paper eating

[binkybuff]

Hi Everyone

My Tortie cat has an issue. She loves to eat toilet paper or paper towels or tissue. Not just lick them, but actually tearing off chunks and eating them.

I have hidden the toilet paper, and paper towels are high enough she doesn't get to them, and all Kleenex tissue boxes are either high up, or turned upside down. If she gets hold of any of those paper products, it is like catnip to her.

She is a grazer with her food, and has fresh water available all the time. She is eating the Acana cat food.

This cat also loves the heat, will lie on the heat registers. She is about 7 years old, and still only weighs about 8 to 10 pounds.

Does anyone have any suggestions as to what I should ask for when I take her to the vets.

Thanks for your advice
binky

[binkybuff]

Can no one give me any ideas as to why she does the paper eating.

binky

[hazelrunpack]

She might just like the texture on her tongue.

I've never had a cat with the problem, but our English setter, Brier, would eat every scrap of paper in the house if he had the chance. We finally cut apart 2-liter soda bottles to make plastic sheathes for the toilet paper rolls in the house--he actually ate an entire roll one day! To prevent a blockage, we had to make him throw it all up. Most dogs go through a paper-eating phase, but Brier never came out of his. He checks out fine at the vet, so we just chalk it up to his general goofiness.

Sorry, not much help

[rainbow]

Eating things that are inedible is called pica. Good idea to remove the TP, tissue and paper towels from her getting access. And, glad you're taking her to the vet .....good luck and keep us posted.

Here's some information on pica .....

http://www.vmth.ucdavis.edu/home/beh...vior/pica.html

[Love4himies]

Puddles loves to lick the kleenexes and I have never worried about it. Snowball used to love to tear apart the toilet paper and rip the roll apart . I think the paper used to get "stuck" to their tongues and they would just eat it

[MyBirdIsEvil]

I think a lot of cats will just swallow paper if they get it in their mouth, and they all like to destroy toilet paper and paper towels.

As far as pica, my parents cat likes to lick plastic grocery bags. She has always done this and I have no idea why. She is completely healthy so it has nothing to do with that. She will also EAT certain plastics if she gets a hold of them, which is an issue. She seems to like the taste and texture. I don't think there's much to do about it other than keep that stuff away from them. As long as it's a specific item and not several it should be pretty easy to deal with.

[binkybuff]

thank you, for your comments. I had kind of thought it was just a licking issue with her, and yes, I have hidden the toilet paper, and paper towels.

I do get some funny looks when friends have to use the washroom, I make sure to tell them where the paper is and express to them to put the paper back into the cupboard. I will often go and check afterwards just to make sure.

One of the rolls she got into once, only had about 3/4 of the paper left, no shredding, it was all eaten. This is the only cat I have had that eats the paper, and only 1 of the others played with paper.

Again, my thanks for all the comments.

binky

[Frenchy]

I also hide the toilet paper (although I do forget to warn visitors ) and all the kleenex boxes are turned upside down Paddington loves to destroy and eat them.

[onster]

I think pica is more often associated with plastic and not one just particular thing. One of my cats has pica though and really it's just a matter of making the things they like to eat inaccessible to them. You'll be trained soon enough good luck!