Odd behavior

2 things, somewhat related:
We've had our newly adopted 4-year-old cat for 3 weeks now. She's been skittish from the start but just over the last couple days she's ventured onto the main level during the day. Since then she's been *super* jittery, ridiculously jumpy, even in our bedroom where she is usually calm and snuggly.

We did have some company and I'm sure she's also on edge from exploring things while the kids are awake, but it still seems odd that her behavior is so different in her comfort area (our room) and with her comfort people (hubby and me).

Also, in the last few days, she's been sniffing around for crumbs and chewing on the edge of carpet, she ate a couple spilled grains of uncooked rice and even a very small piece of (soft) plastic tonight before my hubby could get to her.

What on earth would make her do such things? And will she be okay? Should we close her in our room at night again to prevent her eating random things around the house at night? It makes me think of pica, but in animal form. Does she need to get checked out by a vet?

By the way, we provide ample food and water! And give treats to boot. She's not lacking in anything.

There drugs that the vet can give her to help with pica. I would keep anything she eats where she can't get it

"Cats that suck, lick, chew, or even ingest non-nutritive substances—including natural materials such as wool or cotton, synthetic fabrics, plastic, rubber, paper, cardboard, and string—may have a compulsive disorder if the problem becomes sufficiently frequent or intense; however, disease processes, in particular those that might affect the GI tract, should first be excluded. Oriental breeds develop pica, particularly sucking of woolen objects, more frequently than other cats. Hallucinatory and locomotory compulsive disorders are less common than in dogs; however, painful conditions and any disease process affecting the neurologic system first need to be excluded.

Cats often improve with modifications to the environment that provide more control and predictability and increased enrichment, combined with medications that augment the amount of brain serotonin such as fluoxetine and clomipramine."

http://www.merckmanuals.com/vet/beh...oral_problems_of_cats.html?qt=pica cat&alt=sh