Sudden Change in Eating Habits

[linkworshiper]

I can’t figure out what’s going on with Reginald. Lately, he’s stopped eating random meals. I can’t quite figure out why, as he’ll turn his nose up on food he’s been served before. I feed both my cats wet food three times a day, and though I have a puzzle feeder of dry food and a ball puzzle of treats, I worry Reginald is starving himself or something.

Because my other cat is a bottomless pit, I started placing Reginald’s food bowl on this particular bookshelf he likes to sit on. That was working pretty well for some time now, but lately, he’s stopped eating. I thought maybe he was getting pressured/nervous because my other cat will patiently wait for any potential leftovers, so I started closing him in the bathroom to eat. It’s about 50/50 whether he does. Sometimes if you try to pop into the bathroom, he’ll be waiting to escape, food untouched. I used to close the other cat in the bathroom, but for whatever reason, he’s picked a corner of the kitchen for food so I stick to it.

TL;DR I’m worried Reginald is not eating enough but I’m afraid to leave food lying around because my other cat is on the cusp of obesity.

 

[Azazel]

Could he possibly be feeling sick? Cats don’t show a lot of signs that something is wrong. Not eating or being more tired than usual are classic signs. I would do a vet visit just to rule out any underlying medical issues before trying anything else.

 

[linkworshiper]

Possible. It's always hard to tell with Reginald because he is not social by default, so if he's off in some secret corner, it's not too weird. (Though the addition of the second cat has changed a lot of that.) I cleaned up kitty barf about a week ago, but he's a notorious hairball cougher, so I'm also not sure if that was sick barf or what.

 

[rubysmama]

How long has this been going on? Is he just eating less than usual? Or eating nothing?

If he hasn't eaten anything, or barely anything, in more than a day, please contact your vet. Cats can develop fatty liver from not eating enough calories, and it can be quite a serious condition. Here's a TCS article with some more info:

Why Has My Cat Stopped Eating And Is It Dangerous?

Also one on How To Get Your Cat To Start Eating Again

 

[linkworshiper]

He’s eating so randomly. Sometimes he’ll clear the plate, sometimes barely anything. He loves playing with the treats puzzle ball. He eats tons of those.

 

[Azazel]

How are his teeth? It could be a sign of dental pain?

 

[PushPurrCatPaws]

He’s eating so randomly. Sometimes he’ll clear the plate, sometimes barely anything. He loves playing with the treats puzzle ball. He eats tons of those.

Possibly too many treats? Spoiling his appetite (of his feline taste preferences!) for his "real" meals? You could try not giving treats for a while and see what happens.

 

[linkworshiper]

His treats are crunchy and he’ll go for dry food in the puzzle feeder. Maybe I’ll try no treats, though I worry he’s only eating them out of hunger.

 

[Hellenww]

Do you get different textures of wet food? My slow eater, Sqeeker, prefers sliced and will usually eat 1/2 as soon as I put it down. He usually takes 2-3 hrs to eat a 3oz can. His brother, Yoshi, takes 20-30 seconds and then tries to steal. We put Sqeekers dish in a locking cake box from the dollar store. Yoshi has pushed it around, carried by the handle and tried to pull at the locks with no luck. Sqeeker learned quickly to ask us to uncover the food and stand guard while he eats. It's about 3min every 1/2 hr.

Since Reginald likes the treat ball put a different brand/flavor of dry food in it. It would be more nutritious than treats and still special to him since its not in a bowl.

 

[linkworshiper]

Yeah, I have a whole freaking library of food, haha. I even bother to calorie count for my fat cat. I've also found that getting him chunky food makes him slow down to eat. But anyway, I feed them 3oz for breakfast, 1.5 oz for "lunch" in the afternoon and then 3oz for dinner. My concern with Reginald is that he's turning his nose up at food he's eaten before. Again, this morning, he didn't eat breakfast after a few hours, even though I put him in the bathroom with his food, the dry food puzzle feeder, a bed, a litter box and a toy. He's been doing it when I put the bowl in his other favorite place.

Your cake box idea is interesting. I just wonder how well it'll work with the come-and-go schedule my girlfriend and I have. It would be hard to stand guard and honestly, Reginald isn't... the sharpest knife in the drawer. (His brother is a freaking Einstein in comparison, so if anything, he'd figure out the cake plan and then we'd still be stuck putting Reginald in the bathroom with food.)

 

[susanm9006]

Definitely you want a vet check first off but it may be that he just isn’t comfortable eating any place except where his food used to be. It could also be that he is just tired of what he has been eating and is looking to try something different or maybe even the manufacturer has made a change to his food. I would definitely stop all the treats until he is back to eating. I would also start following his weight closely to see if he is losing weight.

