Said It Here

Why is my kitten always obsessed with food?

Kittens can remain relentlessly food obsessed and constantly scavenge for meals despite eating their full recommended portions and getting a clean bill of health from the vet. This leaves owners stressed, constantly worried about potential safety hazards, and unsure how to handle the endless begging.

Overview
People affected12 accounts across 2 forums
Workarounds found26 items attempted
Community agreement122 total upvotes

What the numbers show

Counted from the threads quoted below. How we count

  • The most recent one is from October 2026.
  • This comes up 13.9× more often in r/cats than across the site as a whole.

What people tried

Every workaround mentioned in the threads below. We haven’t tested any of them — and nobody here is claiming they worked.

26 items+ Contribute

Found another way around this?

Share your steps and trade-offs so fellow engineers don't have to reinvent the wheel. No account required.

  1. 1
    buying slow feeders
    Did this help you?
  2. 2
    removing food containers into rooms they are not allowed in
    Did this help you?
  3. 3
    hiding snacks away
    Did this help you?
  4. 4
    Waiting it out
    Did this help you?
  5. 5
    Monitoring for vomiting or discomfort
    Did this help you?
  6. 6
    Providing plenty of water
    Did this help you?
  7. 7
    Skipping the next meal or feeding wet food with water
    Did this help you?
  8. 8
    Using a locked storage box to prevent the cat from gorging on food
    Did this help you?
  9. 9
    Spacing out existing food portions across multiple smaller feedings
    Did this help you?
  10. 10
    Adding a small snack or wet food between regular meal times
    Did this help you?
  11. 11
    Installing toddler locks on food cabinets to prevent scavenging
    Did this help you?
  12. 12
    Locking garbage cans inside cupboards
    Did this help you?
  13. 13
    Putting child safety locks on every food cupboard
    Did this help you?
  14. 14
    Warning guests never to leave food unattended or take their eyes off their food
    Did this help you?
  15. 15
    feeding at the higher end of package recommendations
    Did this help you?
  16. 16
    Providing an all-day buffet style food supply
    Did this help you?
  17. 17
    Setting up timed feeders
    Did this help you?
  18. 18
    Using a separate free-feed plate in a restricted area for the second cat
    Did this help you?
  19. 19
    Dividing meals into multiple smaller portions throughout the day
    Did this help you?
  20. 20
    Using slow feeder bowls or food dispensing puzzle toys
    Did this help you?
  21. 21
    Storing food and supplies in plastic totes with latches
    Did this help you?
  22. 22
    Locking away everything remotely edible
    Did this help you?
  23. 23
    Eating takeout inside the car
    Did this help you?
  24. 24
    Installing child locks on kitchen cabinets
    Did this help you?
  25. 25
    Using an automatic pet feeder
    Did this help you?
  26. 26
    Using a cat wand to provide exercise and stimulation
    Did this help you?
Tried another approach not listed above?+ Share your workaround ↑

In their words

Unedited, grouped by where they were said, most upvoted first within each place, each linked to the thread it came from.

r/cats11 people · September 2026 – October 2026

“I feed him 1/3 cup of dry food at 5am and 1/3 cup of food at 5pm and I swear this cat acts like he is dying all day long.”source ↗

“It’s gotten to the point he is scavenging left over food from my plate and on the counter.”source ↗

“He won’t stop meowing and is always running over to his food dish like “pleaaaaaseeeee feeed me””source ↗

Redxluckyxcharms · r/cats · 63 upvotes

“This was after an hour of meowing at me, and intentionally misbehaving to get his way. He ate four hours ago.”source ↗

BeefaloSlim · r/cats · 27 upvotes

“How come my domestic cat can't go 3 hours without food?”source ↗

“They need an all day buffet or they get a little stroppy.”source ↗

ComedyWriter01 · r/cats · 6 upvotes

“First of all, feeding them is a daily nightmare. Trying to get the food in the bowl without them knocking the can out of my hand takes some…finesse.”source ↗

“I can not have ANYTHING edible in my house not in a locked cupboard. I can’t have a sealed box of cereal, an unopened bag of chips, food inside a bag inside a box, it doesn’t matter, they will find it and they will destroy it.”source ↗

“If I am eating they will relentlessly try to force their way into my food or try to steal it. One once stole my husbands entire burger from right under his nose.”source ↗

Machonacho7891 · r/cats · 5 upvotes

“To the point where we got her an automatic feeder came home from work and it was in the bathtub with the water turned on.....”source ↗

“When we aren't home they will open our cabinets and try to find their treats or even cereal boxes and eat our frosted flakes while my girlfriend and I are at work.”source ↗

Mr_CookieTickles · r/cats · 4 upvotes

“Got my twin kittens about 8 months ago now, and always felt they were gonna be different from my other cats.”source ↗

“They are both incredibly food obsessed. I give them the recommended food for their age and yet they still go around craving more”source ↗

“I'm at my wits end, vets say they're fine and healthy (with the fat one being a lil fat) and they get fleed and wormed routinely.”source ↗

KickinKeyla · r/cats · 3 upvotes

“Im scared something will happen to her, shes only 3.5kg and I dont know what to look out for.”source ↗

flanschdurchbiegung · r/cats · 3 upvotes

“He’s the reason we had to put toddler locks on all our cabinets with food in them.”source ↗

ThinRegion2406 · r/cats · 2 upvotes

“We are trying to see if free feeding dry food works to give furlicity (1f) a reprieve from her scarcity mindset.”source ↗

princesspuna · r/cats · 2 upvotes

“I have a cat (#1) that has a scarcity mindset because there is now a second cat (#2) and #1 was gaining weight. I had to setup a timed feeder for him with a free feed plate for the cat #2 in a place where only cat #2 could get to as he is rather slim given that cat #1 hoards food, covers it up with stuff that has my smell on it, and overeats to the point of vomiting.”source ↗

BlitzShooter · r/cats · 2 upvotes

“My worry with timed feedings is that we have two cats and I'm never sure who's actually eating the food. My guess is mostly the scavenger cat.”source ↗

princesspuna · r/cats · 1 upvotes

“this cat gets into the trashcan every single day. i constantly have to pick it up and clean all the trash she left scattered all over the floor.”source ↗

“this cat will sneak up next to me while i'm eating and steal food from my mouth.”source ↗

“i have to eat takeout in my car because if i bring it inside, her life's mission will be to eat it.”source ↗

ThrowRA_862 · r/cats · 1 upvotes
r/puppy1011 person · September 2026

“8 week old puppy acts like he’s starving despite feeding according to package instructions. Normal?”source ↗

“He will be a big boy, but I don’t know how big. I’m giving him Purina puppy chow and it says for his age and predicted weight he should get between 2/3 cups and 2 cups. I’ve been feeding him two cups.”source ↗

“But he inhales it and will try to steal my older dog’s food.”source ↗

bitteroldladybird · r/puppy101 · 3 upvotes

Where this came up

People with this problem also raised