Chonky Cat Entering Obese Territory

[linkworshiper]

One of my cats has been incredibly food motivated since the day we brought him home. I sort of assumed it was because he was a stray and was used to foraging. We have had him for almost four years now and his obsession with food has only gotten worse. He's getting... really fat. But he also acts like he's dying when there's no food out, or he gets really mischievous and breaks things. As early as two hours before feeding time, he'll start knocking stuff off tables. At night, I've started leaving out little bits of dry food so that he doesn't keep us up. Other things I have tried but don't seem to help....

- Three meals a day, two wet, one dry (which stays out overnight)
- Lots of water in the food to make it more "filling"
- Bought slow feeder usually used for dogs

You can't leave a scrap of food unattended in our apartment or he's into it. I once bought a bag of dry food and set it down in the kitchen, and in the time ti took me to use the bathroom, he'd already eaten through the bag and into the food. Yesterday, he tried climbing me like a tree while I ate a slice of pizza, then licked my fingers for the flavor of it when I was done. It's nuts and I just don't know what to do.

We have two other cats, by the way. I feed one in the bathroom and the other in the bedroom with the door closed, as everyone is on different diets. Chonky cat will wait for the others to be done, but if you're not fast enough, he's got his face in their leftovers.

 

[Furballsmom]

Hi
Have you had a vet check him out, blood tests included?

 

[linkworshiper]

Hi
Have you had a vet check him out, blood tests included?

I’ve been trying to decide if he’s at that level, but you’re probably right. I brought him to the vet for something else a few months ago but they didn’t comment on his weight. (Thought he had ringworm but it was a false alarm.) He was about 13.5 then and now he’s 14.5. He doesn’t look too fat walking around, but in loaf mode, his rolls have rolls.

 

[maggie101]

I would bring him in since it could be medical. Why did you think he had ring worm?

 

[linkworshiper]

I would bring him in since it could be medical. Why did you think he had ring worm?

I work in a kennel and some of the dogs had it. I got nervous when I saw a red spot on his leg but it turned out he was obsessively licking. He needs Zyrtec every day and I had lapsed in buying a bottle. Anyway, I was worried.

 

[Furballsmom]

I keep wondering if a timed feeder would help him, there are ones for wet too.

If you aren't familiar, this might give you some additional information to work with;
Body condition score your cat

 

[maggie101]

Hope he's ok

 

[linkworshiper]

I keep wondering if a timed feeder would help him, there are ones for wet too.

If you aren't familiar, this might give you some additional information to work with;
Body condition score your cat

Problem with this plan is that he will doubtlessly break in. He is dumb smart. Last time I bought him a treat ball, he literally just pulled it open.

 

[Furballsmom]

Oh my goodness!

 

[furmonster mom]

That kind of insatiable hunger really makes me think there is something else going on.
Maybe a thyroid problem? Hypoglycemia? Diabetes? Nutrient deficiency?
I’d ask the vet to test for those.

 

[linkworshiper]

That kind of insatiable hunger really makes me think there is something else going on.
Maybe a thyroid problem? Hypoglycemia? Diabetes? Nutrient deficiency?
I’d ask the vet to test for those.

You've pretty much confirmed that it's something I can't fix with a change in routine or diet, so to the vet we go! Thanks. I'll try to update this after the visit.

 

[susanm9006]

You can try removing the dry altogether and adding an additional wet. This worked for my chubby girl.

 

[linkworshiper]

You can try removing the dry altogether and adding an additional wet. This worked for my chubby girl.

The reason I started leaving dry out overnight was because he would either come into the bedroom and start knocking stuff over, or he'd scratch and meow at the door until he was fed. When I feed him wet, he snarfs a whole bowl down in the time it takes me to feed my other two cats. I even purposefully buy chunky wet food so that he has to chew. When he's done with his food, he waits for the other two to be finished and comes sniffing into their leftovers, even if it's literally a single crumb at the bottom. I once dropped a meatball while I was cooking and he sat and licked the floor like it was going to feed him. When I prepare food at the counter, he's practically climbing the cabinets. Which, I might add, have child locks on them because Mr. Hungry-Hungry-Hippo over here knows where the food is kept and how to get at it.

