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For those who feed strictly wet - how much do your cats eat per meal?

post #1 of 8
10/13/11 at 10:53am
Thread Starter 
My boys usually eat a combo of wet and dry, and their dry is left out for them to free feed. Since Griffin's dental extraction on Tuesday, I've had to feed them wet only. Griffin is 13.8lbs and a healthy weight, and Bastian is 10.5lbs and on the slim side (both according to the vet). The vet tech told me to expect Griffin to eat as much as 3/4-1 can (6oz can) per meal if I'm feeding twice a day to maintain his weight. But both boys together do not finish a 6 oz can in an entire day!

I am very worried that they are going to lose weight, especially Bastian - he has always been a skinny cat. The vet told me at his check up last month that his weight is not unhealthy, but to keep in mind that if he were to get sick and stop eating that he does not have much reserve to fall back on.

They are eating Wellness. This morning I decided to leave their leftovers out to see if they would snack on it, and it appears that they have eaten some of it. Should I try feeding them 3 meals per day? Do you think I should be worried? How much wet food do your cats eat per day?
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post #2 of 8
10/13/11 at 1:09pm
My cat is around 10 pounds and on canned she eats 5-6oz a day which seems to be about the norm.
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post #3 of 8
10/13/11 at 2:03pm
My cats don't get more than 1/8 of a 5.5 oz can at a time. Two of them will walk away from it; and the other 2 will gorge it all in one sitting and eat the others. So, I feed several times a day. But in a day, they each get 1/2 can of wet and 1/4 to 1/2 cup of dry. In the process of feeding more wet and less dry, so I'll probably end up having to feed wet food like 8 times a day!
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post #4 of 8
10/14/11 at 12:32am
My 16lb cat eats less than a 5.5oz can a day.
For your healthy weight cat, I would feed 3-4 meals. For your skinnyish cat, I would feed the same amount and when you have time I would put him in a separate room and feed him extra.
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post #5 of 8
10/15/11 at 7:07am
Thread Starter 
Well, I've been leaving their leftovers out for them to snack on after their meals for the last couple of days, and they are snacking on it. Of course, now they are eating even less at mealtimes! I think I will try to just trust them for now that if the food is available, they will eat if they are hungry.
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post #6 of 8
10/16/11 at 1:25am
Quote:
Originally Posted by NinaCaliente View Post
Well, I've been leaving their leftovers out for them to snack on after their meals for the last couple of days, and they are snacking on it. Of course, now they are eating even less at mealtimes! I think I will try to just trust them for now that if the food is available, they will eat if they are hungry.
If they do begin to lose weight, there are a number of ways you can entice them to eat more. You can drip a bit of tuna juice over the wet food (not on a regular basis, 'though), or sprinkle catnip, Parmesan Cheese, Forti Flora flakes, fish food flakes (weird, but it works), or some crumbled up freeze-dried meat treats (Whole Life's chicken works wonderfully on my kitties) over the food. You could also mix a bit of warm water into the food, which will increase their hydration (always a good thing) as well as release more odor from the food and thereby make it more enticing.

Regards!

AC
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post #7 of 8
10/16/11 at 1:29pm
How much they need to eat really depends upon how active they are and how old they are (in addition to how big they are).

Our nine year olds are not very active, and eat between 4-5 ounces of wet food a day. They weigh between 8 pounds and 11 pounds.

Chumley, who is more active, eats 5 oz of food a day and weighs 14 pounds. He's got a chunky frame, but must be smaller (shorter in length and height) than the others LOL. He's probably 4.

They eat four meals a day.

I find the feeding guides on the food would turn our cats into walking balloons if they ate as much as they're "supposed" to LOL.
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post #8 of 8
10/16/11 at 6:27pm
My cats get about 4 oz. total each a day of wet food. They also get 1/8 cp. of dry mixed in per day. They get three meals a day. You just have to watch their weight. Each cat will metabolize their food at different rates and one cat may need much more than the other. Pipsqueak and Wendall do not eat as much as the other four as they are smaller and are a bit pudgy now.
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