Need tips on stopping "scarf and barf"

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Ry & Scooter

Ry & Scooter

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Scooter keeps very suddenly acting like he's starving to death, howling for food, and then scarfing down a whole meal in all of 2 minutes and then puking it up all over my carpet another 2 minutes later... I am renting and this cannot become a common occurrence, there are already 2 stains in the hallway from where he's puked up food at night and it couldn't be removed. If I put down a rug or towel, he pukes on the carpet somewhere else. I've tried feeding him spoonfuls at a time, but that just isn't feasible every day/night when I can't be there to spoon feed him. He pukes if he eats more than 2oz of food at a time. Every time I put out a meal and leave the house or sleep I dread waking up and having to find a puke pile somewhere else in the house... :YMSIGH: It is 2AM right now and he woke me up with the "I'm starving" howl even though I left food out when I went to bed, so I gave him a 3oz can of Sophistacat and heard him retching 5 minutes later from bed.

Any tips?
 
I have use these Carbona carpet cleaner products with the brushes on the end of the bottle. They get out every throw up or poo stain for me, even if I didn't find them right away.

I feed my cats in 1/4 of a 3oz can of Fancy Feast per meal. And they get several of those in the am and several of those in the pm. Although, my non diabetic will sometimes still scarf and barf on just that 1/4 can.

I hope you get some good advice.
 
I know that some people get the electric feeders that store the food and open at the time you set if for.
You could also try and freeze some of the food - what if you take a can and split it in half and freeze them (so if 3 oz can there would be 2-1.5oz pieces) Then put out 1.5oz fresh food and 1 of the 1.5oz frozen pieces. That way he could eat the fresh stuff and as the frozen thaws he would have more food available but wouldn't have more than 1.5oz at a time.

Good Luck
Sharon
 
Use plain old blue WINDEX to clean those carpet spots - not some other brand and not one of the newer 'gel' or other, just the cheap plain old blue Windex. Spray it on the stain, give it 20-30 seconds then wipe with paper towel or cloth. It will even take old cola stains out of carpets! PLUS it leaves it clean as Windex is just a plain ammonia cleaner....

HUGS!
 
Bandit also eats his food too fast and I can't give him more than 2 oz at a time or he'll barf, so he eats 4 times a day, with little less than 2 oz at each meal. I have an autofeeder that I use when I'm not home to feed him. I see that you're only feeding twice a day--feeding smaller, frequent meals is better for diabetic cats anyway. I always fed at each shot time, and then at +6 when he hit his nadir because often time I wasn't home to test him during the day, and I wanted to make sure he had food in case he was low.

I would start feeding 4x day, and that should solve your problem. It should also help with the "I'm hungry" begging.
 
My vet told me to use a fork and push the wet food down in the dish so that that the cat has to work to get it. It slows down their eating. It worked for my three cats.

BTW, I use windex too and it works really well.
 
My kitty used to do that and it is very frustrating. Remember not to get mad...they are just sick.

Perhaps your little one is allergic to the food. I switched mine to EVO for cat and kittens (dry) and Wellness (wet) Turkey, Beef and Chicken, Turkey and Salmon, and Chicken and Herring. *Remember any time you switch foods to do it as a transition from one to the other.

I rent as well. I use Resolve Pet Stain you can get at most drug stores or Target. Get the area wet and try to clean it first, and then use the cleaner as directed. None of my numerous stains are visible.

Good luck!
 
Another tip: Place a heavy mug upside down in the center of the plate. Put the food around it. It makes it more difficult to get at quickly. (There are some pet dishes already designed like that ... but this is cheaper!)
 
I don't think anyone mentioned an autofeeder which you can get at Petsmart.
There are 5 compartments and you can put in 1/5oz in each and then the cat has to wait till the feeder turns to get more.
You can also water down the food, which is good for the cat anyways, and then the cat has to lap up the food instead of gobbling the food in chunks. I usually put equal parts of water with food. Try the water and see what happens. The water will fill up the cat, and still get the nutrients from the food.
 
Julia, was it you who had to buy a specific autofeeder because some of them aren't as durable? I've heard of cats tearing them open and of course wouldn't want to go through several autofeeders trying to find one that is "tough" enough. Maybe it was someone else though.
 
saimasmom said:
Julia, was it you who had to buy a specific autofeeder because some of them aren't as durable? I've heard of cats tearing them open and of course wouldn't want to go through several autofeeders trying to find one that is "tough" enough. Maybe it was someone else though.
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It was me--Bandit destroyed two auto feeders before I found one that worked--a Lentek and a PetSafe 5. My third and current one is this feeder. Try as he might, he can not turn the tray, break into, or rip apart that feeder. And it has a voice recording that plays my dinner call for the cats when it's time to eat. This was important when I had Gabby and needed them both to run to their separate feeders at the same time so Bandit didn't scarf both of their meals. It also has a compartment for an ice pack, which I like.

