Conference misery::feline_v1

    She's probably afraid that the food will disappear if she doesn't
    gobble it all up as soon as you put it out for her, poor critter.
    How about giving her just a little of the food (gobble) and then
    some more a bit later (gobble) and so on?  She'll probably stop
    eating in such a hurry when she figures out that someone is taking
    care of her.   
    
    I must say, though, that both of my cats usually gobble up their
    food, too -- especially since they are on a perpetual "diet" because
    The Fickle is a bit on the heavy side, and so are always hungry.
    They don't, though, eat all of the food out of the automatic feeder
    immediately if I put it out when we are going to be gone for a weekend
    or something - though it isalways completely empty, and the cats
    very hungry, when we get home.

    I found Alex as a stray and I attributed her ravenous appatite to
    her being a stray. They I found these little white segments along
    her tail (they looked like moving grains of rice). Sure enough,
    she had tapeworm. The vet had me bring her in at 8 AM, she stayed
    there until about noon (after going to the box), and we went home.
    Alex is no longer a feline eating machine. Total cost: $8.
    
    You may want to just bring in a fecal sample. Be sure to tell the
    vet you want it examined for TAPEWORMS as well as round worms.
    
    Good luck.
    Deb
    

    .2 is right, check the litter.  I had a kitten that ate like crazy,
    which I attributed to being a kitten.  Then I saw the tape worms.
    They're short and flat.  I didn't have to bring a stool sample in
    though, I described the worms to the vet, he gave her a shot and
    they were gone in a few days.
    
    

    . . . and then there are the cats who are just normally ravenous.
    I have one.  He also had tape worms, but even after he was free
    of them, his appetite is and has always been humungous . . . since
    he was a kitten.
    
    He's a house cat, and when I leave food out for him for the few
    days I'm away, I'm sure it's gone within 20 minutes of my departure.
    
    It's just something I've had to learn to live with.  His constant
    rrroOOwing for food doesn't affect in the slightest, the amount
    and frequency of his feedings.  Hardest thing is to convince visiting
    friends and family NOT to feed him.

 
    In my very first litter of kittens, there was one little female
    who ate in a way that could only be described as *DESPERATE*.  None
    of her littermates had that problem and they seemed to be fairly
    mellow about the eating process in general.  This hungry little
    one would start to *DEMAND* food from me before I even 
    got the kitchen door opened upon returning home from work.  She
    would then wolf down as much food as she could corner before it
    was all gone.  She didn't seem to get any bigger or stronger that
    her littermates.  Just hungrier.   
    
    Marion

    I don't think that Muffy has tapeworms, since she was checked for
    worms three weeks ago, but I'll keep an eye on any changes in her
    litter box.  Its reassuring  to know that there are other 
    *DESPARATE* eaters out there - I always thought cats were picky
    eaters.  I think she's addicted to C/d, Muffy's always been ravenous,
    but the problem was more noticeable when she changed from CRAVE
    to C/d.  Thanks for the help!    Clare

    Sura (the Burmese) is another highly enthusiastic eater; he inhales
    his food as though every meal is his last, although Kimi (the
    Abyssinian) almost never attempts to take any. We suspect Sura was
    the runt of his litter (there were seven kittens - count the nipples
    on a mother cat!); the breeders said there had been a runt, but
    it had been so pushy about getting to the milk wagon that he was
    now the same size as the others. All the kittens were the same size
    when we saw them (except the one female, who was very slightly
    smaller). If it's true, the xeperience left him with a healthy respect
    for the value of food.
    
    SLP

    I have always fed my two kitties Science diet dry.  I decided when
    they were about a year and a few months old, that I should probably
    make sure they would eat other food - you know - variety is the
    'spice' of life?  Well the experiment failed.  They LOVED the other
    stuff (Iams I think...).  I have never had trouble with them eating
    too much. But they would finish the new stuff in record time, and
    leave the science diet bowl untouched till after.  This was in the
    spring, and they both were getting 'plump'.  Vet said on their
    yearly checkup that they couldn't gain any more weight.  So I got
    rid of the new food.   And eating habits went back to normal!
    
    Still haven't figured out if it was just a new taste, a better taste,
    or more food required for same energy fix.
    
    Sometimes my male kitty will still stuff himself on treats like
    boiled chicken, or his regular food when a 'fresh' batch is poured!
    All the other vomits are hair balls.
    
    Sally

    Talk about a pig-out...when Skyler Van Grayson was a very little
    kitten, he was on a diet that consisted of Gerber's rice cereal,
    skim milk and a little sugar.  Slowly, he was moved back to regular
    kitty food.  One evening, I cooked my DEC turkey and cut up all
    the dark meat and gave it to Skyler, his brother Ashley, and my
    Honey.  Sklyer, who barely weighed a pound at the time, ate more
    than both of the other (full-grown) cats are combined!  He was so full
    that his hind legs couldn't hold him up.  It was funny watching
    him try to walk on the kitchen floor with his little legs going
    out from under him!  His little tummy was all buldged out, and he
    sat, looking very content, washing his face for hours!  Of course,
    I got quite a lecture from the vet about this....
    
    Mary

    RE: .6
    
    Are you sure that the cat was checked for TAPEWORMS? Normally, when
    you bring in a sample, all that they check for is roundworms.
    
    Deb

    Thanks, Deb
    I'll check it out - She was checked for roundworms and hooks, but
    since the flea problem is so bad this year, I'll be sure to check
    out the tapeworms.
    
    I think Dr. Schwartz at the Marlboro Animal hospital is excellent.
    Does anyone else out there go to her?

    
    re: .11
    
    Are tapeworms transmitted by FLEAS?  I didn't know that!  Oh boy,
    time to get out the flea powder and declare WAR!!!

    
    
    My vet told me that tapeworms come from 1) fleas - ingesting them
    and/or their droppings when the kitties are trying to relieve the itching
    from the bites, or 2) eating rodents, or 3) both 1 & 2!  Whichever,
    it is usually a yearly problem, thankfully one that is easily and
    quickly taken care of.
    
    Carole
    
    
    

    Re .12, .13:
    
    The tapeworm life cycle is rather complex.  When a tapeworm segment
    (which is mostly composed of eggs) drops, fleas find it and ingest
    it.  Naturally, a flea is too small to carry a tapeworm, but the
    eggs can then be carried to something that ingests fleas, like a
    cat.
    
    Steve Kallis, Jr.

    I go to Dr. Schwartz.  I find her very easy to communicate with.
    When my 20 year old Missy was in her last days, I found her much
    more in tune with my philosophy about putting her to sleep.  She
    just sort of understood better than Dr. Nelson.
    
    Marion
    

    Don't know if this will be of much help, but with horses that eat
    too fast we usually put a couple of smooth stones in their feed
    bucket and this causes them to slow down because they have to
    move the stones around to get at their grain.
    
    Maybe there is something similar you can do for the cat, or
    devise some kind of food dish that has a grid or something
    built in that only allows the cat to take small bites out.
    

    My Sweetie had been a stray when I got him.  For a couple of months
    I couldn't even throw out a food wrapper in the kitchen trashcan,
    or he'd knock it over and burrow in the mess after it.  After awhile
    he got adjusted, but it did take several months.  Poor babies.