My one cat Fei Fei is a picky eater and only eats small portions at any one time. So I feed him wet food twice a day and leave dry food available all day. My other cat, though, eats everything in sight. He has been eating Fei Fei's food too, so he is getting fat. What can I do about this?
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Food competition
- Thread starter asntp
- Start Date
A puzzle for sure - sympathy to you for having a pair with such different habits...let's look at it:
Fei Fei needs to get enough food.
Other Cat does not need to get fat.
Thought number one, about leaving the dry food down. Since Other Cat is going to snarf it up anyway, why bother? Fei Fei isn't going to get much use from it. So I say the heck with leaving the dry food available all the time.
Thought number two: Might you to keep Other Cat in another room when you feed Fei Fei? That way Fei Fei could at least get his fill before Other Cat has access to it. I realize this might not be possible given work schedules and all...
Final thought: Any way you can feed them more than twice a day? That way Fei Fei would have three chances, and you could take up the leftovers immediately so Other Cat can't pig out. Like, once in the morning, once as early in the evening as you can (I am assuming you're away during the day), and once a little while before bedtime...with smaller portions at each meal accordingly.
As always, I don't claim to be expert! It'll be interesting to see what everyone else has to say.
Fei Fei needs to get enough food.
Other Cat does not need to get fat.
Thought number one, about leaving the dry food down. Since Other Cat is going to snarf it up anyway, why bother? Fei Fei isn't going to get much use from it. So I say the heck with leaving the dry food available all the time.
Thought number two: Might you to keep Other Cat in another room when you feed Fei Fei? That way Fei Fei could at least get his fill before Other Cat has access to it. I realize this might not be possible given work schedules and all...
Final thought: Any way you can feed them more than twice a day? That way Fei Fei would have three chances, and you could take up the leftovers immediately so Other Cat can't pig out. Like, once in the morning, once as early in the evening as you can (I am assuming you're away during the day), and once a little while before bedtime...with smaller portions at each meal accordingly.
As always, I don't claim to be expert! It'll be interesting to see what everyone else has to say.
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separate rooms would be my suggestion
oh boy...
Bea will usually eat everything in sight but lately (since we got the kittens) will only eat at long as the kittens aren't bothering her.
Chloe is tiny and will only eat a tiny bit at a time
Berach eats anything in sight and will chase the others off to eat their food too.
Lord... I sympathize
I feed them altogether when I can and I feed them at least three times a day or more (but never more than what they should have for their size for the day). If either of the kittens bother Bea while she's eating I put them in the other room until she's done. If Berach bothers Chloe... same deal.
sometimes you just have to seperate them, besides, it's really only for a couple minutes...
Bea will usually eat everything in sight but lately (since we got the kittens) will only eat at long as the kittens aren't bothering her.
Chloe is tiny and will only eat a tiny bit at a time
Berach eats anything in sight and will chase the others off to eat their food too.
Lord... I sympathize
I feed them altogether when I can and I feed them at least three times a day or more (but never more than what they should have for their size for the day). If either of the kittens bother Bea while she's eating I put them in the other room until she's done. If Berach bothers Chloe... same deal.
sometimes you just have to seperate them, besides, it's really only for a couple minutes...
I went through the same situation a couple of years ago when my boys were 9 months old. Pico got really fat and was up to 18 lbs! Shortly thereafter, we separated them in different rooms for their scheduled feedings and Pico's now 15 lbs with a lot of loose skin.
It takes about 20-30 min out of your day but ensures that each cat eats the proper amount of food. We tried putting one of them in a closed room but he refused to eat out of loneliness. Free feeding is convenient for most busy cat owners, but causes way too many overweight kitties.
