Cat growling while eating

Hi all

Just wondered if anyone else had heard of this. My 8 month old boy Oscar sometimes growls while eating. No one has to be near him, he will just do it. He isn't aggresive about it, I mean if I stroke him, he is fine.

I have another cat Lucy, and I thought maybe Oscar was growling because Lucy was around, but he will do it while eating alone too.

Sometimes if they have a treat of chicken or tuna, he will do it more - maybe cause he likes that better than cat food.

Anyone?

Thank you

Clare

Actually, when my kitten Nakita gets her treats she purrs in such a weird way I would say she is 'almost'a rumbling growl! She is just so excited when she gets a treat that she goes a little overboard.

Could it be that Oscar had to 'defend' his food before you got the cat? Maybe he shared a place that was a multiple cat household and he had to keep other cat's away from his food so he automatically does it all the time?

I don't think it's anything to worry about. Just a behaviour he picked up at some point in his early years!

I am sorry but I respectfully disagree with Kass. I had a cat like that last year who would growl when food was given to him. I thought he was just being food aggressive though he never had been before, and now he is no longer with us. We lost him because I didn't listen to him. Because of this, I would urge you to take your cat to the vet and have him to a complete check up and especially look for mouth problems. I don't mean to frighten you, it could just be nothing. But because I went through the trauma I did with my cat, I hope to prevent someone else from going through the same thing.

Hello

I shall be making an appointment for Oscar to see the vet, I shall let you know how he gets on.

Thank you so much...........I am scared though!

Clare xxx

I have no idea why they do that, but Fred and Leo used to do it. Both grew out of it. The vets said they could not find anything wrong with them, but I did take them in to make sure.

When I had my old cat and got him a friend, he used to growl to teach her "you eat from your bowl, I'll eat from mine" and he stopped when she learned that.

Now I have that second cat and a new one and both prefer to share their bowl than have their own.

Now, my second cat growls and howls while running around the house playing with her toys.