Question in regards to Changing Feed Time

So I have two cats, both are now 3 yrs old... (on a side note wow 3 years ha ha)

Anyways for 2+ years AT LEAST if not their entire life they have been fed twice a day, a bit of dry with wet mixed. Everyday once when we wake up, then later between 5-6. They eat whatever they get and don't get anymore food than that. We feed them the optimal amount etc.. etc... They get treats every now and then etc.. etc....

We are planning on getting a dog in 4 months, Nova Scotia Duck Toller, and know that we are going to have to change where the cats are fed (higher then where the dog is lol) and all that jazz, and know to do that well in advance of getting the dog so that its not one day, of the food being in a different place.

So the QUESTION IS. We want to switch to a feeding one time a day, of the wet, while leaving the dry food out and just letting them eat whenever they want. Is that even possible now, after they've had this 'pattern' implemented with them? and if it is, what kind of transition time are we talking about? Is there a way to ensure they don't 'overeat'....

Both cats are on 'Medical Preventative - dry and wet' due to one cat previously having a UTI (which occured once and has never returned), and this was the recommended cat food for her,(so both are on it, because they eat together and switch off on bowls lol so it was hard to do otherwise)

Any help on this topic would be great, sorry for the long read... And if there is no solution well then thats how it is.. ha ha....

Thanks in advance!

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Are you going to refill the bowl of dry when it gets empty? What I mean is, say you feed your cats at 6 am and they eat all the dry by noon, are you going to refill the dry? Or are you going to just put a measured amount in for the full day? If you are going to refill, there is a good chance that your cats will become overweight. I'm not a big fan of free feeding; although I do put the cats' food down and just leave it. I don't pick it up after 20 minutes. But I measure it and if they eat it all, they have to wait until their next feeding.

I guess you could transitiion your cats to the one time feeding. Maybe start by only giving wet food during one of the feedings and just dry at the other. If you mix it now, do you think they will eat dry alone? If so, then I don't think there is a problem. However, if you find they are not eating the dry, I would go back to the twice a day wet and dry food feedings. If cats don't eat, they can get fatty liver (hepatic lipidosis) which sometimes requires tube feeding and takes a while for the cat to recover. Cats are more susceptible to that than dogs are. So just keep an eye on them and make sure they're eating. If so, then they are fine!

Feeding once a day for cats can be a bad idea; it can cause an acid build-up in their stomachs which will be uncomfortable and can lead to vomiting - vomiting upsets their tummies even worse and can (sometimes) be hard to then get under control.

Free feeding dry food will likely lead to obese cats (and dry food itself often leads to diabetes, IBD, and a host of other issues; google "The Dangers of Dry Food").

If you feed wet food twice a day, the cats will likely be happier, healthier and (hopefully) will finish off all their food at every meal so the dog has nothing to "tempt" it throughout the day.

By the way - congrats on the new family member!

First you need to make sure they will be eating the dry on it own - if they always ate it mixed with wet, they might not eat when offered in separate.
If they do, it is ok to feed them once wet, and leave the dry out throughout the day - but you need to make sure they will eat it. Otherwise you might be threatening their health with hepatic lipidosis.
however: I would not free feed, in the sense that they can eat all they want... I do controlled free feeding - which is feeding a measured amount, but leaving that up for them to eat throughout the day - that works well for me and my cats.

BTY - mixing wet and dry is not a good idea, unless they eat within 15-30 minutes max, due to bacterial growth, so don't mix it out and leave it throughout the day...

One problem if you want the wet to be helpful for UT health. Cats will eat more from two meals than they will one. By switching them to one wet, they'll either eat less wet at a time or if you try to feed them the same amount of wet you would for two meals some of it could sit out and spoil.

Could you possibly space the wet meals out even further? Morning before work and another just before you go to bed?


I don't know if I'd leave dry to free feed out either. Cats aside, it looks like the dog breed you're getting could probably eventually reach counters with a bit of stretching. At the very least the dog would certainly be trying to get at it.

Ya I've decided not to switch...... this is just how it is... ha ha.... far to much work to try switching......

We used to mix the wet and dry food together, but now we just put the wet on top of the dry, and they eat it seperately, usually eating all the wet then coming back after a while for the dry.... Was contemplating going to a raw diet for the cats... but meh.. don't know