go gangly to tubby to gangly several times till he gets his muscles.

Kathy34 · 06/11/2023 20:07

Have u check him for worms? Also have you had your vet scan him for illness? Ee had a hungry hippo cat that we relized had a tumor

Allergictoironing · 06/11/2023 20:15

unvillage · 06/11/2023 19:32

There's not really a lot of benefit to feeding dry food (apart from price), and it shouldn't be left out for them to graze on. You can safely cut it down if you're worried about his weight. Try and feed in set meals rather than letting him graze all day.

Some cats just prefer to graze. Before Tobias came on the scene, I could leave wet food out & it would take them half the day to eat it, little by little.

I've been advised by a number of sources (including vets) that as long as a cat doesn't over eat then dry down 24/7 is a good thing. Dry has advantages like helping the cat to keep it's teeth cleaner; a large number of dental issues are caused by just wet food being fed.

EzraJones · 07/11/2023 09:56

unvillage · 06/11/2023 19:32

There's not really a lot of benefit to feeding dry food (apart from price), and it shouldn't be left out for them to graze on. You can safely cut it down if you're worried about his weight. Try and feed in set meals rather than letting him graze all day.

...or just measure out the recommended amount of dry food for cat weight/activity level, once it's gone, it's gone, until the next meal time.

or possibly a chip controlled dispenser on a timer...

margotrose · 07/11/2023 14:53

Wet food is generally more satisfying than dry, so maybe try dropping the dry food and increasing the wet?

One pouch a day split over two meals seems like a really tiny amount for a kitten IMO.

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