Siiiigh. I could write a book about the times he's stolen people food. Literally opening pizza boxes, peeling off tinfoil. He's an evil genius.

 

[Furballsmom]

He's an evil genius.

Well, maybe but I so hope they're able to determine something, poor guy

 

[Alldara]

Lily, our late cat, would be so casual about stealing food that it was almost hilarious. We sat, dumbfounded as she walked into a chip bag, back out and sat down next to us to eat (I took it away after the shock! ).

What food are you feeding now? IF the vet doesn't find anything, you'll have to calorie count. Getting more movement....like tossing some of the kibbles so that he chases them. I get it, Magnus was used to eating at 5 am, as was Nobel. We have to put a but of dry or we won't get the sleep.

Some higher fiber food can help keep him full longer. You could try freeze dried treats rather than kibble for lower calories. Basically, if you can get more movement in for the food at all, it's better than no movement for food. (I was placing bits around at night that they would have to find)

I ended up having to do one bag of weight loss food for Nobel, to jump start his metabolism. Now he's down to 16 (half maine-coon), so he's okay.

Is there anything that distracts him from food, enrichment wise? How much of his enrichment in a day is food focused? Some can get so food focused by being bored. When is the "dying" for food happening? All the time or perhaps just when you're in the area by the food?

 

[linkworshiper]

Lily, our late cat, would be so casual about stealing food that it was almost hilarious. We sat, dumbfounded as she walked into a chip bag, back out and sat down next to us to eat (I took it away after the shock! ).

What food are you feeding now? IF the vet doesn't find anything, you'll have to calorie count. Getting more movement....like tossing some of the kibbles so that he chases them. I get it, Magnus was used to eating at 5 am, as was Nobel. We have to put a but of dry or we won't get the sleep.

Some higher fiber food can help keep him full longer. You could try freeze dried treats rather than kibble for lower calories. Basically, if you can get more movement in for the food at all, it's better than no movement for food. (I was placing bits around at night that they would have to find)

I ended up having to do one bag of weight loss food for Nobel, to jump start his metabolism. Now he's down to 16 (half maine-coon), so he's okay.

Is there anything that distracts him from food, enrichment wise? How much of his enrichment in a day is food focused? Some can get so food focused by being bored. When is the "dying" for food happening? All the time or perhaps just when you're in the area by the food?

Well, Ham is definitely hilarious about food, but it's worrying that his life seems to revolve around it. He just keeps getting fatter and fatter. I know our apartment isn't giant, but we have tons of cat toys and scratchers, cat shelves, cat trees, you name it. I even have bird feeders outside all of our windows so they have some wildlife to look at. He plays with both of our other cats often enough, lots of chasing and leaping and that kind of thing. So it's not like he's got nothing to do. His "dying" happens if we head towards the kitchen. He'll run ahead and wait in there. If you are preparing food, whether it's for him or people, he's climbing the counters or our legs. When hes' finished eating he'll usually sit outside the bathroom or the bedroom, waiting for the door to open because he knows more food is happening inside.

Just now, he finished his lunch and was sleeping next to me, but the second I went to open the bathroom and bedroom, where the other two cats eat, Ham was in there, licking and sniffing around. He even knows that the puzzle feeder in the bathroom is easier than the one in the kitchen, so he's always nosing around there first. When I put out our treat ball, if he's not busy trying to take it apart, he lets the other cats do the hard work of rolling it around, while he just follows and eats all the treats. I don't do treats super often, tbh.

