# kitten with food aggression



## LostSoul (Sep 29, 2012)

yesterday i became the slave to a tiny 6 week old kitten Finn, i know he left his cat family way too early, that wasnt a decision made by me, i just took him so i knew he would be well looked after.
Tonight i put my hand near him while he was eating and he flew at me, all tiny teeth and claws, he was hissing and growling...if he was a bit bigger it wouldnt have been funny at all. 
Ive never experienced this before with my other cats but they've either been tiny hand rears or older kittens, so how do i try to stop him from doing this or will he stop as he gets older.
I moved him away from his food everytime he went for me but im not sure if thats right. I know its very early days and I dont want to keep annoying him when hes eating but i want to stop this aggression so eventually he can eat with my other 2 cats .


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## Polski (Mar 16, 2014)

I have one who is food aggressive. She has stopped doing it with humans but is still like it with other cats with some foods. She was poorly raised by her kitten mother and then abandoned quite early on so I'm guessing she had to fight for her food. Shes ok with standard cat food but give her a piece of chicken and shes like a tasmanian devil with them, even a shadow is enough to send her into a growling spitting frenzy. 

Not sure how you would stop it as i've left Flissie to it...shes tiny and needs to be able to defend herself against Tabs and Oscar who are huge and greedy and have been known to bop other cats on the head for their food, her taz impression works a treat on them.


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## Jannor (Oct 26, 2013)

Poor baby - she must've had to fight for her food or gone hungry 

I'd leave her to it as I think she'll calm down when she realises no-one is going to take it from her.


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## gskinner123 (Mar 10, 2010)

It's perfectly normal. Often, when I give my own kittens (I'm a breeder) a plate of something they especially like I dare not put my hand back to the plate to, for instance, move the food around so everyone gets an equal share! So I think it's a common enough thing to be considered normal and none, to the very best of my knowledge, have ever become 'food aggressive' adults, not in the way a dog might behave. 

He'll have seen your hand as competition for food and some are just a bit more proactive in getting their share  I often have to put down two or three plates at meal times when a couple of the litter are bolshier over food than others.


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## LostSoul (Sep 29, 2012)

gskinner123 said:


> It's perfectly normal. Often, when I give my own kittens (I'm a breeder) a plate of something they especially like I dare not put my hand back to the plate to, for instance, move the food around so everyone gets an equal share! So I think it's a common enough thing to be considered normal and none, to the very best of my knowledge, have ever become 'food aggressive' adults, not in the way a dog might behave.
> 
> He'll have seen your hand as competition for food and some are just a bit more proactive in getting their share  I often have to put down two or three plates at meal times when a couple of the litter are bolshier over food than others.


Thank you, i hope once he realises he doesnt have to fight for food he will calm down but at just 6 weeks old hes so tiny and it was quite funny seeing him going all psycho on my hand 
but i dont want it to lead to problems as he gets older. I'd just never experienced it before.
Im not sure how he was fed before we got him on thursday but i know that there were 3 kittens in his litter, plus the mum and another female cat and 3 dogs...so i guess he had to fight for every mouthfull.

so should i just leave him to get on with it or are there tips i should be following to help him relax?


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## moggie14 (Sep 11, 2013)

I'd leave him to it. Perhaps try free feeding for a while until he realises he doesn't have to fight for his food, or defend it


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## Soozi (Jun 28, 2013)

I think it is something he will grow out of! What we have ways done with our cats is put the food down with one hand and given a gentle full length body stroke with the other we feel it's a reassurance thing! Mind you my husband did this with a friends adult cat that we fed as they were away overnight and their cat hissed an growled and nearly had my husbands fingers off! He didn't try it again!


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## chillminx (Nov 22, 2010)

I am not sure what you mean when you say you want to be able to feed him with your other cats - do you mean in the same room, or literally alongside them? 

Cats should always be allowed privacy and their own bit of territorial space when they eat their meals. 

I have never fed any of my cats alongside each other. What I do is feed one social group (2 cats) in the same room, and that is feeding one cat at floor level, feeding the other cat on a table.

The other social group (3 cats) is fed in a separate room, one at one side of the room, one at the opposite side of the room, and one on top of a small chest of drawers. 

