Feline Compulsive Eating Disorders

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Did you know that some cats are afflicted by compulsive eating disorders? Sounds like it would be simple enough to treat by simply limiting their food intake and making sure any other food items are kept locked up and out of their reach, right? Well no, it's not exactly that easy. As a result of this disorder they will chew up and attempt to eat literally anything they can get their teeth on, including inedible objects. And, it's not as though you can explain to the cat they have a problem and tell them like you would a human, what they can and cannot eat.

This may sound very strange to those of you whose cats prefer to stick to actual food items rather than those non-food alternatives. But for those of you who have Oriental-breed cats this might give you the answer to what you thought was just very strange behavior. The reason that Oriental-breed cats are specified is because this condition is more likely to affect those particular breeds.

Cats with this condition might often choose to eat objects such as string, fabric, ponytail ties etc, and it would not be uncommon for them to swallow up to ten or more small objects at a time. A situation of this severity would ultimately require surgery to remove the objects. It is believed that this condition may be somehow related to another similar one called Wool Sucking, which affects many Siamese cats. A cat with this condition can often be caught sucking on and eating soft fabrics such as wool, therefore sweaters and afghan blankets are primary targets.

Aside from the obvious solution of hiding every single small, soft object and piece of clothing from your cat, there are a couple of tricks that you can try implementing to help cut back on the compulsive eating or sucking habit. Increase the amount of fiber in your pet's diet by adding 1-2 teaspoons of either Canned Pumpkin or Shredded Lettuce to every meal. Hopefully this will help to curb the out of control, non-food item cravings.