Excessive Attention Seeking Meowing

[nolia]

Harley is very very needy of attention. He is a giant ball of energy and plays very rough. He accidentally hurt my other cat, Pico, and she got an ulcer in her eye so I have separated them. Pico mainly stays in the bedroom so I can monitor her and give her the ointment every so often.

But in the middle of the night, Harley will continually meow and slam his body against the door for attention or to be let in. If unsupervised, he will rough house with Pico, which is why I keep them apart for now.

I clip their claws every so often, but he still play fights by going for the face and throat even if she growls or hisses to tell him its enough.

In addition to excessive meowing, he meows a lot for food. I have them both on a feeding schedule and Harley will attempt to steal Pico's food when he can. He also GORGES and then throws up almost 3 minutes later so I have to give him tiny bits at 5 minute intervals. The only thing that seems to work is if I give him meat with BONE IN, so he has to take his time to chew.

He is such a high maintenance kitty. Any advice or solutions to the meowing, rough housing and the binge eating?

 

[nosykitty]

First, knowing this information will help assess your situation:

Age
Neutered?
Type of food he eats?
How much exercise does he get (from you playing with him etc)?
How old was he when you got him?

All of these can play a big role in the behavior of cats.

As for food, cats will usually eat as much as needed to obtain the nutrients they require. Is it possible the type of food he's eating is not quite suited for him? How much food does he get a day? Is he getting enough food?

Some cats are just greedy eaters, this is what I call "Garfield Syndrome" lol.
And Sometimes they have developed the habit because of a prior experience like having to struggle for food to eat.

There are food bowls specifically designed to prevent gorging. You may want to consider getting one so you don't have to feed a small amount every 5 minutes.

 

[nolia]

He's almost 2 years old. Neutered. Both cats are on a raw diet, so the type of meat is different every few days. He's pretty active and passes time by running up and down the house. We got him at 3 months old.

He gets enough food during the day, but I find that if I feed him twice a day, he will throw up. I've reduced it down to one feeding, having him eat about 1/3 of the dish and waiting 5 minutes before feeding him another third.

I've seen those specialized bowls for dogs, have yet to see the one made for cats... and even then I think it won't slow him down. He can eat an entire dish full within a minute.

 

[at129]

We actually had the gorging problem with one of our dogs (a rescue who had been returned to the shelter after some food aggression problems with another dog in her first adoptive home), and we came up with a DIY solution rather than buying a special bowl...you could probably arrange something similar for the cat.

We simply eyeballed the size of the bowl, then took a mug and turned it upside-down in the middle of the bowl, so that the food fell around it in a fairly narrow trench. The idea, I think, is to find an object that's just large enough to make the animal "work around" the object instead of just sticking their face in the bowl and just...well, "hoovering" away! Cat bowls tend to be a little shallower and sometimes wider, but if you can find an object of the right size to place in the middle, you might be surprised at the difference it makes!

 

[bookworm]

Originally Posted by at129

We simply eyeballed the size of the bowl, then took a mug and turned it upside-down in the middle of the bowl, so that the food fell around it in a fairly narrow trench. The idea, I think, is to find an object that's just large enough to make the animal "work around" the object instead of just sticking their face in the bowl and just...well, "hoovering" away!

Talk about overlooking the obviouse! Thank you for sharing that idea, I've been contemplating all kinds of expensive or complex stuff like buying a special bowl, or buying an extra big one and hammering a bump in the middle. Duh, Just set something he can't move in the center of the existing one! Brilliant.

 

[xocats]

Originally Posted by at129

We simply eyeballed the size of the bowl, then took a mug and turned it upside-down in the middle of the bowl, so that the food fell around it in a fairly narrow trench. The idea, I think, is to find an object that's just large enough to make the animal "work around" the object instead of just sticking their face in the bowl and just...well, "hoovering" away! Cat bowls tend to be a little shallower and sometimes wider, but if you can find an object of the right size to place in the middle, you might be surprised at the difference it makes!

Originally Posted by bookworm

Talk about overlooking the obviouse! Thank you for sharing that idea, Brilliant.

I have agree. That is a great idea.

 

[nolia]

I feed raw, so putting raw around an obstacle in the middle is still awkward. And I've tried that, it doesn't phase him, he's a fast cat.

Again the only thing that works so far is the raw bone-in meats where he has to take the time to tear and rip before chewing and swallowing.

Any ideas about the needy meowing?

 

[xocats]

Have you discussed Harley's behavior with your vet?
Maybe a work-up with blood panel, including thyroid might be useful to R/O a physical problem.