Behavior around feeding

Question
Hi Barb - I wanted to touch base about the behavior of my 2 cats when it comes to feeding time. Due to the fact that both kitties are a bit overweight and both have had UTI's (3 yrd old male, 12 yr old female), they eat the same prescription food at the same time (different bowls and places, of course). Both cats have been getting 2 feedings per day for a few years now, in the morning and evening. The thing is, Buddy has become much more 'antsy' lately with food. As soon as I walk in the house after work, he is whining and running to the kitchen cupboard for dinner. If I drop off my bags or take my time, he whines and whines, meows a lot, etc. And each morning, he scratches at my door hours before I intend to get up. He bangs and bangs at it, even waking my roommates up! I've tried spraying him with water, sticky stuff on the door, various "cat deterrent sprays" and feliway near the door to keep him from doing this, but nothing works for more than a few minutes. Ideally, I would be able to sleep in to my alarm (at least) and feed them when I get up, but he doesn't seem to have the patience for this. Is there something else I could do to address this? He seems to be stressed out too - yesterday morning he squatted on the mat in my bathroom as if he wanted to pee on it, despite a nice litter box being just a few feet away. I play with him quite a bit, trying to help him expend some of his excess kitty energy, but that doesn't seem to affect the situation. When he gets really 'antsy' (pacing througout the house, getting into stuff he'd ordinarily ignore, whining, pouncing on my other cat) I start to think it's some sort of anxiety problem...but it always seems worse around feeding times. Neither cat goes hungry, so I don't think that's a cause. Is there anything I can do to calm him re: food (and to stop scratching at my door from 4-5am!)? Any thoughts or recommendations would be helpful (and yes, both cats have separate cozy sleeping spaces, 2 clean litter boxes, toys, scratching posts, etc., and 4 adults giving them love). Any pointers would be appreciated. Thanks.
Terra

Answer
Hi Terra,

I hate to sound like a know-it-all, :), but I do know that your cat is hungry.  Vets do not always know what is totally best for cats.  The prescription food is good, and don't stop feeding it, but he needs more.  If the calorie content is not enough for your kitty, then he is going to bug you and "act out" until he gets more to eat.  The quality of life for a continually hungry cat is poor.  If I were you, get a good quality of dry food, such as IAMs, Science Diet, or even the prescription kind, and leave a bowl of it out all the time.  That will satisfy his cravings and he will stop being stressed.  It will not add to their weight usually, but even if it does a little, it's better than having a cat who is constantly hungry.  If this does not solve the problem, then it is time to get him to the vet again.  Being that hungry all the time is not right.  Does he drink a LOT of water?  That could be a warning sign of diabetes.  Just throwing out ideas here.  Please write again if you think I can be of assistance.  I always like to help.  

Hugs,
Barb