My female cat is always hungry after being spayed

by Sarah
(Dundee, Scotland)

Recently i had my cat spayed now she always seems to be hungry. Before the op she was being fed 1 tin of wet food per day- set out in 2 meals. This seemed to satisfy her and there was no whining for food. It's been roughly a month since her op and now she always seems to be hungry, she runs after me everytime i get up in the hope that she's going to be fed again. She mooches food when we are eating and also steals food from work tops and bins. She will even rip open bin bags to get to food even though she has just been fed. she scavanges everything and will sniff around the carpet for crumbs that may have been dropped. The vet says to stick with the same amount of food- 1 tin per day and said that she might put on a little weight n but all this scavanging is really annoying! I'm getting sick of waking up to bins spilled all over the kitchen floor and food being stolen when my back is turned. Should i feed her more often? how do i stop this greedy behaviour? also she's a very petite cat who shouldn't eat that much plus she's indoors so isn't that active.


Answer by KAte
Hi, definitely do not feed her any more food than is recommended. All that will happen if you do is that she will gain weight and still beg for food.

her behavior could be down to one of two things, either she has developed a illness which is making her feel hungry, worms for instance would do this, so make sure she has been treated for worms recently, or a thyroid problem, however i think this is unlikely and rather too quick.

my guess is it is more to do with a behavioral problem which may have been brought on by her feeling a little sacred and insecure after her op. Some cats use food as a comforter just like some humans do.

i would continue to feed her as before but I would also buy her some new toys to tray and distract her from her current habit or looking for food. Make sure you keep to a routine ie meal times at certain ties and lots of games and new things to explore in between. over time she should start to get used to the new routines and settle down again.

What ever you do though do not scold her if she does try to scavenge or beg, this will only make her more anxious.

There are lots of different cat toys around which will help to keep her engaged. see my pages here for some ideas

https://www.our-happy-cat.com/cat-toys.html

best wishes Kate

Comments for My female cat is always hungry after being spayed

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My baby has suddenly chunked up after being spayed and won't stop begging for food now
by: PJ the Distraught Parent

Imari is 5yrs old and only very recently spayed.
(she lives permanently inside and I did not want to do this to her, but was finally convinced (i think) into having this done).
She has always been a grazer when it comers to feeding and regularly takes all day to nibble through - as such she has a microchip feeder to protect her food from Jinx (my 11yrd old feline garbage can).
since the op, she can not stop begging for food. Her bowl is cleaned at feeding time and she spends the rest of the time begging every time i go to the kitchen. I have not altered her feeding and yet she went from 2.9kg pre-op to 3.8kg 1month post op?

I'm about to get her Thyroid checked this week - but at 5yrs, this should not be an issue.
I googled this and found so many links to the same issue (and then found this thread) - so I am just a tad scared for my baby that this is something I've caused coz I got her spayed....
(I will update when i know more)
Really hungry after a spay
by: Anonymous

I'm going to take a guess here --

Perhaps like female humans, when estrogen drops w/menopause, the body works really hard to try to store it. I believe estrogen is stored in fat so the body is trying to make adjustments.

When a cat is spayed, the hormones drop like so fast, those little bodies must be trying to hard to adjust.

I just had two females spayed - same age. One was already a little chunky but appetite only increased mildly. My skinny but very special "runt" is insanely hungry now. She needs to put on some reserves so all is OK now...but obviously after that, she'll need to trim back unless she stays very active.
No anxiety just spayed
by: Petite Desi

I was beginning to think it was an after affect of the meds given during the spay. Once Desi came home she was clearing her bowl and stealing her brothers food too. Being a larger cat he eats a full cup split into two meals. She was spayed in Dec n weighed 8.2lbs and in Feb was up to 10lbs. No anxiety toys and catnip provided. Plays throughout the day with brother cat and still I hear her licking empty bowls at night. Tearing into food bags. Running after me when I walk towards the bedroom. Always hungry always crying for food. something was definitely triggered..
my girl gypcy
by: hayley

hey iv been trying to distract my cat from wanting to eat so much play with her toys you say after time she will change but she still keeps finding away to get to my boy cats food eat all his biscuits and than if theres nothing she fills up on water I'm giving her a lot of love talking to her but she's gaining a lot of weight!!
is there any tricks to teach my young female cat?
PLEASE HELP ME HELP HER!!!!??.

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