Polyphagia in Cats: Welfare Investigation Guide

Key Welfare Considerations

• Polyphagia may indicate underlying welfare disease or reflect normal behavioural adaptation to food restriction.
• Hyperthyroidism is the most common pathological welfare cause of polyphagia in middle-aged to older cats.
• Diabetes mellitus causes polyphagia through cellular glucose deprivation welfare despite hyperglycaemia.
• Exocrine pancreatic insufficiency (EPI) causes polyphagia through welfare malabsorption of nutrients.
• Intestinal parasites causing welfare malabsorption can drive compensatory polyphagia.
• Acromegaly (PPID) causes polyphagia through insulin resistance welfare and metabolic changes.
• Hypercortisolaemia from exogenous steroid administration causes polyphagia as a welfare drug side effect.
• Inflammatory bowel disease with protein-losing enteropathy causes welfare polyphagia through malabsorption.
• Competition in multi-cat welfare households causes some cats to eat rapidly — behavioural welfare polyphagia.
• Dietary insufficiency from underfed welfare — polyphagia is the appropriate welfare response.
• Complete blood count, biochemistry, urinalysis, and T4 measurement are welfare first-line investigations.
• Serum B12, folate, and TLI (trypsin-like immunoreactivity) assay evaluates welfare EPI and malabsorption.
• Ultrasonography assesses pancreatic, intestinal, and adrenal welfare structural changes.
• Weight changes alongside polyphagia direction welfare investigation — weight loss suggests pathological welfare cause.
• Addressing the underlying welfare cause resolves polyphagia — welfare management is specific to aetiology.