Begging for food

[scoutandmaxine]

So I rescued a beautiful black cat from a parking lot a few months ago. I named him Flint. He has acclimated to the house and with my other cats perfectly. Flint is a wonderful cat, very sweet and gentle. However he is constantly begging for food. When I found him, he was completely starved, so I figure he is going to have some food insecurity. But no one can even step into the kitchen without him screaming his head off for more food. I've had to do a lot of trial and error with food that agrees with his stomach. The addition of fortiflora has improved his stools greatly. But Flint already seems like he's leaning towards becoming overweight. I am able to sometimes distract him with playtime but again, if anyone goes to the kitchen, he runs in and starts begging. I feed him mostly wet food bc i am worried about his weight. Even if I feed him more than the suggested calorie intake for his size, he still acts like he is starving. Any tips on how to curb this behavior? Playtime does work sometimes and he also stops crying if I pick him up and hold him. I walk around with him in my arms and he calms down, like an actual baby lol. (He is getting so heavy though). But I was wondering if there was something more I could do?

 

[Maurey]

Have medical causes like thyroid issues and diabetes been ruled out?

 

[scoutandmaxine]

Have medical causes like thyroid issues and diabetes been ruled out?

He got a physical and the vet said he was okay but I haven't gotten more testing done bc my other cat is getting a very expensive surgery next week and I simply can't afford to right now. I did have them do a fecal test which came back clean. But other than that, idk. He doesn't have any other symptoms. He's just so extremely persistent when anyone goes near the kitchen. If everyone is sitting in the other room or not in the kitchen, he stops begging and lays down. But if anyone is cooking or getting something from the kitchen, he literally screams so loud and constant. It can be a bit much but I just try to ignore and gently tell him No. It hasn't worked though. He's still very loud and annoying lol.

 

[Bolts]

I had the same problem with my ex street cat..2 years in and i still have to split his meals into tiny portions so he thinks he’s not being starved, The other week i couldn’t get his normal food, and he refused to eat what I gave him..I was like wow I never thought it would happen. Like you I couldn’t walk in the kitchen, had to get a automatic feeder for night so I could sleep. It does get better..but he is on a diet now lol

 

[ForeverHungry]

Got myself a street girl as well. Just from my username you can tell I got a hungry one as well
Her health check came back fine. I split what would be 2 meals for most cats into 4. I wanted to keep her on all wet but the mid day kibble goes into a hunting toy which she bats around for half hour. I have made it tough by keeping the slit barely open and she keeps busy with that for 45 mins, sometimes naps and goes back to it later.

Otherwise, when I am in the kitchen she almost always expects food. I make her smell funny stuff like onions and lemons when I cook so she can realize there's nothing of interest, which I guess works for 5-10 mins haha. Other times I redirect her with a toy and distract her or play and get her a bit tired.

I moved her food bowl to the laundry room coz she used to try and get my attention by beating her empty food dish around when it would be empty or scratching the surface of the bowl aggressively. Now she tries to lead me to the laundry room and I just ignore her.

I also add water to her food to get her to feel fuller. It creates those big balls of litter but I guess that's better than a heavier cat with health issues.

Editing to add: I have had her for 6 months now and like B Bolts said, I have hopes it will get better.

 

[scoutandmaxine]

Lately my biggest issue is making sure he doesn't eat my other cats food. I wish those microchip feeders weren't so expensive bc that would help a lot. Oh well, I guess I got a ForeverHungry cat now too lol.

 

[ForeverHungry]

I want to get her a buddy and worry about this exact food stealing situation. I'll probably come back to you someday for tips on that Microchip feeders are indeed quite expensive! I'm right now typing this out while Azizi(my hungry calico) is sitting across staring and watching my moves and waiting for me to enter the kitchen. Hopefully it gets better some day so I can get her a buddy. Wish you good luck!

 

[vince]

I have a bunch of beggars, too. The two older ones came with bad habits installed. They then taught the kitten how to beg. I indulge them, which is my fault, but it's hard to ignore their pathetic meowing. I just have to live with it.

One of the two boys is a food stealer, especially the food that the female gets. She's easily distracted, which makes it worse. I found the solution was just to sit with her while she eats and shoo away the two others when they get too close.