Free feeding vs timed meals?

Alright, my boy has been free fed for 3 years and is really all he knows. Now after a ton of research and my cat gaining weight, I've decided it would be better to have meals instead of free feeding him. He is on Blue buffalo indoor, but I might end up transitioning to Evo. I thought I could just change to a weight loss food, but haven't found one I truly like without loosing quality.

So The main question is how do you transition a cat from being free fed to having 2 meals a day without the cat thinking he's starving and whining ALL DAY? my cat is VERY vocal and will tell you exactly how he feels, so I'd prefer him not to whine all day for food. Should I start with three meals a day?
And do I actually pay attention to the recommended feedings on the bags of food.... most of them are greatly inflated and since he needs to loose some weight, he really needs even less food.

I measure free feed... Ie boys get one cup in morning and one cup in late eve... these are also the times they get wet food.. though they have dry all the time I know how much I gave and the how much was eaten

Girls get 1/2 morning and night

Hi Kitty,
If this is your only cat, and you're just feeding dry kibble - free feeding isn't really a problem as long as, like sharky said, you are measuring out his portion and not giving more than that each day. I can't free feed my cats because I have two that are pigs, and two that wouldn't get to eat so I have to watch them. Plus, with multiple cats, it's much easier to track who's eating and how much - appetite is such a good earlier indicator of many health issues.

So, if he's used to having food in his bowl at all times, and the bag says to give him 1/4 cup per day, you could give that amount in the morning and let him graze all day like he's accustomed to doing now. Just don't refill it when it's empty. Or, you could truly transition him to being on a feeding schedule by putting some of his food down (I feed 2x a day, so I would put half of the food down for him). Pick up whatever is left after a certain amount of time (depending on your schedule, maybe half an hour?) and give him the rest of the food, plus what he didn't eat for breakfast, at his next feeding. Very quickly, he should learn to eat the food when you put it down or you're going to pick it up!

Smaller meals, more often. If kitty gets 1/2 cup of food a day, (about 5 tablespoons), feed two tablespoons in the morning a half hour apart. Then 1/2 tablespoon for a snack.

At supper time again, 2 tablespoons half hour apart, and the other half tablespoon for a snack.

The snack can be made into Chase the Kibble Game, so kitty is having fun and exercise while eating.

I have never free fed. I love meal times for my cats, they each have their own little rituals, and I find meal times to be real bonding times.

Weight loss is more than just cutting back on food though. You have to make sure kitty is getting a lot of extra exercise too. More bonding and fun for both of you!

Thanks for the ideas, I took his bowl away for about 8 hours after he ate a large lunch (entire can of wet food) and had food in his bowl in the morning. He apparently was very upset and standing where his bowl normally is, so I've decided to closely monitor his amount. Once I figured out how much the cup I have holds, I realize he's been getting roughly twice as much as he's supposed to get.

And he is a pretty active cat, but in the last 4-5 months I've increased his wet food to one can each morning (which he usually doesn't quite finish), but he's gained weight because of it. I don't really want to decrease the wet food because it adds good stuff to his diet.

My cats are on a canned diet (excpet Mazy) I feed the same way with canned as I do with dry. I feed from 3 oz cans and they get 1/4 can per meal, Jennie's is mixed with warm water. The water not only slows them down, it helps them feel more full.

Go slow adding water, some cats tolerate it better than others. Tolly won't eat his food with water added, but weight gain is not an issue with him, he has very little interest in food.

Jennie would eat the world, so adding 1/4 cup of warm water to 1/4 of a three ounce can of food really works for her.

I had switched my cat over from free feeding almost a year ago. It took some time for her to get use to it but it's worth it. I feed her 1/4 cup dry EVO in the morning and a 3oz can of wet at night.
If you are going to feed all dry you only want to give your cat a little more then 1/3 of a cup of EVO a day. That is about 250 calories and that's what is recommended for most adult cats to keep a steady weight. If you do a 1/2 cup your cat will start to gain weight, I know mine did!
EVO is an awesome food but VERY high in calories! Good Luck!

