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Food use?

post #1 of 14
12/1/10 at 9:19am
Thread Starter 
I have been reading the book Feline Husbandry, Diseases adn Management in the Multiple Cat Environment.
Its mostly geared toward large breeding facilities, but very interesting.
Anyway in the chapter about cattery management it says that the food should be kept in the original bag and, once it has been opened that it should be used up in a few days. Do you think this is for freshness, or in case of rodent infestation? Just curious how you all deal with your cats food. Especially if you have many cats, and buy the bigger bags.
Thanks all.
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post #2 of 14
12/1/10 at 10:26am
33 house cats, 2 cats came with the house. 35 total.

I have had no issues using the food up in a few days a bagI currently have about 50 bags, a few are opened and sealed with tape(needed the coupons...)

I need a better place to store my food but at moment its all on top of what was our dining table. I keep house a bit on cooler side anyways so that may help.
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post #3 of 14
12/1/10 at 10:35am
Hi Dilly,

I think as long as you keep the food in a container it stays reasonably fresh. Plus if you (person in question) have a large amounts of cats the bag of food dwindles fairly quickly. Hence "freshness" is not a major issue in my opnion.

As for containers I use plastic pretzel jugs made by UTZ. I have been using them for years. I also use plastic Ziploc bags as well.
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post #4 of 14
12/1/10 at 10:39am
Thread Starter 
But I wonder if I should buy smaller bags so they get fed up a little faster?
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post #5 of 14
12/1/10 at 10:49am
The only thing buying smaller bags will do is cost you more money. Get a plastic container, or a vittles vault, and put your food in there. They're cheap, and in the long run you will end up paying less since you'll buy the big bags of food
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post #6 of 14
12/1/10 at 11:59am
I have fed 3 cats a large bag of food that was years ago so no idea how long it lasted but no one ever seemed to turn nose up-kept bag rolled down and inside of a rubbermaid container.
I switched them to that when the two were around 9 months(neutered at 6 motnhs) and full grown
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post #7 of 14
12/1/10 at 2:58pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by rad65 View Post
The only thing buying smaller bags will do is cost you more money. Get a plastic container, or a vittles vault, and put your food in there. They're cheap, and in the long run you will end up paying less since you'll buy the big bags of food
Is that because its actually cheaper to buy a big bag if you figure price per pound? Or cuz I would be buying food more often?
I have a couple of air tight containers, but the book also said not to use containers because the food particles left in them could get mold. And itt doesn't work to get the bag to go inside the container.
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post #8 of 14
12/1/10 at 5:13pm
Usually both....

Does food degrade once opened yes... if your using a naturally preserved one.. yet these still are shelf stable and can be used after opening with good freshness level buy Storing in Original bag and folding the top over and clipping or using the orginal bag in a food safe container... See the bags Now have several layers of protection( years ago this was not the case) to keep the food inside fresh from manufacture for 12-24 months ( obviously goes down once opened).. My rule of thumb is bag alone only buy what is used within 6-8 weeks ... added container up to 12 weeks..

Most larger bags save you 35-40% per lb vs small size, not to mention the time , gas and energy saved not going to the store every few weeks...
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post #9 of 14
12/1/10 at 6:59pm
I store the food in the bag in a sealed container. It seems to work well for me for keeping it fresh and I don't have to worry about Chester getting into it.
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post #10 of 14
12/1/10 at 8:31pm
Thread Starter 
Thanks guys
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post #11 of 14
12/9/10 at 3:15am
Speedboat died last January. Before then, he and my cat Muffin both ate prescription urinary food from the vet. I bought the 16 lb. bag, stored it in a plastic bucket. It lasted both cats two months. When Speedboat died, I was concerned what to do. The vets office told me try it one time to see how I made out. So I still bought the large bag, I keep some cat food in a large, very large cookie tin. The rest stays in the bag, with the top rolled down, inside the plastic bucket.It keeps okay for four months. When I empty it, I wash out the bucket and let it air dry for a day or so before refilling it. So this is what works for me and my cat, Muffin, who eats the food. Anyone who has to buy this prescription food from the vet knows how expensive it is. I want to be able to get the best deal and have it last as long as possible.
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post #12 of 14
12/11/10 at 10:48am
Quote:
Originally Posted by JonyLeaber View Post
Cats are obligate carnivores, or "strict" carnivores. They require a high animal protein diet, with moderate to high fat, and absolutely no grains. Pretty much the body content of other animals - a cat's natural diet. Since they are such strict carnivores, they are not designed to digest and metabolize grain products. They cannot use them for energy like humans can. As such, grains and plant matter are stored as fat - which is the main reason why we are seeing more and more fat cats in our society.

Meow Mix may be an older brand, but it's certainly not a good one. It's a sub-par food that use too much grain and plant based products, and not anywhere near enough animal based products.

Ingredient list for Meow Mix Kitten --
Chicken By-Product Meal, Brewers Rice, Corn Gluten Meal, Ground Yellow Corn, Soybean Meal, Beef Tallow Preserved with Mixed Tocopherols (Source of Vitamin E), Fish Meal (Source of Ocean Fish Flavor), Brewers Dried Yeast, Salmon Meal, Turkey By-Product Meal, Powdered Cellulose, Animal Digest, Tetra Sodium Pyrophosphate, Phosphoric Acid, Calcium Chloride, Choline Chloride, Potassium Chloride, Salt, Zinc Sulfate, Ferrous Sulfate, L-Alanine, Taurine, Manganese Sulfate, Red 40, Niacin, Calcium Carbonate, Vitamin E Supplement, DL-Methionine, L-Lysine, Yellow 5, Copper Sulfate, Calcium Pantothenate, Blue 2, Vitamin A Supplement, Thiamine Mononitrate, Riboflavin Supplement, Rosemary Extract, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Sodium Selenite, Folic Acid, Calcium Iodate, Vitamin D Supplement, Biotin, Menadione Sodium Bisulfite Complex (Source of Vitamin K Activity). A-1300
Please only discuss what is asked about, this thread is about Food Storage NOT ingredients of a food not even mentioned
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post #13 of 14
12/13/10 at 10:20am
Quote:
Originally Posted by catsallaround View Post
33 house cats, 2 cats came with the house. 35 total.

I have had no issues using the food up in a few days a bagI currently have about 50 bags, a few are opened and sealed with tape(needed the coupons...)

I need a better place to store my food but at moment its all on top of what was our dining table. I keep house a bit on cooler side anyways so that may help.
35 cats? WOW! I say just open the bag and say eat!
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post #14 of 14
12/13/10 at 1:30pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by blueyedgirl5946 View Post
Speedboat died last January. Before then, he and my cat Muffin both ate prescription urinary food from the vet. I bought the 16 lb. bag, stored it in a plastic bucket. It lasted both cats two months. When Speedboat died, I was concerned what to do. The vets office told me try it one time to see how I made out. So I still bought the large bag, I keep some cat food in a large, very large cookie tin. The rest stays in the bag, with the top rolled down, inside the plastic bucket.It keeps okay for four months. When I empty it, I wash out the bucket and let it air dry for a day or so before refilling it. So this is what works for me and my cat, Muffin, who eats the food. Anyone who has to buy this prescription food from the vet knows how expensive it is. I want to be able to get the best deal and have it last as long as possible.
I do something very similar. I get the dry food delivered every two months in 20 kg sacks. I keep a 1kg tin in the kitchen and refill it from the opened sack as necessary, then the sack get resealed and kept in a dry place in the utility room. It never seems not to be fresh.
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