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We have 2 cats both black short hairs. One we got from a vet clinic the other I found. Male and female respectively.
Problem is with feeding. Whatever i give, whenever i give it, how much they have is never enough. I give them dry food they eat some but then they bug me for more. Even if they still have food they pester me relentlessly. It has to be new food. or it has to be a completely full dish. Or if its a full dish it cant have any crumbled/broken pieces. Or it has to be situated in the bowls a certain way at random times. One time its wanted gathered into a mound the next its wanted level.
Now the female we had spayed and like a lot of cats that get spayed they put on weight. So taking advice from a lot of people online we tried switching to canned. Another problem as we've dealt with before in that they each time want it to be brand new fresh from the can food. If its been in the fridge they dont want it. if its been covered and left out they dont want it. heated they dont want it. Add stuff to it they dont want it. It has to be thrown away and a new can opened. This is done 3-4 times if not more a day for each cat.
Now, by pester i mean severely. I can handle some meows. Im talking non-stop hard scraping head butts, jumping into laps/chests and stomping hard repeatedly, pushing against anything and everything with their heads knocking it down or off of tables/desks (laptops have been pushed off of desks a time or 2). We've had our legs cut by scraping teeth when both cats had full dishes. It just wasnt "new" or "good enough" for them.
We have tried multiple flavors, brands, sizes, shapes, textures, bowls, placemats everything we can think of. At my wits end now.....
Location: Los Angeles>Little Rock>Houston>Little Rock
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Wow! Sorry this is happening.
I have 3 females. They share 2 cans of fancy feast classic in the morning and 2 cans in the evening. They free feed on Taste of the Wild dry food. They love to eat the little dried up nuggets that end up on the place mat.
Coco only pesters in the morning for her fresh meat, its kangaroo but specially prepared for cats, its fresh in a bag from the supermarket. She loves it but she only gets one scoop, once a day.
She eats dry in between. Its always there on the floor alongside the water.
Her sister refused to eat it at all, preferring dry food.
My third cat would eat just about anything but NEVER pestered.
None of them have ever liked canned food, even the posh stuff.
All I can suggest is by getting up and feeding them when they annoy, you've formed a habit.
Brace yourself to ignore your cat when they pester, even placing them on the ground over and over if you have to. Or place them in front of their dry food and walk away.
They will eventually unlearn what it seems you've already taught them.
ROFL Pythonis. Sorry I find this so funny but it's only because I understand exactly what you're going through but thankful you have to deal with it and not me. Until recently I, too, had a black tuxedo DSH with the same attitude, except nothing I put in front of her was what she wanted that day. Cheap kibble, super premium kibble, canned cat food, sardines, cheese, hamburger, fresh salmon, rotisserie chicken from the deli-- you name it--I got "the stare" and relentless bugging and attitude until I did it properly, whatever properly was that day. No two days were ever the same. I tried my best and there was nothing I wouldn't buy her to eat but nothing was ever good enough. I felt like the child who consistently disappointed my parents. A failure as a cat parent. And she was a tiny, skinny cat, which made me feel even more guilty. Masters of manipulation. The CIA could use them to drive the enemy insane. I finally found one thing she (grudgingly) liked, which was beef liver. Yes, I had to stink up the entire house by cooking liver, which then had to be cut into just exactly the right sized tiny cubes. Aargh! Thanks for letting me get that off my chest.
Unlike my cat, yours seem to be the feline version of chow hounds. Demanding more, more, more! This is my suggestion of something to try, for what it's worth. Who really has ever figured out cats? Anyway, operating on the premise that some cats don't appreciate their food unless they can hunt and catch it, what about hiding a few pieces of some tasty morsels and kibble around their feeding area on separate little saucers or under napkins. In other words, don't hand it all to them at once on a silver platter but make them "hunt" for it. Maybe they are bored and need a little challenge. Maybe it will keep them out of your hair for a few extra minutes each day's while they are inspired to search. Just a thought. They so get us trained!
