Help end medical misogyny. Sign our petition.

Help end medical misogyny.
Sign our petition.

Sign the petition

Please or to access all these features

The litter tray

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

Cats hardly ate while we were away, is this normal?

28 replies

Mamma22cats · 31/05/2026 14:52

Hi

We've just returned from 2 nights away. We have two kitties Luna (13 months) and Mango (19 months). We have a cat flap with a curfew between 11pm and 4am. The neighbour was coming in 2-3 times a day to feed them but they've eaten hardly any food the whole time we were away. There were only 5 pouches in the bin and there bowls were full. The younger of the two feels noticeably skinnier. The older seems to have been basically out from 4 am until 1am coming back at 8.30pm possibly for food and the younger was in and out from late afternoon in to the night but less activity during the day. They also have biscuits so I'm unsure how much of that they may have eaten but it was topped up. They've both eaten lots since our return like they were starving. Is it because of stress, scent - neighbour has a dog. Does anyone else experience this and what do you do?

OP posts:
Snowyowl99 · 01/06/2026 18:51

My cat doesn't eat much when I am away. Always think when I get back. Vet says it's stress due to their owner not being around

Snowyowl99 · 01/06/2026 18:52

Mamma22cats · 31/05/2026 15:19

What happens when you go away for a week or more. This is the longest I've left the youngest of the two and I'm worried if we go away for longer she'll starve herself.

Mine was very thin when I got back after a fortnight. But ate loads when we got back. Never been away longer than 6 days since

Fiftyandnotsonifty · 01/06/2026 18:54

It’s the heat, mine are definitely eating less pouches, grazing on biscuits and a definite increase in water

New posts on this thread. Refresh page