I have tried free feeding my cats, but with having four cats of very different body types each, it's very hard to keep them all at a healthy level. Some people might think this is too little to feed- I do this so the food doesn't get stale and they don't get it all over because for some reason when I feed them chicken soup (thats the brand I feed) it crumbles and it scatters all over my kitchen and drives me NUTS. I have four bowls, and I put about 1/4-1/3 cup in each bowl everyday. I have tried putting more in there, but they just don't finish it or Mia will sit there and eat her heart out which I hate cuz she's a chunky little lady. And then at night I feed them a mixture of wet and dry food, because that is what they really like. The only time that I free feed is when I'm not home for more than a day. Like for instance right now I'm sitting in a hospital in another state so they have their food thing that you fill with food and they can eat from it (I know that description sounds pathetic but I'm drawing a blank right now in my head).

I think that it all depends on the quality of food you feed, how many cats you have, and what type of cats they are (not like breed, just personality and habits and stuff like that). I feed a good quality food with not too many fillers (compared to some) so this way works for me.

Free feeding will cause most cats to gain too much weight and its hard to readjust, but it can be done.

First I would see how much your cat needs to lose (have a vet exam first). Then slowly cut back on the total amount you are giving. Figure out how MUCH he really is eating in a day (how many cups are you really putting in the bowl). Then eliminate one of the cups and start dividing the remaining food into 3 meals.

Our cats eat 1/4 cup of dry in the morning and about a 1/3 of a can (6 oz can) of canned food in the evening and raw beef 2-3 times a week. They are at a healthy 10 and 11 lbs right now. Not skinny and are nicely muscled.

after doing some measuring, I figured out he was probably getting at least 1 full cup probably more like 1 and a half cups a day of blue buffalo indoor chicken and most of a full can (small size) of wet food each day. Thats a lot since Blue buffalo isn't that bad, he should have been eating less, so I've cut down to one full cup a day of kibble and some wet food as well, depending on type (cheaper and he gets a little bit more). The dry kibble is now a mix of Evo, Blue, and Instincts (just got it today) He likes the Instincts much better than the Evo. I went with Evo weight control (only 430ish cal/cup) And I know he's supposed to get much less, but I don't want to hurry him into transitioning to Evo, its much denser than Blue. I also bought a few cans of wet food today, one of them being tikicat and Ziwipeak and I look forward to trying to get him to eat those. I'd REALLY like it if he ate the ziwipeak, because its basically a raw diet in a can, tripe, organ meat, real meat, no grain... good stuff... but anything good I buy him.. he won't eat. So we'll see.

How much does he weigh?

What should he weigh?

IMHO light food = heavier cat

Originally Posted by sharky

How much does he weigh?

What should he weigh?

IMHO light food = heavier cat

Click to expand...

I agree with this. those "healthy weight" commercial formulas just don't work. What works is a high quality food, preferable canned diet, feeding less of it, and increased exercise.

I've always had 3 and 4 cats, and usually they are all on different diets, and I have always schedule fed. In addition we have Game Time every night when the cats are given lots of vigorous exercise as I play their favorite interactive Games with them.

And....the more you play with your cats, the more they will play by themselves. Interactive play stimulates their minds and bodies.

By the way, one cup of kibble is way too much food for any house cat. (but cut back slowly of course) Mazy is my only cat on dry food (prescription) and she eats slightly less than 1/2 cup a day. (five tablespoons, to be exact). She weighs 9 pounds and is the most active cat in the house, never stops running around and playing, Mazy is a Very Busy Cat.

However, as I think has already been said, it is very dangerous for a cat to lose weight too quickly. I have forgotten how this thread started, but when starting a weight loss program for a cat, a check up should be the first step.

He weighs approximately 16 pounds, and he is a big cat, but not obese. He is pretty active... he gets really hyper and we play chase and fetch and kick the stuffed animal... all sorts of games. He is three years old and the majority of his weight gain was when I increased his wet food. He seems to be doing fine on his feedings a day... he's getting just under a cup of food a day, but I need to decrease that. He is free fed, but only a certain amount and I will decrease slowly. He is going to to go to the vet soon for a regular rabies shot + check up so I can weigh him and ask the vet how much he SHOULD weigh. For his body length he really should be about 12-13 pounds. So I figure he is 3-4 pounds overweight. It just sits on the flaps of skin between his belly and his back legs, and when he runs it swings back and forth... lol. his SIDES are not fat though.. he doesn't stick out. I totally agree that a GOOD food should be fine, it just seems that I switched him to a better food and he GAINED weight. So, now I need to decrease the AMOUNT of food. But how fast is too fast? What is a SAFE weight loss? He is pretty active, so I don't think activity is the problem.. he plays like a kitten and is not napping very often at all.

