New cat constantly looking for food

[Bichette]

We have just adopted a cat, he’s been with us for a week now. He has settled in really well - he’s friendly and confident, not hiding away at all. The problem is he’s is CONSTANTLY looking for food. We can’t eat any meals or do any cooking with him in the same room as he is jumping on the table and work tops. He is trying to jump in the fridge whenever you open it, he’s in the dishwasher trying to lick the dirty plates and he bolts his food down as if he hasn’t been fed for a week. He doesn’t look particularly thin as he has longish fur but he feels quite bony. He weighs 4 kg but has a large frame with a big head and feet. At the shelter he was getting 1 pouch of wet food a day and 35g of dry food split into 3 meals and after a discussion with them we have upped his dry food ration to 40g but he is still hungry all the time. Apparently he was given up to the shelter as he wasn’t getting on with another cat but not surprising imo as he wasn’t neutered and wasn’t allowed out. He is now neutered and will be allowed out in a couple of weeks. Anyone have any advice? I wonder if just giving him unlimited biscuits might calm him down and help him self regulate his appetite or is that a recipe for disaster?

I'm baffled by how little some people feed their cats. Mine get through 2 to 3 pouches each per day, plus dry food always down, plus anything they can pinch from us, plus a ready supply of rodents.
None are overweight. All are active outdoor cats.

It really depends on their weight too though. Mine is a big cat, 7kg. He gets 2 x 85g tins of wet food and that’s it
had to remove the dry as he didn’t self regulate and got to 7.7kg

I dont think one pouch is enough for such a big cat. What is the recomendation on the packet? Surely 2 pouches is the norm?

If he feels bony then he's probably underweight, condition scoring is a far better guide to monitor if they are under/over. All my cats (I currently have ten) are given a full pouch of food am and pm plus ad lib dry. None overweight, although my smallest female is just starting to gain so microchip feeders will be used if needed. I'd definitely try upping the food if he's constantly hungry and feeling bony. He's a beauty!

Hmm. Try telling that to my very overweight feline!

She discovered the huge bag of Purizon dried cat food at the back of a large shelf in the utility room. Unknown to us she managed to rip it open and get in to scoff it at regular intervals.

As it was a spare bag, we didn’t discover her greediness for several weeks. DH commented she was beginning to look fat and wondered if she could be pregnant despite having been spayed. 😳🤣🤣

@Bichette Please don't stop giving him wet food. For male cats it increases urinary blockages and kidney problems. Personally I wouldn't feed any cat (male or female) solely on dried food. But well done for adopting him, he's a beauty. I would feed him pretty much on demand at the moment, he'll settle down once he feels secure.

My 5kg boy has 3 pouches a day plus access to dry food 24/7, he doesn’t eat much dry but finishes his 3 pouches and often cons me out of more.

I would definitely increase his food. Look at the box the food comes in as a guide on how much to feed.

So my new cats are very food driven. But my long stringy boy is on two pouches a day with 2 tbsp of dry satiety food (we are trying to bulk him up a little as he’s deffo under weight, less than 4kg) so I would experiment with giving him a bit more food. When they were in the shelter they were on 4 pouches a day each!! Have you had him checked for thyroid and diabetes? I’m hopeful from some of these stories that they might calm down eventually….

Is he meant to weigh that much? Like is he fat or is he a big cat.

most cats will self regulate, it’s only a small number that won’t. But in this situation the OPs cat looks like a big cat because he is 4kg despite being slim. If he is eating it and looking for more I think that he should be given more then keep an eye on what he looks like and whether his body stays lean.

The problem with feeding him the right amount for his current weight (particularly if still growing) is they won’t grow and get to the right weight so you won’t put food up so they won’t grow and it can become a cycle.

For a guide, mine get through (between the 2):

40kg dry per year
730 pouches per year

so this is 2 pouches a day (my girlie just likes a little taste usually) as we put down half a pouch per feed, 3 times a day, and the other half down when the little lady decides she fancies some. And the dry is left out all day but works out that between them they have 110g a day.

My cats have access to biscuits 24/7 and self regulate. No need to wolf them down as they know they won't get taken away.

They also get 1 pouch each as an extra.

Might be worth trying the 24/7 biscuits, yes he'll go crazy for the first few days but should settle when he starts trusting the bowl will always be full!

He was checked by a vet at the rescue centre about 3 weeks ago along with being wormed and deflead. Maybe I will take him to our local vet for another check up. Apart from this he is very sweet with a lovely fluffy tail and feet

Yeah he just looks like he is supposed to be a big boy…definitely get some high meat content kibble down for him all of the time.

