Starving cat... *or so she seems to think*

[ericat]

Hi, the kitties and I are new to this site and we could use some feedback. 

I have three cats, one an outdoor cat which was a stray we rescued, two are indoor or outdoors on a leash and harness.  Melvin, our outdoor badboy, feeds himself a lot while out in the great outdoors, Boy and Swizzle get kibble three times a day.  Boy was a feral cat we rescued two years ago.  He has always been a nibbler and maintains a good weight.  Swizzle, our ten month old rescued stray is no nibbler and is not maintaining a healthy weight.  She is a tad like a dog, a meal eater. 

She gobbles as quickly as she can and then heads to the next dish, or, heads straight for the other dish first, to remove food the other cat might eat, to save for after she empties her own dish.  Not only is she a piggy at meal times, she is now screaming for food throughout the day, even if we're not in the kitchen.  She leaps up to counters in search of food, ANY food, cat, people, dog.  She rips open pet food bags, tries to pry her way into tupperwear containers of pet food or treats.  Our rescued potcake dog goes into the kitchen whenever Swizzle is in there, because she KNOWS the dastardly feline is sneaking her kibble, too. 

It's really becoming quite an issue, she jumped up onto the gas range the other day, in the hopes of reaching foooooood.  I feed her sufficiently, she's getting good dental hygiene from our veterinarian.  She's about ten pounds and is tubby.  I have no idea why she became so fixated on all food, no matter what it is.  Could there be a health issue?

 

[tjcarst]

Her issues with food are likely because she was a stray and did not know when she would get her next meal.  Try to keep her on a schedule and see if that helps.  It may be just the way she is with food.

It does not explain why my purbred showcat behaves in much the same manner.  Always gobbling up her food and my other cats' food, even though she is fed well, probably too well.  If she hears the food bag or treat, she comes crying and will not stay down off the counter while I am dishing it up.  I've decided to ler her have her way, fighting her was doing nothing but frustrating me and making our time together less enjoyable.  It's just one of her 'qualities' shall I say.  I am sure I have quite a few of my own that are not appreciated by others.

 

[ericat]

Hi, thanks for your reply. 

She wasn't like this when we first invited her to join our menagerie.  It's only been in the last two or three months that she started asking for more and more food, which wouldn't be an issue if she weren't also getting quite tubby.  When I started noticing her getting greedy I stopped giving them a treat of moist food, they only get good quality kibble and no treats.  I feed the two indoor cats 2/3 to 3/4 a cup each divided into three meals throughout the day.  Even at that I have to supervise meals and take the food away if Boy leaves and Swizzle keeps eating out of both dishes.  Boy is a nibbler, Swizzle a meal eater.  This is why I was wondering if there might be some sort of underlying health issue causing her to behave this way.  I thought about thyroid problems, but from what I've read, she would be getting skinnier, not fatter, I think.  She isn't due for her yearly check up until September, but perhaps I won't wait until then to have her seen by our vet, if this dieting and meal supervising doesn't show signs of working soon. 
 

 

[tjcarst]

Maybe she is just craving attention?  My one cat, not the greedy one, uses her tiny little cries to get my husband to feed her dry kibble. 

Other than seeming to be 'starving' has anything else changed in her behavior?  If so, please call your vet and see if s/he thinks a checkup is in order.  It will either ease your mind, or get you a jump start on solving some other underlying issue. 

 

[tjcarst]

Maybe she is just craving attention?  My one cat, not the greedy one, uses her tiny little cries to get my husband to feed her dry kibble. 

Other than seeming to be 'starving' has anything else changed in her behavior?  If so, please call your vet and see if s/he thinks a checkup is in order.  It will either ease your mind, or get you a jump start on solving some other underlying issue. 

 

[bigperm20]

My cat's the exact same way. I can't prepare a meal for myself without getting bunch of dirty looks, bent eared gazes, and without a tail swishing to and fro in a hateful manner:-) My cat's so fat people are telling me she looks pregnant . I'm pretty sure my cat was starved half to death a kitten in the woods of NC so it makes sense that she panics when her food bowl is half empty.

 

[ericat]

She gets loads of attention and she and Boy are inseparable.    The only thing that's changed is her appetite and girth.  lol  I asked the vet today, when I was picking up stuff for Kalicat about thyroid stuff, but they said cats lose weight when they have thyroid issues, unlike dogs who may gain.  So many things to think of.  I'll keep persevering with the diet and scheduled feedings, and monitor the little beast.  She IS very sweet at least.  She never is upset with me and always comes when I call.  No matter what she's doing.  I hope she is  healthy.    Thanks for the input. 

 

[bigperm20]

It's the Blue haired cat in your avatar picture right? She looks kind of on the chubby side. The funny thing is my little lady with whom I'm having almost exactly the same issues is blue colored as well.  Look at the pics of her at the bottom of the first post in this thread and in my profile there is an album as well, although I don't know if you can see that yet b/c I am new.

http://www.thecatsite.com/t/244622/my-cat-is-crazy-and-getting-fatter-by-the-day-help#post_3207382

 

[ericat]

Actually, the blue/grey one is Melvin aka Bud.  He mostly eats 'wild game', but some of my well meaning neighbours still feed him, though I've asked them not to.  He was a stray in our area for quite a while before we adopted him and a few people helped to nourish him through that time.  He weighs in just under 14 lbs.  Swizzle is the one nesting in the cat cave, to the left.  You can only see her cute face, not her girth.  When I figure out how to make an album, you'll have a chance to see her in all her tubbiness.  lol  You have a beautiful cat, by the way.