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Why Does My Cat Attack Me When I Feed Her? (Guide)

If your cat attacked you after feeding you may be wondering why this has happened and what you can do about it.

Why does my cat attack me when I feed her?

Your cat may attack may you when you feed it because it has food aggression. Meaning it gets overexcited when food is presented resulting in swyping and biting at the food. Also, if other cats are present they may even attempt to steal their food.

So, now you know why. But, what can you do to stop this? Is your cat just being greedy? Is it normal for a cat to be this hungry? Keep reading for these answers, and so much more.

Why do cats get greedy?

Some cats are naturally greedy. However, some may have a health issue like tapeworm (Click here if your cat resists its tapeworm medicine). This can cause them to feel hungry after eating. Which, on the surface, may seem confusing.

If you have ever seen your older cat swyping your kitten’s food this may be another example of greed or food aggression. However, as I said earlier, some cats are just plain greedy.

This could also be caused by a lack of food. Are you feeding your cat enough? If not, it may get anxious and overexcited at mealtimes.

Should you free feed instead or schedule?

Free feeding is great for vacations, convenient, and easy but it’s easy to overfeed cats and hard to offer a variety of food such as wet food (Click here if it’s not eating it anymore). So, it depends on your situation. Personally, I prefer the idea of a schedule.

As I mentioned earlier one of the reasons why your cat could be attacking you at mealtime is the lack of food. Using a schedule makes it easier to monitor how much food it is consuming and adjust as needed.

If you have kids or young relatives you may notice when they leave their food behind it’s a chance to see what they have been eating, or more importantly, not eaten.

Using a schedule like breakfast, lunch, and dinner at set times allows you to adjust portions to their needs. This is the same method to control greedy cats.

What are the common signs of food aggression?

Sometimes the symptoms of food aggression is not always obvious. Therefore you need some idea of what to look out for. Here are some to check for:

01. Guarding

Guarding is when your cat tries to block one of your other cats from getting to their bowl. It is a general aggression that is a tell-tale sign of food aggression. This happens because they are worried about the food running out, even if they have enough of their own.

02. Room guarding

As well as guarding the actual food bowls it can also try and block access to the room holding the food. This is an over-the-top strategy to block access to the food. And, this is a clear sign of food aggression.

03. Pushing

Also, apart from blocking the room or bowl, you may see pushing and shoving. This is basically bullying and aggression to protect the food regardless if it’s theirs or not.

What is the cause of food aggression?

There are several causes of food aggression. This can make it hard to work what may affect your cat. Here are some possible issues:

01. Eating outdoors

If your cat is eating outdoors a lot and is not getting enough food it can become desperate and anxious for food. So, when you offer your cat some food it may react over the top and may seem to be attacking you (click here if it was acting friendly first). Making this another potential cause of food aggression.

02. Weening too early

If your cat was taken from its mother too early and then forced to ween earlier than normal you may see signs of food aggression. If they had been given enough time with their mother they would have weened naturally and avoided this behavior.

03. Not enough Food

If your cat does not get enough food it can also lead to food aggression. Maybe you are free-feeding, as discussed earlier, and it’s not getting enough. Or, you have just underestimated its level of food.

04. New cat getting bullied

There are also situations where you are providing enough food but your cat is being pushed around. Maybe it is a new cat and the older cat is not allowing it to eat enough. This can happen when the older cat eats its food and you may assume your new cat ate it.

Is it normal for my cat to always be hungry?

It is not normal for a cat to always be hungry. But, it is a common problem. It is usually caused by the cat eating out of boredom, or for the simple fact that it is there. For example, if you leave dry food out all day your cat may just graze on it because its there.

Also, if there is not enough stimulation for your cat, such as cat toys (Click here to see the reviews, on Amazon #Ad), then they may fill that time with eating. The best way around this is to offer some cat toys or other interesting activities to keep it stimulated.

I remember being young and bored t home on a rainy Sunday afternoon. Because I couldn’t go out that day I was constantly in the fridge or cupboards looking for snacks to feed on. It felt good that day, but it made me feel a bit sick and guilty.

It’s the same for a bored cat, they will just feed on whatever you put out unless you offer it stimulation and restrict its eating, are you with me?

Why does my cat go crazy for treats?

Cats love treats primarily for their smell. The creators of popular cat treats (Click here to see the price, on Amazon #Ad) take their time to create an irresistible smelling and tasty treat that most cats will struggle to resist.

Sometimes the texture and taste get them more than the smell. But, like anything, it will vary a lot from cat to cat.

I remember tucking into a snickers bar as a kid, in fact, it is still a favorite. The texture of those nuts and nougat would always tease my tastebuds. And, sometimes the smell of it alone would tempt me. It’s similar to how a cat reacts to these treats.

How do you calm an aggressive cat?

To calm a cat’s aggression you need to first find the source of it. This can be hard at first because, as explained earlier, there can be various reasons such as lack of food, being bullied by an older cat, etc.

However, it is worth making your first task to check in with your vet. It may identify a genuine health issue that needs addressing first. If that is eliminated then you can look into other problems.

It’s also worth looking out for sudden changes in your cat’s behavior to help you identify that they may have this aggression problem.

How can you handle tapeworm if this causes cat hunger?

If your cat is always hungry or acting greedy you may discover it has tapeworms. If this is the case consult your vet. It is likely to need deworming to get rid of them. Once this has been done it should help with your cat’s unexplainable hunger.

Humans can also get these tapeworms as well. I fact, I remember trying to sleep one night and having uncontrollable discomfort after going to the bathroom. It felt like my rear was alive, no joke!

After days of discomfort and failed treatments, my mother took me to the doctors and I was told I had tapeworms. It literally took one course of treatment from him and it was gone in days.