Ravenous Cat?

Question

Oh my gosh, my cat is going insane. Lately she has been extremely desperate to get in the house. When we don't let her in she meows so loud I can hear her upstairs. When I do let her in she follows me around constantly and thinks everything is food. When I am in the kitchen she will do everything in her power to get food. She is acting possessed and it is creeping me out. I know some cats are just hungry and this would not bother me if she had been like this her whole life. But, she is five i think and for like two weeks she has been nuts. She isn't overweight, though she used to be. Everything else seems normal, so what is wrong?? I am sure alot of people will say " take her to the vet", but my dad will not take a cat to the vet just because it is hungry. Please help me figure out what is wrong! thank you

Answer 1

When a cat suddenly becomes ravenously hungry or thirsty, it can be a sign of feline diabetes. Can you borrow a glucometer from someone? (You can test a cat's blood glucose just like you would test a human's, just get a single drop of blood from the ear, using a lancet.)

Feline Diabetes is treatable, and diabetic cats can live long and healthy lives, if it is caught early and treated properly.

There are also other health issues (worms, thyroid disease, etc) that can make a cat ravenously hungry, so I'm sorry to say, a trip to the vet would be in the cat's best interest.

Good luck with her.

Answer 2

No, your dad won't let you take her to the vet just because she is hungry, but she isn't just hungry. She is desperate for food -- so desperate she cries to get in to get close to food. She is treating non-food items like food. She cries loudly for food. And this is a huge behavioral change which signals an organic change of some sort that is absolutely not normal. If you were acting like this, your dad would have you to the doctor so fast your head would spin.

Call the vet. Tell him your situation. Then tell him about your cat's behavior. Enlist his aid in helping you convince your dad that this cat needs veterinary help -- like suggesting what MIGHT be wrong, some of the potential choices. Ask him plainly how much a visit and any tests he would run would cost.

Then, armed with a strong, rational argument, financial information from the horse's mouth, and an expert opinion about the potential gravity of the cat's situation, sit down with your dad and have a little chat.

I'll bet your cat will be taking a trip to the vet.

Answer 3

If she can't seem to get enough food, yet never gains any weight, she could have internal parasites like flatworms or tapeworm.
Tapeworm is common among outside cats because when they chew their fur, they're actually picking fleas out and eating them. The fleas contain tapeworm eggs and the hatchlings attach themselves to the intestinal wall intecepting nutrients which would normally go into your cat.
Check her feces for little white things which resemble small moving grains of rice. These are the segments the worms shed. Also note whether or not she's got diarrhea. If you find evidence of internal parasites, you can go to your local Pet supply store and get a deworming treatment to flush the parasites from her.
Tell an employee at the store what type of parasite you suspect and they will direct you to the proper product.
After her deworming (if that is the case) you might want to step up your flea control regimen to prevent further infestation.

Answer 4

Are you feeding her enough in the first place??
Also I find that cats do not like to eat big meals ( like dogs) but rather smaller amounts more often.
Having said that I wonder if it has just started happening if the cat may have intestinal worms which would make her hungry all the time.

Answer 5

Why not just feed her a bit more and see if that takes care of the problem. I know my two eat more as the weather gets colder.

Answer 6

Has she been fixed? could she be pregnant? Perhaps it's worms. Has the temperature recently dropped colder than usual?