It works fine - each cat feels relaxed at meal times and has complete supremacy over their own dish. There are no attempts by any cat to push in on another's dish and take food from them. This is the way it should be.

I would suspect your little fellow has felt he had to fight for every mouthful of food at the breeder's. Perhaps there was never enough food to go round or perhaps he was often pushed away from his food by stronger, bigger kittens, or adult cats. Whatever the case he is now highly protective of his food. 

So as has been suggested by others ^^ I would respect his wishes: feed him apart from your other cats, either at a different height in the room, or in a separate room. 

Once you've put down his dish of food, keep your distance until he has finished eating. That way he will learn to trust that he can eat as much as he wants, at his own leisure, without having the food snatched away from him by anyone else (cat or human).


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## LostSoul (Sep 29, 2012)

my 2 girls eat from the same plate...doesnt matter how many plates they have or where i put them they always end up eating from the same one, Mac used to get fed in a seperate room but 99% of the time he would join them too...i would just like Finn to be able to eat in the same room eventually, i know its a long way away yet, i have been stroking him when giving him his food and then just let him get on with it...hopefully he'll learn he doesnt have to fight for his dinner soon


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## ForeverHome (Jan 14, 2014)

Wow I'm quite taken aback. Never seen or heard of this with cats. If my cats have a treat and I walk towards them they tend to walk away from it, if anything. Same with each other, they either carry on or give way politely if the cat approaching is dominant in the food department. 

I have always stroked my cats as I put their food down and never thought twice about it. Molly says please and thank you - squeaky little monkey mews, or a solicitation purr and treading, for please and a deep lovely purr for thank you. In fact the moment she puts her head in her bowl is where I am getting her to accept being stroked down her sides! So far it's the only time I can stroke all the way down both sides 3 or 4 times, as she is docile then. 

Does Daisy allow you to stroke him when you put his food down? That would be my starting point I think.


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## LostSoul (Sep 29, 2012)

ForeverHome said:


> Wow I'm quite taken aback. Never seen or heard of this with cats. If my cats have a treat and I walk towards them they tend to walk away from it, if anything. Same with each other, they either carry on or give way politely if the cat approaching is dominant in the food department.
> 
> I have always stroked my cats as I put their food down and never thought twice about it. Molly says please and thank you - squeaky little monkey mews, or a solicitation purr and treading, for please and a deep lovely purr for thank you. In fact the moment she puts her head in her bowl is where I am getting her to accept being stroked down her sides! So far it's the only time I can stroke all the way down both sides 3 or 4 times, as she is docile then.
> 
> Does Daisy allow you to stroke him when you put his food down? That would be my starting point I think.


We changed Daisys name to finn when we found out she was a he, i didnt feel right calling him Daisy 
i have managed to stroke him a few times when i give him his food, im pretty sure his aggression is already getting better, first few times he flew at me last night he was growling pretty bad and had his claws stuck into his bowl as if to say mine! but earlier i stroked him whie he was eating and nothing...so fingers crossed hes strating to learn he will be able to eat his food without fighting off the other cats, i know my other girls wont eat his food because they only eat one food and both refuse to touch anything else,
over the years ive had a few cats, my first 3 always ate together, there was only a few months in age between them and i never saw any food aggression they were happy to eat from the same big plate...when Pea joined she was fed seperately but eventually the 4 of them would share 2 plates, then i lost 2 of them and got Cookie, she ate with pea from day 1, then Mac joined our family, he was fed higher up and in a different room but if the door was left open he would just join his sisters and all 3 ate perfectly well...i dont mind if Finn cant eat from the same plate as the others but i would prefer him to eventually be fed in the same room but i know hes just 6 weeks old right now so it will be a long way away yet...i'd honestly never seen any food aggression with any of mine before so i guess i've been lucky and hopefully Finn will grow out of it .


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## OrientalSlave (Jan 26, 2012)

Lola's kittens growl at each other with some of their food, and they are sorting it out fine on their own. I leave them along when they are eating.

To me, food aggression is a dog issue not a cat issue. Dogs have a pack structure, you have to be leader of the pack, a dog showing food aggression is suggesting it is the leader not you.

