Meal time craziness - 6mth old kittens

[PandaPoots]

Need help/advise with meal time craziness from my 6month old kittens Cheese and Pickle

They have set meal times (not free feed). They are played with before every meal. The kitchen door is closed when their food is being prepared. As soon as the door closes they go crazy. They’ve torn up the carpet at the door and taken off pieces of paint from the door frame. Cheese (the boy) has learnt to jump up and hang onto the door handle. If he hangs there long enough he can open the door.

Once the door is opened they come crashing in jumping up and grabbing the food from their bowls. Cheese has this week started growling when eating. They both eat so fast they barely taste the food.

Water is put down after they’ve eaten. They are fed 2ft apart. They are fed 5 times a day (increased from 3 to ‘help’ in case it was hunger doing it). 3 meals are 40g grain free wet with 5g of grain free dry, the other 2 ‘snacks’ are 10g of raw or cooked chicken, salmon, tin tuna or raw venison.
Before adding the ‘snacks’ their food was increased to 50g wet but Cheese regurgitated it after, so instead the extra snacks were added.
Cheese is 2.5kg and Pickle 2.3kg they are both spayed/neutered and brother and sister.

It’s been going on for 2 months now and I need to know if it’s something they will grow out of. Or if there is anything at all I can do to help calm it down before they get to adults. Other than the meal time crazies they are just absolutely lovely and honestly without the food issues they would be perfect.

Tldr: 6mth old kittens go crazy at their meal times. Help!

Any help, advise or criticism welcome

 

[ArtNJ]

Folks here generally recommend free feeding kittens because their metabolic needs are so high and their stomachs so small that is very difficult for them to overeat. You will not find a fat kitten, or at least not easily. Unfortunately, by doing only 3 feedings for a time, you have inadvertently made them very food focused, which sets them up for food problems going forward. Going to 5 feedings should help. However, I would recommend using the remaining time during which they can't really be overfed -- and I defer to others here to opine on how long that might be -- to try and reset their food sensitivity. If they aren't worried about having enough to eat now, it sets them up for success when you have to limit the # of feedings and quantity of food later. Or at least that is my belief. Although I can't claim any great expertise, and some here have as many cats now as I've had in my life (7 or 8), I have had success with this strategy and recommend it.

 

[PandaPoots]

Folks here generally recommend free feeding kittens because their metabolic needs are so high and their stomachs so small that is very difficult for them to overeat. You will not find a fat kitten, or at least not easily. Unfortunately, by doing only 3 feedings for a time, you have inadvertently made them very food focused, which sets them up for food problems going forward. Going to 5 feedings should help. However, I would recommend using the remaining time during which they can't really be overfed -- and I defer to others here to opine on how long that might be -- to try and reset their food sensitivity. If they aren't worried about having enough to eat now, it sets them up for success when you have to limit the # of feedings and quantity of food later. Or at least that is my belief. Although I can't claim any great expertise, and some here have as many cats now as I've had in my life (7 or 8), I have had success with this strategy and recommend it.

Thank you for the reply! Do you know how best to transition them back to free feeding? I've tried putting some dry food down and they instantly ate it all. I added a small amount more and again they ate it straight away. At this rate im worried about them being sick from eating so much

 

[CodyMolly]

Hi buy a feeder that you pour the food in. Food will constantly be in the bowl of dry food. Dry food is more filling. I would continue to feed them as much as you can a day but if dry food is left out you will see the difference. Kittens have very tiny tummies so they eat then get hungry 2 or three hours a day when they are young. They don’t eat full meals Tiny tummies require more food just like an infant baby gets fed like that too. Remember they are little and only few months old. They have those tall feeders you put the dry food in and fills up on their own when food is eaten. I definitely suggest that. For the playfulness how so adorable!
My cat Junior opens doors too and hangs his weight learned to open doors cabinets and even my stove! I bought baby locks and that solved the problem I put them on my cabinets. The door I actually bought a plastic rod and put it under the door handle so if he ran the rod is there so he couldn’t open the door. To prevent him from scratching the door you actually just kinda when you leave the room put like a chest behind the door as much as you can when you close the door. Or buy plastic sheet or cat place and stick it to the back of the door so if he tries to pry hard plastic is there so he can scratch and scratch and nothing will get ruined. Lookup “ClawGuard” that’s for doors- look up protectors for clawing for cats. I know chewy.com has these things. Your babies sound super adorable!!!!

 

[CodyMolly]

Don’t worry also about them eating so much . It’s nice and healthy that they are eating. All there rambunctious will burn it off!

 

[RTR]

Always free fed my kittens! Still free feed. They get a portion of wet food with a couple tablespoons of hot water mixed in,early in the Am and they have access to dry food all day. 1 is 14 an other two 12, and they are not fat! But the three are fairly active while not sleeping!

 

[Furballsmom]

Hi, do keep the wet food in their diet including the snacks, but can you find a couple of Slow Feeders for them?

I added a small amount more and again they ate it straight away.

