Cat can't get enough of food?

[raiinexii]

So, recently, my cat has been acting x10 more hungry than he ever acts, but I'm not really sure why he does that, and what I should do?
We feed the cats 3 times a day, and we use Fancy Feast grilled cans since those are the only ones they fully enjoy. In the morning, we feed them each half a can and then feed them the rest of the can at lunch. Then, we feed each of them a full can at dinner. Basically, each cat gets 2 cans of wet food a day.
They also have full access to dry food the whole day, and clean water, of-course.
But, the problem is now that the youngest of the bunch is stealing every other cats' food. He will quite literally eat a whole can within a matter of a few minutes.
He's even eaten 3 cans in a row before, I couldn't believe it when I saw it. I got quite worried because what if he's actually hungry, and I'm just not understanding?
I haven't seen him eat the dry food a lot, but I know eats it. I think he only eats the dry food when he knows that there are no plates with any wet food around.
Of-course, the last thing I want is to overfeed him, because I know that can lead to terrible things.
I am not sure what to do, I'm so so concerned about him, and I don't know if this is him just wanting extra food or him seriously being starved, because I do try my best to ensure that they always have access to food.
What should I do? Should I give him an extra can of wet food a day? Or should I not do anything, and remain the same?
This is different from before, as before he would not even be able to finish a whole can, and only finish it late night-time. That makes me even more anxious, and I hope to god that this isn't anything serious health-wise.
We also recently changed out their dry food, maybe that's the reason? I'm not sure, because we are trying out new brands of dry food that seem healthier right now. This has been going on for about a week now, and I finally realized that this might be something insanely serious as-well.
It's around 12AM, so if it is a dry food problem, I can only get the one they like tomorrow morning, so I will give him another can if it's the problem.
Sorry for the extremely long and jumbled rant.

 

[raiinexii]

There are other alternatives similar to Fancy Feast that they have enjoyed, so I can even switch to those cans from time to time if that's okay. I usually feed them Fancy Feast though, because I know how much they love eating from their foods.

 

[Maurey]

How old is he? How’s his body score? If he’s not a growing kitten I’d want bloods done, including T4.

 

[mrsgreenjeens]

How old is he? How’s his body score? If he’s not a growing kitten I’d want bloods done, including T4.

Agreed. First we need to know if he's still a kitten. Kittens do need to eat lots of food, and sometimes when they have a growth spurt they can seem to eat you what seem like a ton! But it is possible he is no longer eating any of the dry food and therefore IS still hungry on just two 3 oz cans of the FF grilled food. It really depends on his size, activity level, etc. just how much EACH cat should be eating.

Another thing to consider at this point is whether or not your other cats are getting enough if the youngest is eating their wet food as well. You really need to watch all of them and see exactly what is happening in the food department to get a good handle on it before panicking. For a young, really active cat that weighs about 10 pounds, as an example, they could easily eat 250 to 300 calories per day! Not so active, then drop that down to 200 - 250 calories per day. If they weigh more, then the calories would go up, and if they weigh less, then those calories would go down. 20 - 30 calories per pound (of the cat) per day, based on activity level. Couch potato = 20 calories per pound, bounces off the walls = 30 calories per pound. This is all an estimate because cats, like humans, are all different.

If you think this cat is really acting like he's starving and you believe he is consuming the proper amount of calories, then definitely take him in for a checkup. His thyroid could be acting up, which would be the T4 part of the bloodwork mentioned above.

 

[raiinexii]

Agreed. First we need to know if he's still a kitten. Kittens do need to eat lots of food, and sometimes when they have a growth spurt they can seem to eat you what seem like a ton! But it is possible he is no longer eating any of the dry food and therefore IS still hungry on just two 3 oz cans of the FF grilled food. It really depends on his size, activity level, etc. just how much EACH cat should be eating.

Another thing to consider at this point is whether or not your other cats are getting enough if the youngest is eating their wet food as well. You really need to watch all of them and see exactly what is happening in the food department to get a good handle on it before panicking. For a young, really active cat that weighs about 10 pounds, as an example, they could easily eat 250 to 300 calories per day! Not so active, then drop that down to 200 - 250 calories per day. If they weigh more, then the calories would go up, and if they weigh less, then those calories would go down. 20 - 30 calories per pound (of the cat) per day, based on activity level. Couch potato = 20 calories per pound, bounces off the walls = 30 calories per pound. This is all an estimate because cats, like humans, are all different.

