Impossibly snacky cat goes after any food in the house

[catqs]

Hello all! I'm in the process of adopting one of my fosters, a really sweet 7-8 month old cat. I started fostering her through a rescue after she was surrendered with pyometra. I'm not familiar with her circumstances before the surrender, but the vet thinks she'd had kittens previously (when I took her in for mammary swelling that hasn't gone down since I got her, he said she's actually still producing milk and to give her another month to dry up).

The issue is she's obsessed with food. Not in terms of eating—sometimes she doesn't finish her meals—but she tries to break into things and steal everything she can. She jumps into cupboards when I open them, biting bags of food and shaking them. Sometimes she bites into the bags of litter too and I've to lock em up She bites right into plastic containers like a snake being milked. When she eats her own food, she eats fast and with full bites—not licking things up, but opening her mouth to the fullest, putting her face in the bowl, and crunching down as hard as she can. When I feed her a treat, she bites at my hand frantically and if I don't pull away quickly enough, I'd get bitten. I've been eating on my balcony every day to stop her from putting her face in my food, but obviously I can't keep that up through the colder months. When I'm outside eating, she's at the windows meowing at full volume.

My other cat was quite snacky when he was younger too, but he was never in that kind of frenzy and he never had that bite force. Another time she bit straight through a bag of treats I was reaching into and nearly bit my hand. She's never shown any kind of aggression toward people, it just seems like her drive to get food is more intense than anything. She's quite clumsy as well, just very determined and focused on what she wants and she doesn't really pay attention to things around her.

She's been with me for about a month and a half, and other than this food issue she's incredibly sweet, super adventurous, and my other cat adores her. The vet also pronounced her perfectly healthy, and she's gone through a round of dewormer (next one in a few weeks). I hesitate to say that she's just hungry all the time, since when I do feed her, she'll sometimes leave a little food in the bowl.

Has anyone had any similar experiences and if so, how did you help your cat with these issues? I'm wondering if it's because she had kittens and is still producing milk (even though she doesn't have any kittens to feed right now) and it might go away once she stops producing milk? Thanks!

 

[susanm9006]

You said she leaves a little in her dish when you feed her, but does she finish it up before her next meal? Because she is a growing cat it is best to make sure she has kibble available to her all day in addition to wet food meals. That may help with the foraging and probable anxiety about not getting enough to eat.

 

[ArtNJ]

I don't have any suggestions for the core problem, but with a cat like this please make sure you are familiar with the list of human foods that are toxic to cats.

5 Dangerous Foods You Should Avoid Giving Your Cat | Hill's Pet

 

[maggie101]

Is she on a timed feeding schedule? Is she fed at least 3x a day? Does she get any wet food? If its wet, is meat the first ingredient? It will make her fuller. Dry food can be addicting. We all like crunchy food,human and animal. Trixie puzzles might help

 

[LTS3]

She might just be food insecure. Do you know her past history? Former ferals and strays and neglected cats who never have enough food to eat are always looking for more to eat even if there is a full bowl available. It takes times for such cats to learn that they will always have food available and they don't need to keep looking.

Keep food off the counter as much as possible. Put child safety locks on the cabinets and trash can if needed. Lots of things are harmful to cats if ingested.

 

[catqs]

Thanks for the replies! I should've mentioned in my first post, but we give her high quality wet food split up into 3 meals, meat's the first ingredient :-) I appreciate the advice about trying some smaller snacks in there too. She's young, quite thin, has had kittens recently, and is very active, so I think there's room in there for a little more.

The counters are clear, food is always locked up, and we're very familiar with toxic or unhealthy foods because my other cat was similarly snacky in his youth, he just didn't have her energy and that kind of frenzy haha... He's mellowed out quite a bit since then so it's possible she'll do the same.

Unfortunately I don't know her early history, just that she was surrendered by a family with other pets. They didn't even say she'd had kittens but the vet is sure of it. It's possible she was neglected. We've only had her a month and a half, so maybe she's still adjusting. Actually, from yesterday to today, we taught her how to sit! She's been doing that while we eat for the last couple of meals instead of trying to steal from our plates so there's some hope there ;-D

 

[susanm9006]

If young and thin she needs to eat often and as much as she wants. Don’t worry about her getting overweight for at least another three or four months. When she stops growing and reaches a healthy weight then can start cutting back if she is gaining quicker than you think she should.

 

[maggie101]

Thanks for the replies! I should've mentioned in my first post, but we give her high quality wet food split up into 3 meals, meat's the first ingredient :-) I appreciate the advice about trying some smaller snacks in there too. She's young, quite thin, has had kittens recently, and is very active, so I think there's room in there for a little more.

The counters are clear, food is always locked up, and we're very familiar with toxic or unhealthy foods because my other cat was similarly snacky in his youth, he just didn't have her energy and that kind of frenzy haha... He's mellowed out quite a bit since then so it's possible she'll do the same.

Unfortunately I don't know her early history, just that she was surrendered by a family with other pets. They didn't even say she'd had kittens but the vet is sure of it. It's possible she was neglected. We've only had her a month and a half, so maybe she's still adjusting. Actually, from yesterday to today, we taught her how to sit! She's been doing that while we eat for the last couple of meals instead of trying to steal from our plates so there's some hope there ;-D

I clicker trained Maggie to come when called. Awesome because she is mostly black. Glad she is doing better

 

[fionasmom]

I think that this will correct itself once she gets a little older. You have had her for a month and a half and for about five months she may have been food deprived as it does not sound like her owners were responsible in the least. Maybe there were days with no food and there she was pregnant and/or with kittens.

I have seen completely desperate ferals eat the way that you describe. Huge gulping mouthfuls, even crying while they are eating, and completely protective of their food. One I rescued years ago broke into a huge bag of Friskies dry food that was meant for emergency use and which had been stored in a closet in the room he was using. He ate all his food that I brought him, and then moved into the closet and continued on the bag. It did stop once he realized that this was now his home and that there would be food.

She should be given whatever good quality cat food that you have in whatever quantity she wants for the time being. The fact that she is now allowing you to eat in peace shows that she believes that you will feed her again and that she is relaxing.