 

[FeebysOwner]

Hi. I do think a vet check up is in order. Feeby practically stopped eating her normal foods - it turns out she had fleas pretty bad before we figured it out. It was the first time in her life (she is 15+ yo) and it affected her health because she freaked out so much. Since then, she doesn't seem to like her regular food nearly as much as she used to. I am guessing the health issues caused the change somehow (). I am now adding baby food meats (no onions, etc.) to her regular food to get her to eat it. I change off between beef, turkey, and chicken.

Also, is it possible the Reginald doesn't like being put in the bathroom, or being anywhere near your other cat, when he eats? You could place your other cat in the bathroom or a bedroom while Reginald eats and then let your other cat out to eat afterward in his regular spot when Reginald is done?!?

 

[linkworshiper]

Thanks for all your comments. I think I figured out what it might be. I realized that though I bought the same brand and flavors, the food I had was “morsels” instead of flaked/gravy or pate. I gave him some of that brand but in gravy for lunch, and he’s currently in the bathroom, sucking it down. I even mixed in some of the food he did t eat and he’s fine with it. (My fat cat is currently eating the meal Reginald didn’t want. He’s obviously less discerning. ) I’ll keep you guys posted on this. I think he was just picky???

 

[susanm9006]

Thanks for all your comments. I think I figured out what it might be. I realized that though I bought the same brand and flavors, the food I had was “morsels” instead of flaked/gravy or pate. I gave him some of that brand but in gravy for lunch, and he’s currently in the bathroom, sucking it down. I even mixed in some of the food he did t eat and he’s fine with it. (My fat cat is currently eating the meal Reginald didn’t want. He’s obviously less discerning. ) I’ll keep you guys posted on this. I think he was just picky???

Entirely possible.

 

[rubysmama]

I’ll keep you guys posted on this. I think he was just picky???

Some cats are very picky about food, so that's certainly possible. How old is Reginald, btw? And is your other cat his sibling?

 

[Maria Bayote]

Thanks for all your comments. I think I figured out what it might be. I realized that though I bought the same brand and flavors, the food I had was “morsels” instead of flaked/gravy or pate. I gave him some of that brand but in gravy for lunch, and he’s currently in the bathroom, sucking it down. I even mixed in some of the food he did t eat and he’s fine with it. (My fat cat is currently eating the meal Reginald didn’t want. He’s obviously less discerning. ) I’ll keep you guys posted on this. I think he was just picky???

Some cats prefer the type and brand of food that they are used to. I have cats who are very picky eaters and can be frustrating at most times.

Also, some cats prefer to eat alone. My Bourbon eats in a separate room, otherwise, she would not touch her food.

So how is he now? I hope his eating gets back to normal. Otherwise, a vet check really is needed.

 

[linkworshiper]

Reginald is 7, and Hemingway is about 2 and has only been with us since January 2019. They're getting to be friends and they play wrestle together a lot. Anyway, Reginald us picky about one brand of treats I have so it goes to reason that regular food might be like that. I try to serve them a variety though Hemingway seems to care less. Reginald used to prefer less soupy food, but that has maybe changed?

This morning he ate about half his food, though it took moving his bowl between his two spots and adding water each time. This only worked because I was up all night, which is impossible during the week.

He doesn't seem to care if Hemingway eats his leftovers, but Hemingway's gut sure does

 

[rubysmama]

Since Reginald is still not totally back to his normal eating habits, do consider taking him for a vet checkup if your instinct tells you things aren't right. Better to err on the side of caution.

 

[linkworshiper]

I think I'm out of homeopathic theories. Next paycheck I'm going to just suck it up and bring him to the vet. He needs a yearly check up anyway.

The last thing I tried was removing all the treats from the puzzle balls and replacing them with kibble. I have two balls and I set them both down on the ground for Reginald. He just looked at them like, "What am I supposed to do with this?" Then I tried putting kibble onto a dish. My fat cat went to town while Reginald just sat in front of his dish again like, "Really though, what am I supposed to do with this?" Then I tried treats. I gave Reginald a mixture of hard crunchy ones and some soft ones. He ate all of them with no problem. At dinner time, I put out a gravy/flakes meal, which he's eaten before, but he only ate about half. I tried another flavor and with more water, but he only seemed to have time to sip. I'm confused because if it's his teeth, that makes sense why he's suddenly just drinking food, but if it's his teeth... why does he still like crunchy treats?

 

[rubysmama]

I think I'm out of homeopathic theories. Next paycheck I'm going to just suck it up and bring him to the vet. He needs a yearly check up anyway.

I agree that is a good idea. Best to get him checked out, and tell the vet what's been going on.

Is he using the litter box normally these days?