ROFL Pythonis. Sorry I find this so funny but it's only because I understand exactly what you're going through but thankful you have to deal with it and not me. Until recently I, too, had a black tuxedo DSH with the same attitude, except nothing I put in front of her was what she wanted that day. Cheap kibble, super premium kibble, canned cat food, sardines, cheese, hamburger, fresh salmon, rotisserie chicken from the deli-- you name it--I got "the stare" and relentless bugging and attitude until I did it properly, whatever properly was that day. No two days were ever the same. I tried my best and there was nothing I wouldn't buy her to eat but nothing was ever good enough. I felt like the child who consistently disappointed my parents. A failure as a cat parent. And she was a tiny, skinny cat, which made me feel even more guilty. Masters of manipulation. The CIA could use them to drive the enemy insane. I finally found one thing she (grudgingly) liked, which was beef liver. Yes, I had to stink up the entire house by cooking liver, which then had to be cut into just exactly the right sized tiny cubes. Aargh! Thanks for letting me get that off my chest.
Unlike my cat, yours seem to be the feline version of chow hounds. Demanding more, more, more! This is my suggestion of something to try, for what it's worth. Who really has ever figured out cats? Anyway, operating on the premise that some cats don't appreciate their food unless they can hunt and catch it, what about hiding a few pieces of some tasty morsels and kibble around their feeding area on separate little saucers or under napkins. In other words, don't hand it all to them at once on a silver platter but make them "hunt" for it. Maybe they are bored and need a little challenge. Maybe it will keep them out of your hair for a few extra minutes each day's while they are inspired to search. Just a thought. They so get us trained!
They wont eat any food that isnt in the dish and we have a dog that loves to eat the cat food so leaving pieces lying around isnt an option.
The cats actually play hockey with pieces that have fallen out of the dish. Oh and the oldest one is a tuxedo cat (are they all like that?)
If they were mine, I'd put out fresh food twice a day and that would be it. They would eat it or starve. If there are no underlying medical issues, I would think they would eat if they get hungry enough. I would discuss this with your vet before you try it to make sure he/she doesn't see any issues with this approach.
As far as the begging, etc. goes you're going to have to figure out a way to stop it/ignore it without giving in (easier said than done, I know). If you give in, all you're doing is reinforcing the behavior. If they are scraping you with their teeth to get attention, I'd tell them NO in a very stern voice and squirt them with a water bottle. For me, that's completely unacceptable. You need to do it when they're biting/nipping you or they won't associate the correction with the behavior. There may be a better way to stop this but that's all that is coming to mind for now.
How "catified" (to use a Jaxon Galaxy phrase) is your house? I wonder if some of the behavior could be due to boredom or lack of exercise? Maybe if they're more focused on toys (I'd get several types and rotate them so they don't always have the same ones to play with) and get more exercise, they'll be less obsessed with the food? Also if they have window perches to look out and be entertained that might help. I'd also consider taking them for walks on a harness. You might check out Jaxon Galaxy's website (his show on Animal Planet is My Cat from Hell). He has a lot of good tips for feline behavior issues.
If they were mine, I'd put out fresh food twice a day and that would be it. They would eat it or starve. If there are no underlying medical issues, I would think they would eat if they get hungry enough. I would discuss this with your vet before you try it to make sure he/she doesn't see any issues with this approach.
As far as the begging, etc. goes you're going to have to figure out a way to stop it/ignore it without giving in (easier said than done, I know). If you give in, all you're doing is reinforcing the behavior. If they are scraping you with their teeth to get attention, I'd tell them NO in a very stern voice and squirt them with a water bottle. For me, that's completely unacceptable. You need to do it when they're biting/nipping you or they won't associate the correction with the behavior. There may be a better way to stop this but that's all that is coming to mind for now.
How "catified" (to use a Jaxon Galaxy phrase) is your house? I wonder if some of the behavior could be due to boredom or lack of exercise? Maybe if they're more focused on toys (I'd get several types and rotate them so they don't always have the same ones to play with) and get more exercise, they'll be less obsessed with the food? Also if they have window perches to look out and be entertained that might help. I'd also consider taking them for walks on a harness. You might check out Jaxon Galaxy's website (his show on Animal Planet is My Cat from Hell). He has a lot of good tips for feline behavior issues.
the place isnt all that big so there isnt much room for them to run around but they do have the run of the house. We have toys for them but after playing with them for about 10-15 minutes they walk away from them bored. More often than not they like to play "slide the toys underneath the stove". Weve tried different toys but its either they go missing, the cats arent interested, or the dog thinks its her toy and chews it to pieces.
Location: Los Angeles>Little Rock>Houston>Little Rock
6,489 posts, read 8,808,426 times
Reputation: 17514
When we had a dog we always put the cat food up on some kind of table where the cats could jump up, but the dog couldn't reach it. We had a folding table like a card table, but it was oblong instead of square.
**I think that poster meant dog proof.
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