I'm not sure about the suggestion of having a dry food feeder just yet, until you can get them to be more calm about food. You may need to experiment, I think, by continuing to provide dry in smaller amounts more frequently, and hopefully as time goes on you can relax more about their reactive food behavior.

 

[Cat McCannon]

Stop closing the door. Let them be present while prepping their food and use the opportunity to teach them good behavior. Cats are smart. They'll learn how to act to get what they want.

 

[NekoM]

One thing Cats really hate are closed doors - remember that’s their territory and your doing something secretly - and it involves food! There’s also a bit of separation anxiety as well as competition which goes back to getting to momma kitty first at mealtime.

 

[Alldara]

Slow feeder or some kids of puzzles or treat balls will slow them down. You can mix the dry food with some freeze dried treats if you want as well. Even a snuffle mat works well (we bought a rabbit one). There are loads of YouTube DIY puzzles and enrichment feeders. The slow feeders teach them to slow down and feel full.

Sometimes we put groups of 3 or 4 kibbles down in different spots for them to "hunt" the kibble.

At 1 year we stopped free feeding, but did provide extra food if they REALLY bugged for it still or appear hungry. Even at 2 & 3 if they really cry we still give a bit more, activity level can vary, and we just ensure that we stick within body condition.

 

[r-kins]

Stop closing the door. Let them be present while prepping their food and use the opportunity to teach them good behavior. Cats are smart. They'll learn how to act to get what they want.

My cat used to jump on the counter and eat out of his bowl as I was trying to dish it... One of the more helpful solutions was to give him a place from which to watch me dishing out the food so he knew what was going on. He'd jump up on the counter still occasionally, but it made him less of a maniac.

 

[tabbytom]

Water is put down after they’ve eaten. They are fed 2ft apart. They are fed 5 times a day (increased from 3 to ‘help’ in case it was hunger doing it). 3 meals are 40g grain free wet with 5g of grain free dry, the other 2 ‘snacks’ are 10g of raw or cooked chicken, salmon, tin tuna or raw venison.
Before adding the ‘snacks’ their food was increased to 50g wet but Cheese regurgitated it after, so instead the extra snacks were added.
Cheese is 2.5kg and Pickle 2.3kg they are both spayed/neutered and brother and sister.

It’s been going on for 2 months now and I need to know if it’s something they will grow out of. Or if there is anything at all I can do to help calm it down before they get to adults. Other than the meal time crazies they are just absolutely lovely and honestly without the food issues they would be perfect.

Tldr: 6mth old kittens go crazy at their meal times. Help!

and welcome to TCS!

A 6 month old cat is still very much a kitten. They need to be fed 4 - 5 times a day and let them eat as much as they can eat at one sitting. As kittens are very active, they need around 300 calories ad day to keep them going. If the calories intake are not met, they are always looking for food. It's not the amount of food fed but base on calories intake. So if the food is less in calories, they will eat more to make up for it.

They burn up the calories by playing before food and therefore come crashing when food is being prepared and ready. As for the speed eating, it's because they are very hungry and for the growling, it's probably because of the hunger, and thus growl to protect the food from the siblings or anyone near the food during eating.

As 6 months old kittens, they need the right amount of calories and feed them accordingly to their needs. Once they have enough to eat with the right amount of calories, this behavior will stop.

Side note - And also, they are approaching 7 months old and at this stage, they go through a phase called 'Growth Spurt' and they tend to eat more than usual and this will last through till they are around 1 year + and slowly their food intake will taper off. After that, they need around 200 - 250 calories per day if they are normal active cats. By 7 months old, all their adult teeth will be in.
Best is to feed them with 'Food meant for Kittens' now and slowly transit them over adult's food when they reach maturity or you can also feed them food labeled 'For All life Stages'.

 

[maggie101]

Need help/advise with meal time craziness from my 6month old kittens Cheese and Pickle

They have set meal times (not free feed). They are played with before every meal. The kitchen door is closed when their food is being prepared. As soon as the door closes they go crazy. They’ve torn up the carpet at the door and taken off pieces of paint from the door frame. Cheese (the boy) has learnt to jump up and hang onto the door handle. If he hangs there long enough he can open the door.

Once the door is opened they come crashing in jumping up and grabbing the food from their bowls. Cheese has this week started growling when eating. They both eat so fast they barely taste the food.

Water is put down after they’ve eaten. They are fed 2ft apart. They are fed 5 times a day (increased from 3 to ‘help’ in case it was hunger doing it). 3 meals are 40g grain free wet with 5g of grain free dry, the other 2 ‘snacks’ are 10g of raw or cooked chicken, salmon, tin tuna or raw venison.
Before adding the ‘snacks’ their food was increased to 50g wet but Cheese regurgitated it after, so instead the extra snacks were added.
Cheese is 2.5kg and Pickle 2.3kg they are both spayed/neutered and brother and sister.

It’s been going on for 2 months now and I need to know if it’s something they will grow out of. Or if there is anything at all I can do to help calm it down before they get to adults. Other than the meal time crazies they are just absolutely lovely and honestly without the food issues they would be perfect.

Tldr: 6mth old kittens go crazy at their meal times. Help!