Cats don't have anything like such a rigid social structure, and most cats always see us as poor imitations. Make sure your kitten has enough to eat, make sure he has enough meals in the day, and put down at least as many bowls as cats.

Finn is very young, and has a lot to learn - one of the reasons kittens are usually best off with their mothers until 13 weeks or so. Your other cats might well teach him better than you can, but I do feel you are overthinking this. 

And please, let him eat his meal in peace. He's had a rough start, he's not known where the next meal is coming from, consider if you were in his position. You are hungry, aren't sure you will get to eat, something huge keeps faffing around while you eats and worse still keeps moving your food.

Would you accept it meekly?


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## LostSoul (Sep 29, 2012)

OrientalSlave said:


> Finn is very young, and has a lot to learn - one of the reasons kittens are usually best off with their mothers until 13 weeks or so. Your other cats might well teach him better than you can, but I do feel you are overthinking this.
> 
> And please, let him eat his meal in peace. He's had a rough start, he's not known where the next meal is coming from, consider if you were in his position. You are hungry, aren't sure you will get to eat, something huge keeps faffing around while you eats and worse still keeps moving your food.
> 
> Would you accept it meekly?


I definitely agree, i know i am fussing and most probably worried over nothing...i guess with Finn only being 6 weeks old im more worried about him than i would be if he was older, he really should stil be with his mum and still learning from her,
plus losing my last boy cat at the age of just 23 months to something that was never properly diagnosed definitely adds to my paranoia.
i am leaving Finn and letting him eat, when i first noticed the aggression i was only moving his bowl so i could add more food, i wasnt just touching it for no reason...but yes i was probably interfering when i should have been leaving him well alone..but i have stopped that now. I've learnt my lesson...


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## OrientalSlave (Jan 26, 2012)

Normal end of eating behaviour is mostly cleaning, sometimes attempting to cover the bowl. If Finn either leaves a little food, or does these after eating, no need to top up the bowl. Or, you can put a little more in and see if he eats some more, possibly 20-30 minutes later.


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## OrientalSlave (Jan 26, 2012)

And yes, I realise it's all very hard not that long after losing Mac and it's awful easy to fuss and so on.


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## spotty cats (Jul 24, 2012)

OrientalSlave said:


> Lola's kittens growl at each other with some of their food, and they are sorting it out fine on their own. I leave them along when they are eating.


Very normal with my youngsters too, especially over chicken necks or wings.

I feed my adults together, some of them born here and part of the 'aggressive' eating kittens, they share several plates and none have any issues with eating.
Your kitten should outgrow it, and your other adults will help him learn what his mum wasn't able to teach.


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## ForeverHome (Jan 14, 2014)

LostSoul said:


> I definitely agree, i know i am fussing and most probably worried over nothing...i guess with Finn only being 6 weeks old im more worried about him than i would be if he was older, he really should stil be with his mum and still learning from her,
> plus losing my last boy cat at the age of just 23 months to something that was never properly diagnosed definitely adds to my paranoia.
> i am leaving Finn and letting him eat, when i first noticed the aggression i was only moving his bowl so i could add more food, i wasnt just touching it for no reason...but yes i was probably interfering when i should have been leaving him well alone..but i have stopped that now. I've learnt my lesson...


Hmm that's one point of view, but how about a middle road wherer you get Finn (lovely name) used to food and person going together by hand feeding treats? I would not be happy with food aggression and I'd be looking to work with him to feel secure and comfortable. Of course it may be Finn has been attacked by his mum and the other cats while eating, or some other issue, and I would want to start immediately working on eliminating this issue before it becomes entrenched habit. You never know when there might be a toddler in the house. At 6 weeks a kitten is far too young to be allowed to develop such behaviours.


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## OrientalSlave (Jan 26, 2012)

ForeverHome said:


> <snip>
> You never know when there might be a toddler in the house. At 6 weeks a kitten is far too young to be allowed to develop such behaviours.


A toddler should not be left unsupervised with cats or kittens, and most certainly should not be allowed to interfere when they are eating.