I feed him Wellness dry, the chicken-free variety. Chicken is something that makes his poop literally pour from his butt like liquid. The smell isn't much better. His digestion definitely improved once we eliminated it. I generally buy Weruva, Soulistic and sometimes some brands from Whole Foods that are chicken-free. I like to give him ones with big fish chunks the best, because then he usually uses his little hands to take the food out of his bowl. He gets a Zyrtec every morning in his food for his other allergies. When he doesn't have it, he obsessively licks himself until his fur comes off. At the moment, he is very soft, so it seems to be working. Cat nip does not seem to have an effect on him either.

 

[susanm9006]

I would go to a pate - it’s actually more food and a little less water than the chunky kind and can take just as long or longer to eat. Try not breaking it up so he has to bite into the puck of pate. What I give Willow at bedtime is a water bottle that I have cut a half dozen holes in, with a small amount of kibble inside. She needs to knock it around to shake out a piece - she loves this game and it means she eats the kibble very slowly

 

[linkworshiper]

I would go to a pate - it’s actually more food and a little less water than the chunky kind and can take just as long or longer to eat. Try not breaking it up so he has to bite into the puck of pate. What I give Willow at bedtime is a water bottle that I have cut a half dozen holes in, with a small amount of kibble inside. She needs to knock it around to shake out a piece - she loves this game and it means she eats the kibble very slowly

Those are some really good suggestions that I'm definitely going to try this week!

 

[Alldara]

Well, Ham is definitely hilarious about food, but it's worrying that his life seems to revolve around it. He just keeps getting fatter and fatter. I know our apartment isn't giant, but we have tons of cat toys and scratchers, cat shelves, cat trees, you name it. I even have bird feeders outside all of our windows so they have some wildlife to look at. He plays with both of our other cats often enough, lots of chasing and leaping and that kind of thing. So it's not like he's got nothing to do. His "dying" happens if we head towards the kitchen. He'll run ahead and wait in there. If you are preparing food, whether it's for him or people, he's climbing the counters or our legs. When hes' finished eating he'll usually sit outside the bathroom or the bedroom, waiting for the door to open because he knows more food is happening inside.

Just now, he finished his lunch and was sleeping next to me, but the second I went to open the bathroom and bedroom, where the other two cats eat, Ham was in there, licking and sniffing around. He even knows that the puzzle feeder in the bathroom is easier than the one in the kitchen, so he's always nosing around there first. When I put out our treat ball, if he's not busy trying to take it apart, he lets the other cats do the hard work of rolling it around, while he just follows and eats all the treats. I don't do treats super often, tbh.

I feed him Wellness dry, the chicken-free variety. Chicken is something that makes his poop literally pour from his butt like liquid. The smell isn't much better. His digestion definitely improved once we eliminated it. I generally buy Weruva, Soulistic and sometimes some brands from Whole Foods that are chicken-free. I like to give him ones with big fish chunks the best, because then he usually uses his little hands to take the food out of his bowl. He gets a Zyrtec every morning in his food for his other allergies. When he doesn't have it, he obsessively licks himself until his fur comes off. At the moment, he is very soft, so it seems to be working. Cat nip does not seem to have an effect on him either.

I would consider moving him to an LID (limited ingredient diet). Wureva and Wellness still are processed in a facility with a lot of chicken in it. There might be cross contamination that's still causing inflammation in the bowels. Blue Buffalo, Merrick and Instinct have LIDs of similar price range. Blue Buffalo has dry LIDs as well (Dr. Elsey has some but the texture is weird). You should start with just one novel protein and keep him on that for one to two months and then try other LIDs to help figure out exactly what's causing the allergy and see if he can have different things. The rabbit LID is great for that but they have others. Magnus started on that and he can have chicken, turkey, salmon or tuna.

After two cats with allergies, I haven't had any luck getting off of allergy medication long term with Wellness in the diet. (Lily had chicken and fish allergies, Magnus has a beef and beef by-product allergy).

Pure Bites has freeze dried treats that are just purely whatever the protein is.

Honestly, if he's bugging for food just when you get up, you may just have to practice ignoring it until he moves on. You can try distraction with play. (Cal presses his hungry button and will bug for food but if we play instead he will usually play and then settle....but it took some practice with that routine.)