Bengal cross sphynx kitten

[dizzynita]

Food aggressive kitten....
We have had minx the bengal cross sphynx for nearly 3 weeks (got him at 6 weeks old ) He is fine with dry food but has no interest in wet food at all so we have been giving him fish, chicken,ham every day as well as a good fomula milk for kittens. I have 2 other cats who let him eat first but he still acts aggressive and possesive over any meat or fish ,We keep trying to feed him by hand but am concerned he could injure us if he continues to try and snatch and grab our hand like he does as he gets older..we can't afford to show him fear at this age now ! other then food he has a great tempermant and is very loving

 

[ilovemysphynx]

I would say you are going to have to stop this behavior while he is still young, if it continues into his adult hood it could be unsafe.

 

[ktate88]

I would say you are going to have to stop this behavior while he is still young, if it continues into his adult hood it could be unsafe.

I would agree. I'm not sure the best way to stop it except to correct or ignore him when he does this. Perhaps get up and walk away, even with the food? Having never raised a kitten that young or had that issue, I don't have much advice.

Whatever you try, I hope it works well and quickly for your safety and your other cats.

 

[MissMySphynxBoys]

I don't have much advice other than I would also try to discourage his food aggression while he is young. I know you don't want to withhold food at his age especially after his shaky start, but maybe by removing the meat and fish when he acts up and giving it back once he is calmed down will encourage him to get with the program.

 

[marlene]

Your baby is only nine weeks old. My experience is that the itty bitty guys are usually very aggressive when it comes to food. They can't help it, it's instinctive. At that age Mother Nature has instilled him with the drive to eat as much as he can, as fast as he can, and hissing/snarling/swatting with paws and being generally protective of food is ingrained in him. This is understandable because out in the wild the kitten that gets the most food has the best chance of survival.

You said you were trying to feed him by hand? You mean holding the food in your hand and letting him eat from it? At his age he can't tell the difference between food and finger; heck, it smells good to him so of course he's going to try to eat it.

What you're describing is normal kitten behavior appropriate for his age. I have a few recommendations: put his food on a plate instead of your hands, and feed him apart from your other kitties. You can hand feed him treats but do so between meals, not at mealtime when his body is telling him "OMG you're starving to death, chomp on any food that comes near!"

I think taking his food away will only compound the problem, if you stop and think about it. I'm afraid the only result that would have would be to make him more aggressive over it, because heck, it's just going to reinforce in his little mind that if he doesn't protect it and gobble it down it's going to disappear.

Give him about 2 months and he'll outgrow most of this, especially the part about biting you. But be aware that he may always stay somewhat possessive over his food and very well may remain the alpha kitty at the food bowl, especially since he already has the other kitties bamboozled into letting him go first.

Good luck and hope this helps.

 

[ckutkuhn7]

I totally agree with Marlene.

 

[Boo198]

Hi dizzynita, i was wondering how your cutie has turned out? i also have the same cross breed and have no idea what to expect

 

[werecatrising]

I have had a couple of food aggressive kittens in the past. When they were getting meat/ wet food/ something special they went in a crate. I did not allow any other animals to approach them, Once the need to compete/ defend their food was gone they learned to mellow out.

 

[zinchik]

Kika was very aggressive with food, especially when we got Yorik. Even to extend that we had would move his bowl into different location and watch over so she would not push him away.. miraculous that was the most intervention we had to do -- it was going on for about 2 month than slowly Kika let go , perhaps understanding that we are putting enough food for both of them..?)

 

[heidi74]

he is a cuttie hope all works out

 

[susi794]

This post was from two years ago--the dates posted are always in the upper left corner of the posts. This member isn't active anymore to my knowledge.