"Hoovering"

I've never heard this word used with cats, just with dogs, but it is the only way to describe it. I feed him and he doesn't so much eat his food as inhale it.

The problem is that I feed him only once a day, and by the time I get home from work he's starving, especially if I'm at all late (like I stop at the store, or have a meeting after work.)

He used to pace himself--a little when served, some more later in the evening, a bit at night, and a bit more during the next day. I don't know what has changed.

Is there any way you can feed him some in the morning also? They really should spread their meals out and not eat just once a day. I think it would be hard on their little system to eat like that

I feed mine in the morning before going to work, and again when I get home. They're definitely anticipating their evening meal, but clearly not starving (because they rarely finish it). If you can spilt what you feed that way, it might work out better.

Are you feeding wet or dry?

Singa is a food inhaler as well - especially when it comes to the 'yummy' unhealthy food. her problem was that she ate so quickly that it upset her tummy and she would puke it out shortly afterwards.

Try putting a tablespoon into the bowl. That helps slow down the eating process as they need to eat around the spoon.

If you are feeding your cat dry food, I've read that several clean rocks just big enough so kitty won't try to chomp them can be mixed in with food, to slow down eating. That way your cat will have to nudge through the rocks a bit.

If you feed wet food, and you can't get your cat to slow down... you may have to exercise some patience, and feed him little by little. If I know I've gone a while without giving my kitten wet food, I feed her by the spoonful until she isn't hungry. It isn't even that time consuming if the cat is hungry enough, but it's better than letting kitty inhale it!

I've had some trouble with some wet foods where they eat really fast, and are very hungry soon after. Like us eating a Big Mac.

What are you feeding?

I feed Innova Evo, left out all the time. Even if they don't eat it, they like know it's there

There's experts who advise all canned, but I've never figured out how to manage that, my big boys were raised with dry and would carry on if I took it away, and the kitten makes several pit stops during the day.

I just get the best dry food I can find.

I love that expression! You know that change in sound you get when you're vacuuming with a hose attachment and you put the end of the hose on the carpet and take it off again and the sound changes? I swear to you that when Sonic is eating you get that same sound change as his gob forms a seal against the bottom of the bowl while he's sucking up the food...

Juniper only does that sometimes, usually when we give him wet food after going about 4-5 days of dry. He's also done it when he caught a cricket. We call him a truffle pig, though, because he tries to purr while doing it and it sounds like pig snorts.

Originally Posted by erinca7821

Are you feeding wet or dry?

Click to expand...

Dry.

As I said, he used to eat a little when I put it down, a little sometime during the night, and there would be about half left by the morning. I presume he nibbled on it during the day, because it would be gone when I got home, but he wouldn't be vocal about needing food RIGHT NOW. I'm not sure what changed his behavior.