Problems With Scheduled Feedings

Hi guys!

I wanted to ask if any of you with IBD kitties had problems getting them onto scheduled feedings. My cats used to free feed kibble and life was simple for all. Now that they are 100% off the kibble I'm having problems getting a proper schedule going. The big issue I run into is that my IBD kitty will throw up clear liquids or foam if he goes too long without food. I have read that it's a build up of stomach acids. He will drive you utterly insane howling and meowing at the top of his lungs. He drinks more water to try and quell the acids then he ultimately ends up vomiting. It's completely predictable each time (btw, my little old man has been checked for any kidney issues and has the kidneys of a healthy 4 year old according to vets).

Because of his vomiting I was feeding multiple times a day. However, both he and my little girl are really, really bad about finishing their meals. They are never truly hungry so they take a couple bites and wander off for a nap. I throw away an obscene amount of cat food each day. I know I can't be getting required amounts into either of them. So this afternoon I got ticked off and took up the barely touched dishes from their afternoon feeding that they begged desperately for and dumped the food in the trash. After that I didn't feed them again until after 8pm. But...as expected Spaz vomited long before then. Is it possible he's doing it to himself by getting all riled up. He really does work himself into a lather if he's expressing he wants something and you don't jump up to get it for him. He runs across you about a hundred times. Howls in your face, jumps on and off of furniture nearby and sits staring at you intensely for however long he has to. Right now I'm unemployed and looking for work. Not sure what he is going to do if I'm not home to feed him every few hours. =/

I've tried slippery elm bark and saw little to no improvement on that front.

I'm really at the end of my rope with these two and their food. I'm still fighting with the little girl at every meal time since she stopped eating her usual food nearly a week ago. Each day with her is a battle now. If it was my wimpy momma's boy I'd just grab him and syringe feed him to make sure he was getting enough to eat. But I would never catch her in a million years to do that. And if I did WWIII would definitely break out in the house.

Any words of advice on the schedule thing? Has vomiting liquids been an issue for anyone else? And in the case of my little girl should I try confining her to a room with her food bowl? Both of them tend to get wanderlust as soon as I set out food! >_<;

I think anyone that had kitties that were free fed kibble for any length of time and switched to timed feedings had issues.

The issue is that they don't understand they need to eat more than a few bites at a time because they're used to grazing. Knowing this, you can stop wasting the food by not putting out so much.

Take advantage of not working now to lower their (and your!) stress during this transition. :nod:

My husband has acid reflux, and it is uncomfortable and can be painful. So I'm sure part of your kitty's crying is related to that.

When we made the switch to timed meals, we started by pulling the kibble during the day, but leaving it out overnight. I fed many very small meals during the day, a few bites every few hours that would total the can of food each would eat. The key here is routine, and I cannot emphasize this enough. Same amount, same time, same place. Develop a "call" for the meal. Put it down, and leave it out for 20 minutes, don't follow them around with the food. They don't eat or don't finish, pull it anyway.

When they "get" the call and the routine, slowly increase the amount of food and pull one meal every few days. Just work up to the number of meals you want them to be eating at the times you want that meal to be. In the meantime, there's nothing wrong with feeding them one teaspoon 10 times a day.

You may also want to ask your vet about using a pepcid a/c once a day to help prevent the acid build up so he feels better during this process. Just bear in mind that pepcid cannot be given within one hour of food or it will not provide the 24-hour a day protection.

when trying to set a routine for matt, who needs feeding often, i tried many different schedules. went too long without food, he wolfed it down so fast he'd throw it back again i finally settled on 4feedings a day, though they look rather skimpy, he's never left hungry for long. he eats breakfast, lunch around 2if I'm home, or after school, supper at supper time, and again before I go to bed. 

If your cats don't eat much, and you can work mutliple feedings into your daily schedule, then this might work for your kitties. it might reduce the waste, since you're only putting down a couple of tablespoons at a time, and maybe encourage them to eat, since the serving sizes are more tuned to what they eat, and don't look like something they can save or later?