I think the PetSafe 5 is the most popular feeder here, and as far as I know I have the only cat that destroyed it. The advantages to the PetSafe 5 is that it's much quieter than my current feeder when the tray rotates and it's easier to figure out how to program. My feeder is a bit sturdier than the PetSafe, but some people say it's hard to learn how to program (I had no problem, but I am also am a very tech-y person--it programs like a 1980s VCR).

I do want to add that Bandit is an exceptionally food crazed cat that thinks he's a raccoon--he opens cupboards and pulls out/rips open packages of food, overturns the garbage, tries to steal food off your plate (and/or fork) while you're eating dinner like a ninja, gnaws his way through ziploc bags....and he will do this with any food, no matter how much you think a cat wouldn't want to eat it. He once knocked a sealed box of Matzos off the counter, ripped his way through the packaging and devoured half the contents while we were sleeping, along with half a loaf of banana bread double bagged in heavy duty sealed ziploc bags. He also once knocked a pizza box with three large slices of pizza in it off of my brother's dresser, dragged it under his bed, and proceeded to eat all three pieces, crust and all, over the course of two days. If you ever want to know how much pizza, eggrolls, sugar cookies, cupcakes, buffalo wings, pasta, nachos and cheescake will raise your diabetic cat's blood sugar, I can tell you.

I'm explaining this because even though the PetSafe was a waste of money for me, I don't think most cats are not as mischievous as Bandit when it comes to food so I don't want to knock it. I would never recommend the Lentek to anyone, though--that thing was a piece of garbage. Bandit had it ripped apart on the first try.
 
Thanks everyone... no I don't feed twice a day, not at all, Scooter would destroy my house and tear up my carpet if I tried to leave him that long without food :lol: He gets small meals throughout the day but sometimes when I'm out or sleeping etc. he wants more and I can't leave out extras or he will eat it all, puke, and have no food for later. When I wrote "4oz twice a day" that was from one of those lucky days where he ate half of it and let the rest sit out for later. I will fix that.

How long do you find it takes frozen portions to thaw? I was under the impression that it takes around 6 hours, and I think that's too long for Scooter unfortunately, he eats probably every 3-4 hours or I have to listen to the death howl. When he gets really hungry he tears around the house scratching at the carpet and walls and knocking stuff over.

I think Scooter is one of those cats who would destroy that Petsafe 5 feeder in a flash... I checked it out at Petsmart a while back and that's why I haven't bought it. He's also one of those cats that opens the cupboards, rips open bags, jumps on the counter to lick dirty plates, eats stuff I drop on the floor before I can even pick it up, etc. at least it encourages our good habits right? ohmygod_smile Even if he's already eaten, if he sees the cans of food or I say "food" he hooooowls like he's still starving. I can buy it and try it out though, I'm sure PS will take it back even if Scooter destroys it.
 
Hey girl good to see you on the board.
Sorry I really don't have any advice for you.
When you first joined I remember you talking about the lack of personality Scooter had. Would you say he is starting to shine through?
Ry & Scooter said:
Scooter would destroy my house and tear up my carpet if I tried to leave him that long without food :lol:
I think Scooter is one of those cats who would destroy that Petsafe 5 feeder in a flash... I checked it out at Petsmart a while back and that's why I haven't bought it. He's also one of those cats that opens the cupboards, rips open bags, jumps on the counter to lick dirty plates, eats stuff I drop on the floor before I can even pick it up, etc. at least it encourages our good habits right? ohmygod_smile Even if he's already eaten, if he sees the cans of food or I say "food" he hooooowls like he's still starving. I
I think Scooter is one of those cats who would destroy that Petsafe 5 feeder in a flash... I checked it out at Petsmart a while back and that's why I haven't bought it. He's also one of those cats that opens the cupboards, rips open bags, jumps on the counter to lick dirty plates, eats stuff I drop on the floor before I can even pick it up, etc. at least it encourages our good habits right? ohmygod_smile Even if he's already eaten, if he sees the cans of food or I say "food" he hooooowls like he's still starving. I can buy it and try it out though, I'm sure PS will take it back even if Scooter destroys it.
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There was a post awhile back that talked a cat breaking into the "Magic Food Box". Scooter might one of those cats too. :o

Good Luck!
Jenn & Baxter
 
A little bit... He's got a lot of personality for sure, but he's a strange one. He still likes to keep his distance, but I can tell he is attached to me. He sleeps in my computer chair when I'm not in it, I'll get up to get a drink and come back to find he took it over. Keeping it warm for me I guess. At night he either sleeps by my feet on the bed, or on the floor on my clothes... or school bag... he also loves to sleep on paper. I printed out a bunch of resumes, and came back in the room to find Scooter had made them his bed. ohmygod_smile He's starting to do things he never did before, like now he sleeps on the couch sometimes and jumps up in the window sil and looks outside. I got him a new scratching post made of carpet instead of twine/rope and he LOVES it, I can hear him clawing at it right now.

He's such a good cat though, so well behaved, other than when he's hungry and that I can't really blame him for. And he's a rough player. But that's what toys on sticks are for ;-)
 
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