Feeding separate cats with different diets.

In about a month we are moving in with some one who also has a cat and we are going to have the house open to them both and the problem of feeding recently came to realization.

We have cat #1:

Our cat Ichi, he is about 1 year old, about 14 pounds and we free feed him dry food (averages about a 3/4-1cup a day), with wet food occaisonally as more of a treat. He never really sits down and gorges himself, and just kind of nibbles here and there. We also make a precedent that he doesn't eat any human food, unless it's a piece of turkey or chicken and from this he has learned to not leer around our food and beg or try to take food off our plates. 

Then cat #2:

Her cat Kermy, is about 16 or 17 years old and has a history of feline indulgence. He is fed in time schedules with certain amounts because he will eat everything that is in front of him, no matter what it is and how much there is of it. Unlike Ichi he has the tendency to think all food is his and has been known to snatch things off plates in the 2 seconds you turn your back. 

I really want to be able to keep Ichi on his free feeding diet because it works so well for him, and us. But I don't want Kermy to go into his bowl and eat all of his food, mostly because Kermy has a very sensitive stomach and throws up just about any cat food that isn't his. 

Because both my boyfriend and I are gone for at least half of the day most days, we really can't lock him in the bathroom (where we keep his food/litter) and need some other kind of solution to feed Ichi on his current diet without harming Kermy. 

The only way to do this is to feed Ichi on a schedule. Plain and simple to say, I know... and can be difficult in the beginning. It can be done. That will be the only way to keep Kermy out of Ichi's dish. OR you would have to confine Ichi. You could keep Ichi in your bedroom at night with the door closed. Of course, you would need a litter box in there too, but this way you could put the food down overnight so Ichi can eat freely. Good luck with the move!!!!

Actually, you can create a micro-chip controlled feeding station that only Ichi can access. Carolina made one. Here is the first post about it. She goes into more detail about how to make it, with pictures. http://www.thecatsite.com/t/239771/...hope-to-raw-challenges-galore/30#post_3157561 and here is the follow-up post about it: http://www.thecatsite.com/t/239771/...hope-to-raw-challenges-galore/30#post_3157715

LDG said:

Actually, you can create a micro-chip controlled feeding station that only Ichi can access. Carolina made one. Here is the first post about it. She goes into more detail about how to make it, with pictures. http://www.thecatsite.com/t/239771/...hope-to-raw-challenges-galore/30#post_3157561 and here is the follow-up post about it: http://www.thecatsite.com/t/239771/...hope-to-raw-challenges-galore/30#post_3157715

Click to expand...

Oh Laurie :bigthumb: Was just thinking about this and going to add this as a suggestion too I remember Carolina using this for Lucky. All you need is the kitty microchipped and the neat little spaceship.... And off you go!!!! Thanks for digging up the threads :winkblue:

Oh boy, Lauren, you crack me up
Yep, I was on a similar predicament with Bugsy, Hope and Lucky....
Bugsy was on prescription food, and the others weren't.
This solution works perfectly!
I bought the microchip online, on Amazon, and my vet applied it for free.... The box is up side down, and there is a small made shift step stool inside, and another outside.... The rest, super easy to install. Then you just need to train the kitty to go in and out of it, I think I have a thread about it.... But trust me.... Once they learn food is inside, they learn how to push their little heads through it.
It's a reliable system that works.... If that's the path you want to go for.... Or, alternatively, you can feed them on a schedule.....

Learn something new on here every day!  The microchip is a great idea and I am certainly going to keep it in mind if ever I need it.  Thanks from someone other than the original poster