L'etat C'est Boo - What To Do With A Cat Who Thinks He Thinks All Food Is His Food?

[kitkaturday]

Boo Cat is about 11 years old, only pet in the house, and is a former feral rescued as a kitten. Until recently, he never begged for human food because he never got any human food. I don't know if it's coincidence, but my mom introduced him to nibbles when he was with her for a week, and since then he has become human-food-aggressive to the extreme, even in my house.

He eats Fussie Cat Chicken in Gravy, with an occasional rotation of a cat-food tuna or salmon meal. He'll eat well for a few days, then it gets sporadic, then he starts sticking in his face in our plates and bowls. Then we argue, he starves himself for as long as he can take it, and eventually he eats. I place a fresh meal for him twice a day. He also has a fresh-water fountain.

I have tried pureeing the chicken shreds in case the problem is tooth pain, but I have also come home to find gnawed bagels and pretzels abandoned on the floor, so I don't think it's a dental issue.

He is convinced that all and any human food is superior and demands the first right to it. Since I am bigger and smarter, I win about 98% of the battles by pushing him away, but when he is able to get at it, he also abandons the food almost immediately because - obviously - spinach (for example) is neither species-appropriate nor particularly tasty to him.

The very aggressive begging is wearing me down. It's crazy, the amunt of drama he can create over less than a cupful of food a day. Why is he doing this and how do I stop it?

Thanks so much to everyone for being here to help!

 

[Furballsmom]

Hi - a couple quick thoughts first - when was he last at the vet? Also, is he losing weight? In case you aren't familiar, there's an adult cat body chart out on the internet so you can see what he should be, but in short, you should be able to lightly feel the ribs with a thin layer of fat over them.
So, with that said, what about giving him a couple of different cat foods, wet and/or dry in addition to his current cat food?
Also, if after that he continues begging and demanding, what about a couple of peas or a small bit of mozzarella string cheese or shredded cheddar, or whatever it was your Mom gave him? If those things are a no, then what about store bought cat treats? I'm hearing good things about pure bites. Hang in there!

 

[kitkaturday]

Thanks for the suggestions. His weight is okay (9 1/2 lbs). He was at the vet for a well-check just under a year ago. His other behavior is as always.

He likes his food - he "chose" it by eliminating everything else I tried. Mostly it's chicken, but every few days he gets restless and then I switch to tuna or salmon (about 70% chicken, 30% fish meals).

He loves bits of cheddar cheese, but I am afraid that giving him treats every time he shoves his snoot into our food would just reinforce the behavior.

He is a very sweet and chill kitty, very hard to resist when he sticks his soft nose into my plate, but I think it's an unwelcome behavior and I want to figure out how to divert it.