I agree absolutely with SC above, the kitten will grow out of it. Cats are not dogs, the behaviours and social structures are quite different. I appreciate that food aggression in dogs is bad, but see above - cats are not dogs.


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## LostSoul (Sep 29, 2012)

well the good news is he seems to be calming down a little, at least with me, he still growls a bit though...but he went for my husband this morning when he fed him, luckily his teeth are only tiny or it could have been quite nasty.
he's only been here since thursday so its very early days and being only 6 weeks old he hasnt been taught everything he needed from his mum, so far im managing to get him off of the horrible kitten biscuits he'd been having and onto some wet food, only felix right now so i know thats not good but its better than a all dry diet and it hasnt upset his stomach, he has tried a tiny bit of cooked chicken breast and that was a hit, ive also got some applaws kitten food to try i will try him on raw food soon, i just dont want to try too much too soon and upset his tummy.

I know im paranoid and being over fussy but personally i thought the earlier i got him to stop the aggression the better, i know food aggression is usually linked with dogs but cats have teeth and claws too so could easily cause some damage, it seems like Finn will grow out of it soon ...almost every new cat ive had has always bonded with my others over food, so i guess we'll just have to see how it goes when they are properly introduced and my girls are around him while hes eating.

heres my Finn


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## OrientalSlave (Jan 26, 2012)

> You never know when there might be a toddler in the house


You can't? I can't imagine one getting in my house without my knowing about it.


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## spotty cats (Jul 24, 2012)

OrientalSlave said:


> You can't? I can't imagine one getting in my house without my knowing about it.


Perhaps in your area the toddlers are indoors or enclosed rather than free roaming


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## LostSoul (Sep 29, 2012)

no toddlers or kids here but i do have very delicate hands


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## LostSoul (Sep 29, 2012)

well Finns been here for 12 days now...which has flown by buti know is still very early days, he's now fully introduced to my older girls and so ar everything is going well, they can walk near him while hes eating and the most he does is grab his bowl with his paw and crouch over the food...they ignore it and he carries on eating, i can touch him before,during and after eating without him growling now
But, today we had fish for lunch, my husband decided to let him try some and Finn went mad, he hissed, growled, spat and attacked my husbands hand with all his tiny teeth and claws, he wouldnt let go...once again im pleased hes so small because if he has full size eeth or claws there wouldnt have been much of my husbands wrist left.
ive tried hand feeding him treats to get him used to hands being near food but he doesnt seem to know what treats are and he wont touch them unless they are in his food bowl, my husband didnt even get the fish into the bowl today before Finn launced on him...Finn then ran around and launched himself on to the back of one of my girls who simple turned around and knocked him to the ground...


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## Ceiling Kitty (Mar 7, 2010)

Cats tend to prefer eating alone. Is this not an option for him?


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## moggie14 (Sep 11, 2013)

I agree with Shosh. I'd stop forcing the issue and just let him eat by himself with nobody touching him or bothering him during meal times. 
If he happily eats his dinner from his bowl then I don't see the need to hand feed him anything. If my cats get treats I usually just chuck a couple of Dreamies on the floor 
As you say it's still very early days, I think with time and left in peace with his food at proper meal times he will grow out of any defensive behaviour with it


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## LostSoul (Sep 29, 2012)

Shoshannah said:


> Cats tend to prefer eating alone. Is this not an option for him?


he does eat alone most of the time, he has his food in a seperate room to the girls but because hes a bit underweight the vet advised to free feed so there are times when hes nibbling and the girls are around...but there really isnt any trouble with that, they dont bother him, they wont eat his food and although he claims his food bowl as his if they get too close, there isnt any noise from him at all, last night he managed to climb over the barrier i had at my kitchen door and get to the girls food while they were eating, nothing happened ...except i now know i need a taller barrier! 
ive even seen him and Cookie sharing his kitten milk without him being at all aggressive to her, hes not aggressive with us, with his toys or with the other cats..other than normal kitten biting and playing. 
it just seems to be hands and food ...or hands with food he has a problem with, today he wasnt eating, my husband went to give him some food and he attacked before the food hit his bowl...we werent trying to take it away from him or trying to interfere just to give him something to eat ad he was in the room alone except for us..and only my husband was near him. He also attacks sometimes when we're putting the food bowl down to him rather than when hes eating. i can hold a cat treat right near him and he does nothing at all.
I asked the people who gave him to us if he did it before and they just laughed and said yes they all did, they used to flip a coin over who would feed them...im sure its something he'll grow out of once he knows our hands give food and dont take it away.

