Cat On Canned Food Begging For Food....

crazy4strays

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I switched my cats to canned food about 2 1/2 years ago. My cat has developed progressively worse and worse behavior about eating. If I don't have the food exactly out when he thinks that I should, he comes and gnaws on my leg, chews on my hand, nips on me, etc. etc. Sometimes his definition of "meal time" is quite different than ours. He will go bother the kids in the middle of the night and come start chewing on me at 6 in the morning to get his food out. He never did this on dry food.

Is there any way to schedule the canned food better so that I can anticipate and correct this problem behavior or do I need to leave out a little dry food at night so that he'll stop bothering us when we're trying to sleep? My husband is fed up with the cat bothering the kids and said that we need to get a handle on it.

What's weird is now that his behavior has become pretty ingrained, sometime he'll come nipping on me when there's already canned food sitting in his dish.

Is he having blood sugar issues? He's a large cat (about 13.5 pounds I think) and I wonder if his need for food is more than smaller cats. My other two cats don't act like this at all and they are also on canned food only.

Anybody have this issue with your cat? How did you address it?
 

Beaglelover1980

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My fur baby gets a can of cat food a day 1/2 in the morning and 1/2 at night and he has an unlimited supply of dry food to he eats both. I was always told that you should feed animals hard and moist foods going to an all moist diet can be bad for their teeth. Is he neutered? That could be why he weighs so much have you thought about having the vet test him for diabetes? Yes i would put dry down at night for him so you and your family can get some sleep and i would look into a vet visit soon have him tested for diabetes and have his thyroid checked. Keep me posted on your baby
 
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crazy4strays

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The vet said that he is at a normal weight and not overweight. He has a very large frame and build.
He is neutered and was that way already when I adopted him, almost 4 years ago. He was already an adult at that point, so he's at least 5-6 years old.

I decided to have him sleep in a dog crate tonight. He can't very well be bugging us if he's not free roaming the house. LOL.
 

Beaglelover1980

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Well thats good that the vet says he is healthy so then that means he just loves food lol i took in a feral cat at the beginning of winter and he is gonna be getting neutered this coming tuesday so he is already a big kitty so i can imagine he is going to be huge when he gets neutered lol. I wouldnt advise for you to lock him up that may lead to other behavioral problems if its because he wants food that he is keeping you up at night maybe skip his can food at night and put dry down instead? He may be satisfied with a full belly on dry food as maybe the moist is not filling him up? I would try it for a night or 2 and see if that curbs his cattitude lol
 
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crazy4strays

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I put him in the crate with his bowl of canned food, so hopefully eating right before bed will do the trick. I need to really pay attention to the timing of meals, I think.
 

elliesvictim

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My 18mnth old used to have a hilarious routine in the hour before dinner time. Desperation crying and meowing followed by sitting infront of my face with desperation on her face leading to a crescendo of her desperately touching my face with an outstretched paw. The underlying theme desperation. Like she's never been fed.
Best advice never reward the behaviour and consistent relations to negative behaviour.
 
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crazy4strays

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Thank you for the input. Especially since sometimes he bugs me when there's food in the dish, I think that there's a really big behavioral component. We're really going to try to work on that. I really don't want to re-introduce dry food, if possible, so I'm hoping to nip the behavior in the bud without having to bring back dry food.
 

Beaglelover1980

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Maybe you and your family can spend an hour or so at night and play with him and run his energy down so maybe he will sleep through most of the night. Have play sessions right before you feed him and wear him out and then give him his dinner maybe he will get to exhausted to bother you guys all night lol. I know all animals are different but all my life all my animals have always had constant access to their food they could just nibble when they wanted i even do that with my 2 dogs and my cat and they don't gobble their food they snack every now and then and they dont pack on extra pounds because of it either. Just a few suggestions dor you to think about
 
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crazy4strays

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That's a good idea to play with him to wear him out!

It can go either way on the weight issue. I've rehabilitated a severely overweight cat who ate himself into obesity on being free fed dry food in his prior home. I've also done a lot of research on the pros and cons of each feeding method. Canned is definitely my preference.

Sometimes I think that it may not be hunger that drives begging behavior, but rather boredom....
 

Furballsmom

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About the boredom/attention getting thing, I'm pretty sure my Big Guy hops on the counter to get a drink from the filtered kitchen sink faucet mostly because he LOVES the accompanying attention LOL :dancingblackcat:
 

Beaglelover1980

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Yeah i think it depends on the cat with the whole weight issue like i said my fur baby is not neutered yet so he is not packing on the pounds but i will have to watch him after surgery and make sure he doesnt over eat and gain a bunch of weight but some cats have big body structures like you said yours does but as long as the vets say they are healthy there is no cause for concern. I bought my cat a laser cat toy and i wear him out everyday with that thing lol i make him climb walls and do flips and everything with it he loves it. I also bought him a bunch of other toys but he seems to love the laser more i think he loves chasing things the most. I also bought him a hammock type bed thing that you can attach to the window he spends alot of time on that when he is sleepy and loves playing on his cat tower. Keep us updated on the days to come let me know if wearing him out works
 

maggiedemi

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How much canned food do you feed him? Have you tried feeding him an ounce or two more?
 

Punkie's Owner

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When I switched my cat from dry to wet, she begged for food like crazy. Unsure if it's hunger or blood sugar or what, but I started splitting the food into 3 or 4 small batches a day.

The dry stuff keeps them full longer, I think. But my vet said wet is better, so wet it is.
 

susanm9006

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9C7F7EE0-855A-4B49-AD59-7D788C3520B9.jpeg I would try a puzzle feeder with kibble in it to supplement his meals and keep him happy in between. The cat needs to scoop out each piece so they can only eat very slowly. This is the one I use for Willow’s evening snack
 
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crazy4strays

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Thank you for the replies! I think that a puzzle feeder is an excellent idea. Any suggestions on a good low carb high quality kibble to use as a snack?

I don't really measure the canned food. I just kind of eyeball the amount. I buy large cans, so it's less obvious how many ounces they are getting.
 

maggiedemi

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Maybe try measuring it so you know exactly how much you are feeding? Maybe he needs a little more.
 

duckpond

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If my cats are hangry no one gets any peace or sleep...lol. I do free feed Dr. Elsey's, high protein and low carb. Its expensive but they don't eat a lot because it is so high protein i think, so it last a long time. since in started leaving this out at night i get a lot more sleep :) Chewy also has the small bags so you can try it.
 

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I would maybe add a meal. Are you feeding twice a day? Maybe split it up into 3 if you are able to. The food puzzles are also an idea.

I agree that the behavioral component is probably a big thing with him, but just to rule out hunger I think it wouldn't be bad to feed him more. Cats can get stomach acid inbetween meals when their stomach is empty. Anyway, do tire him out with playing. Imitate the "hunt, catch, kill, eat" process before bed, maybe?

And perhaps most importantly, ignore him when he begs for food. When you wake up, the first thing you do shouldn't be giving them food. Get some coffee and read the paper, and then afterwards give them food. The routine will shift after a few weeks (or even days) of doing this consistently. Instead of begging for food while you're still sleeping, the begging won't start until you're having your coffee.
 
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