Originally Posted by kitty queen

He weighs approximately 16 pounds, and he is a big cat, but not obese. He is pretty active... he gets really hyper and we play chase and fetch and kick the stuffed animal... all sorts of games. He is three years old and the majority of his weight gain was when I increased his wet food. He seems to be doing fine on his feedings a day... he's getting just under a cup of food a day, but I need to decrease that. He is free fed, but only a certain amount and I will decrease slowly. He is going to to go to the vet soon for a regular rabies shot + check up so I can weigh him and ask the vet how much he SHOULD weigh. For his body length he really should be about 12-13 pounds. So I figure he is 3-4 pounds overweight. It just sits on the flaps of skin between his belly and his back legs, and when he runs it swings back and forth... lol. his SIDES are not fat though.. he doesn't stick out. I totally agree that a GOOD food should be fine, it just seems that I switched him to a better food and he GAINED weight. So, now I need to decrease the AMOUNT of food. But how fast is too fast? What is a SAFE weight loss? He is pretty active, so I don't think activity is the problem.. he plays like a kitten and is not napping very often at all.

Click to expand...

SAFE weight lose is best down with your vet... some schools of thought say up to 1-2% per month , some say 10% ... IMHO I would likely use the lower formula ...

From what food to what food>?? You likely have it in the thread but I am being lazy ... many high grain low meat formulas have lower calories than higher meat

Your cat will hopefully adjust. Mine had to have meal times vs. free feeding too due to over eating. I hear a lot about it in the beginning, but it has become routine now.
I would ask your vet.

Basic background: was on royal canin indoor adult for 3 years (the 3 years I've had him roughly) It got really expensive really fast- they kept raising the price, so I went to look around to figure out something cheaper/better, did a ton of research on cat nutrition and ingredients and formulas etc, and landed on Halo. The fiber was increased from 3ish% to 8% in Halo which gave him loose stool, which in turn sticks to his fur. So I switched from that to Blue buffalo, indoor adult chicken (he MUCH prefers poultry over fish) with the wilderness formula mixed in a little bit for extra protein. I tried the Optimum weight formula but its fish based, so although he ate it... he didn't get excited for it. So he been on two different formulas of Blue for about 4 months now and I increased his wet food... again hearing that that was a good thing... BUT... all of that dense food and wet food has led him to gain weight.

So: now I've tried Evo.. which he eats, but isn't quite used to it yet. I've been mixing it in slowly. The Instincts food though he seems to like a lot. I don't know if I should decrease the wet food.... or decrease the dry food or both? Wet food... he gets one "thing" of wet food per day depending on size. Small sized cans, and he gets one whole can, he also eats the Meow Mix Market selects (some of the only wet food he will eat- not great, but no by-products, and not much grain/veggies) Plus, you can't put a lid on the meow mix cups, so I'd waste it. Large cans though he'd get half or so, but most of the time I get the small size.

So short version: Royal canin -> Halo (didn't work) -> Blue buffalo( 2 types) + increased wet food -> Blue + Evo + Instincts + measuring meals instead of free feed

Off topic but been buggin me--5 tbsp is actually quite a bit less than 1/2 cup, 8 tbsp in 1/2 cup, so 5 tbsp is much closer to 1/4 cup than 1/2 a cup.

Leslie

Originally Posted by Jack31

Off topic but been buggin me--5 tbsp is actually quite a bit less than 1/2 cup, 8 tbsp in 1/2 cup, so 5 tbsp is much closer to 1/4 cup than 1/2 a cup.

Leslie

Click to expand...

That depends on the density of the food ... ie 1tablespoon of liquid to semi solid = roughly one oz ..

Most dry foods 1 = 4 oz dry matter which yield s

With the foods I use 1 tablespoon = 1/2 oz to 3/4 oz

so five would yield a minimum of 2.5 oz or just about 2/3 cup

1 tablespoon = roughly 3.5 teaspoons