One big happy family..


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## moggie14 (Sep 11, 2013)

Aw that's a great photo


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## OrientalSlave (Jan 26, 2012)

I agree, let him eat in peace.


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## Paddypaws (May 4, 2010)

I am certain that you will be able to calm down this food aggression....I am more worried about the other kittens who probably wont have found such patient and loving owners.


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## LostSoul (Sep 29, 2012)

Paddypaws said:


> I am certain that you will be able to calm down this food aggression....I am more worried about the other kittens who probably wont have found such patient and loving owners.


the 2 boys (meant to be boys but Finn was meant to be a girl so who knows!) who were left in finns litter went to the same home around the same time Finn did so at only 6 weeks old...apparently they have to be fed at opposite ends of the room to stop them fighting, and they still hide most of the time, i hope they settle down soon because the people who have them are really trying...luckily i didnt need to try with Finn, he knew he was home 5 minutes after he came through the door.
the only problem is his aggression with food which has changed to become aggression with hands giving him food i guess


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## carly87 (Feb 11, 2011)

What foods are you feeding him? I've heard of cats exhibiting this reaction when fed on the supermarket brands. It completely settles when moved to a low sugar, high meat food.


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## LostSoul (Sep 29, 2012)

carly87 said:


> What foods are you feeding him? I've heard of cats exhibiting this reaction when fed on the supermarket brands. It completely settles when moved to a low sugar, high meat food.


yes he is on supermarket kitten food right now, i have applaws kitten food but hes not very happy with that yet, he'd been weaned straight onto dry food and im getting him used to meat, he does have some cooked chicken and a little fish...to be honest im not sure if he can have raw at his age...i dont want to change his diet too much incase it upsets his belly, so far he's been fine but getting him to touch any meat at all took days...but he will eventually be on a better food.


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## carly87 (Feb 11, 2011)

There's nothing wrong with him eating raw at his age. I wean straight onto raw with no ill effects. It doesn't tend to upset the tum like normal food changes do either.


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## LostSoul (Sep 29, 2012)

carly87 said:


> There's nothing wrong with him eating raw at his age. I wean straight onto raw with no ill effects. It doesn't tend to upset the tum like normal food changes do either.


thank you, i will start trying a little raw ASAP.


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## LostSoul (Sep 29, 2012)

i know this thread is a bit old but i thought i would update, 
Finn is now 13 weeks old, he has no food aggression at all any more and hasnt for a while.
He no longer lunges if any one moves near him when hes eating and i can hand feed him treats now too, he sits and waits for me to tell him to take it which is so cute!!
He hasnt taken to raw food though, he will eat chicken cooked and some white fish but so far he refuses all other meat cooked or raw so hes still on the rubbish super market kitten food, with cooked chicken a few times a week and he is eating applaws kitten food too but its not a complete ( at least i dont think it is ) so im not giving it to him every day.
My 2 girls eat from the same plate and if im not careful Finn runs out to them and they make a space for him to eat with them too.

The people i got Finn from have told me that his mum is really aggresive around food, so much so that they have to feed her and shut the door because she will run at any one or anything that goes near her...shes is around 14 months old i believe but they said they have never tried to stop the aggression, never tried to train her in any way...that doesnt surprise me they got rid of Finn and his brothers the day they turned 6 weeks and have got rid of a another litter of kittens since then by their other female cat at just 6 weeks old too....


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## Sophiebee (Jul 9, 2013)

Its great to hear finns over his food aggression. Sad about his mum and the other cat though  If i give loki a raw chicken wing or chunks of meat he treats it like a 'kill' and will growl at it while he chomps, he also hisses and growls if you get too close to it, he doesnt attack though, he also never does it with any wet food or treats, so i think the raw just brings out his hunter instincts! We just leave him to it, i actually find his little growl really funny


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