If you think this cat is really acting like he's starving and you believe he is consuming the proper amount of calories, then definitely take him in for a checkup. His thyroid could be acting up, which would be the T4 part of the bloodwork mentioned above.

For one, he is extremely active, he gets playful easily and runs around everyday. He is also turning one this February, and he weighs around 4 or 5kg. His breed is also a Himalayan, which is mixed with some others if thats important as-well.
I’ll buy the dry food they like, and see if anything gets better, if not, I’ll go directly to the vet, but should I inform the vet of my worries before buying the dry food, just to make sure there’s nothijg wrong?

 

[mrsgreenjeens]

For one, he is extremely active, he gets playful easily and runs around everyday. He is also turning one this February, and he weighs around 4 or 5kg. His breed is also a Himalayan, which is mixed with some others if thats important as-well.
I’ll buy the dry food they like, and see if anything gets better, if not, I’ll go directly to the vet, but should I inform the vet of my worries before buying the dry food, just to make sure there’s nothijg wrong?

Ok, so he IS a kitten technically, although is reaching maturity quickly. But since he's very active, he could be burning up to 30 calories per pound, and if he's at 5 kg, could feasibly need 300 to 330 calories per day to maintain his weight. One can of FF Grills has approximately 70 calories, so even if he ate 3 cans that would only be 210 calories, plus some of the calories in the Grills aren't really protein from meat, but rather from other stuff. Have you ever tried feeding them FF Classics or maybe in Europe they are called Gourmets? They are the pate versus the grills. They have more calories and I would imagine are more filling.

But bottom line, if you are really worried about him and his eating, why not talk to your Vet and have him checked out. That way your mind will be at ease

 

[raiinexii]

Ok, so he IS a kitten technically, although is reaching maturity quickly. But since he's very active, he could be burning up to 30 calories per pound, and if he's at 5 kg, could feasibly need 300 to 330 calories per day to maintain his weight. One can of FF Grills has approximately 70 calories, so even if he ate 3 cans that would only be 210 calories, plus some of the calories in the Grills aren't really protein from meat, but rather from other stuff. Have you ever tried feeding them FF Classics or maybe in Europe they are called Gourmets? They are the pate versus the grills. They have more calories and I would imagine are more filling.

But bottom line, if you are really worried about him and his eating, why not talk to your Vet and have him checked out. That way your mind will be at ease

They don’t like the classics, I’m assuming the classics have the same consistency/texture of the paté, and they never eat those.
I have seen them like Friskies prime fillet, enough to eat them but not enough to fully enjoy and savour them they way they do with FF grilled.
I can divide a can of Friskies between all three of them for breakfast (they are large so I’m assuming it’d be fine?) And then 2 cans and divide it by the three of them, and then a full can for each of them by night? I’ve done it before, it worked really for well from what I recall.
I also changed their dry food so I hope that works as-well, but I’ll still ask the vet when he gets his second vaccine!

 

[mrsgreenjeens]

The Friskies Prime Filet has about 125 calories per 5.5 oz can (for chicken), so a little less than the FF grills per ounce. It's up to you what you want to feed and how much. Fine to divide a 5.5 oz can into thirds. They would be getting a tiny bit more food, but a little less calories if I am computing it correctly.

 

[maggie101]

They don’t like the classics, I’m assuming the classics have the same consistency/texture of the paté, and they never eat those.
I have seen them like Friskies prime fillet, enough to eat them but not enough to fully enjoy and savour them they way they do with FF grilled.
I can divide a can of Friskies between all three of them for breakfast (they are large so I’m assuming it’d be fine?) And then 2 cans and divide it by the three of them, and then a full can for each of them by night? I’ve done it before, it worked really for well from what I recall.
I also changed their dry food so I hope that works as-well, but I’ll still ask the vet when he gets his second vaccine!

Fancy feast classics does have a different consistency than other pates,especially ff classic turkey&giblets 2 of my 3 cats prefer that over sheba,nutro,etc. For some reason,maybe it's the artificial flavoring, my cats crave it. Also many cans will say chicken but include fish which is even more addicting