Any help, advise or criticism welcome
[/QUOTE
Its possible they are eating too fast because it's competition. I have finally found out that my cat peaches eats so fast so no one else gets her food or quickly finish to eat my other cats food. Free feeding would cause her to throw up front eating too fast. I agree. Don't close the door. Clicker train them,trixje puzzle,watch video on TV with birds and other animals,ripple rug
How much you feed depends on their weight.

 

[Antonio65]

Thank you for the reply! Do you know how best to transition them back to free feeding? I've tried putting some dry food down and they instantly ate it all. I added a small amount more and again they ate it straight away. At this rate im worried about them being sick from eating so much

Same problem here.
Two adult cats that are always looking for food, so I can't leave food out for free feeding, because they would eat it up instantly. I tried several times, it never worked.
I feed them 4 times a day, one wet meal, one dry meal, one wet meal and a final dry meal.

 

[NekoM]

You’re right about the competition, with my two the youngest eats out of one bowl then pushes his older brother Hiro out of the way and eats out of that bowl, then goes back to the other bowl. Thankfully Hiro is patient.

 

[PandaPoots]

Thank you for all the replies! (sorry for the long update post)

They were fed a few spoons of dry food yesterday every hour or so until 9pm. They ate all of it until the very last lot at 9pm. Something crazy happened too...they actual started to chew their food. I didn't realise until then that I hadn't ever heard them crunch their dry food. They had been eating so fast they had just been swallowing the food without even chewing it.
They both also drank water, which again i've never seen them do (except when they were spayed and neutered a month ago).
By 11pm there was just 2 biscuits left in Cheese's bowl and Pickles was empty
1am Pickle was sick and brought up all the food until about 2.30am. Cheese was also sick but it was only a tiny bit

This morning they were fed their usual breakfast of 50g wet (high life kitten) with 10g dry (appplaws kitten). Cheese ate all his wet and a little dry, whereas as Pickle ate most of her wet and no dry. The door was left open when getting it ready and Cheese only jumped up a few times but got straight back down when told to. Pickle just sat on the floor and watched.

Since then they've had 2 spoons of dry put down every 2 hours and some raw chicken for lunch. The kitchen door has been left open the whole time and theres not been a time where the bowls have been empty at the same time. Also there been no more sick since 2.30am last night.

Honestly the change in them already is amazing and literally night and day. They both sat on the kitchen floor and waited for their chicken to be put into their wet food bowls. They are both chewing their food and actualy taking time to eat the food rather than just scarffing it down in a blind panic. Its like they are 2 different kittens already.

Im sad for them that we didnt do this for them sooner. Our last cat had diabetes and when we got these 2 three months ago we watched alot alot of Jackson Galaxy videos and got it drummed into us how bad dry food is for cats. Unfortuantly the anxiety from that meant that we didnt want to overfed the Cheese and Pickle and run the risk of having a diabetic cat or two

All the replies were super apprechiated and Cheese and Pickle thank you! <3

 

[maggie101]

Thank you for all the replies! (sorry for the long update post)

They were fed a few spoons of dry food yesterday every hour or so until 9pm. They ate all of it until the very last lot at 9pm. Something crazy happened too...they actual started to chew their food. I didn't realise until then that I hadn't ever heard them crunch their dry food. They had been eating so fast they had just been swallowing the food without even chewing it.
They both also drank water, which again i've never seen them do (except when they were spayed and neutered a month ago).
By 11pm there was just 2 biscuits left in Cheese's bowl and Pickles was empty
1am Pickle was sick and brought up all the food until about 2.30am. Cheese was also sick but it was only a tiny bit

This morning they were fed their usual breakfast of 50g wet (high life kitten) with 10g dry (appplaws kitten). Cheese ate all his wet and a little dry, whereas as Pickle ate most of her wet and no dry. The door was left open when getting it ready and Cheese only jumped up a few times but got straight back down when told to. Pickle just sat on the floor and watched.

Since then they've had 2 spoons of dry put down every 2 hours and some raw chicken for lunch. The kitchen door has been left open the whole time and theres not been a time where the bowls have been empty at the same time. Also there been no more sick since 2.30am last night.

Honestly the change in them already is amazing and literally night and day. They both sat on the kitchen floor and waited for their chicken to be put into their wet food bowls. They are both chewing their food and actualy taking time to eat the food rather than just scarffing it down in a blind panic. Its like they are 2 different kittens already.

Im sad for them that we didnt do this for them sooner. Our last cat had diabetes and when we got these 2 three months ago we watched alot alot of Jackson Galaxy videos and got it drummed into us how bad dry food is for cats. Unfortuantly the anxiety from that meant that we didnt want to overfed the Cheese and Pickle and run the risk of having a diabetic cat or two

All the replies were super apprechiated and Cheese and Pickle thank you! <3

Great news! I give my cats churu or tiki sticks for moisture. That may help prevent the throwing up at night

 

[PandaPoots]

Great news! I give my cats churu or tiki sticks for moisture. That may help prevent the throwing up at night

They love the licky sticks, I'll make sure to give them one each. Especially as they're being so good now they deserve it