I find buying 2 x 10kg bags at a time works best then I have an airtight box to put it in so that it stays fresh for as long as you need it (think salt box) and you can make good savings. Obviously I would buy half that if I were you since you have just one.

I wonder if he was fighting for food with the previous cat and that’s why he had to be rehomed, they may have been putting it down at set times in the day and not realised that he needed more. Anyway I would definitely give him free grazing for a couple of months and see how he begins to self regulate. But keep up with the wet too to avoid urinary issues

Just coming to say this, mine gets cystitis and pees blood if he eats too much dry.
Also, dont underestimate their need for love. Mine(not a rescue) whines at me constantly, will eat if fed then, but if you give him major fuss hes happy. Yours will get to.understand that he is safe and food isnt going to vanish.
Course he could be just a greedy bugger. We once had to put a baby lock on the fridge to stop ours getting our tea out.

More cat tax

I doubt the rescue did any blood tests if there is nothing obviously wrong. My rescue didn’t mention the food insanity at all and there is simply no way this behaviour started as soon as they arrived at our house! So I’m a little ticked with them over the lack of warning. But I’d get him checked over by your own vet anyway. This is my rapacious monster! A lot of cat but all ribs under the fluff.

Oh definitely, that’s what I mean
mine is meant to be 6kg perfect weight but the vet also says I can’t feed him less without him not getting the right nutrition, he is a big tall and long cat
but I free fed him, realised I couldn’t and then it’s been awful dieting him and having him constantly looking for food

I bet he has been screaming the song of his people constantly throughout the diet…as though you are ruining his life

Cats are funny things aren’t they

Mine are both small cats and have 2 pouches and free access to dry. I'd say what you're feeding is no where near enough for a big boy like yours, and he seems to agree. If he was going out he could supplement with hunting, but instead he's making do with licking the dirty plates.
I'd split the wet into 2 meals and let him have free access to dry. Keep an eye on his weight, I should imagine he'll gain a bit as he settles in with you, he looks quite lean, but if he starts podging out you can always go back to rationing the dry.

My 2 indoor cats share a pouch in the morning & another in the evening - HiLife am and Harringtons pm. But they have a choice of 2 different kibble down at all times.

Girlcat is currently a little over weight at 5.5kg (taking advantage of her companion needing loads of feeding up), and her brother Boycat (now departed) was 6kg at what the vet considered perfect condition despite being a long lean shape - your pic suggests your boy is at least as big as Girlcat and probably bigger, so I'd guess his ideal weight would be around the 5kg mark.

Tobias is a medium sized cat, slightly more chunky built, and is losing weight due to a terminal illness. Last check-up he's dropped to 4.3kg and the vet was concerned about his weight being so low (he HAD been a bit chubby before his illness kicked in).

In summary - purely by guessing his size from the pic & you saying he's quite floofy, I reckon he's under weight & so not surprised he wants more all the time.

I’m no expert we have 2 cats by accident! Brother and sister. They have about 3 pouches a day each and unlimited biscuits. They go out and hunt in the woods. We are also rural. Both always starving! But equally both a perfect weight according to the vet last week, I just feed them when they ask! It annoys the dog no end 🤣 as she doesn’t live the same life!

What's the meat content on the wet food? Some is as low as 4% it wont fill him up

What food are you giving, supermarket food is generally not very nutritious, we buy in bulk from Zooplus, currently on a mix of Iams dry food and Rosie's garden tins, the tins are 70% meat content against say Felix which has about 12% meat content.
My large 7.5kg (a bit overweight) boy has equivalent to 2 pouches a day plus 80g (diet) biscuits.

X1 pouch a day no wonder he is starving! My 13 week old kittens get more than that and are half the size. He is not being greedy. Poor thing is hungry.

He's gorgeous 😍 How old is he?

I'm repeating what some PPs have already said, but in your position I would start by researching and buying high quality food (with high meat content) both wet and dry. Leave dry food down all the time, keep the bowl topped up. And give him a small portion of wet food twice a day at set times. Try not to do it when he's miaowing at you, if possible! (I realise if he miaows all the time that'll be hard )

Hopefully, once he's realised he will always have access to food, he'll calm down. But if he doesn't, ask the vet to do a blood test to rule out thyroid problems and other issues.

Keep an eye on his weight too; weigh him yourself or get him weighed at the vet every few months.

My cat was losing weight but we hadn't realised. He's always had access dry food but started miaowing at us for food even when it was available. The vet picked up on his weight loss at a routine check-up and recommended blood tests which revealed he had hyperthyroidism. It's more common in older cats (mine is 11) but worth bearing in mind as a possibility.