food issues.

a couple weeks ago I noticed jaggers stool was super loose and had some blood in it. He was acting fine as can be so I didn't worry too much. I figured it couldn't be a virus because bowie would probably have the same issue. Bowie's stool has always been insanely smelly. We tried gleuton free, soy free blah blah. No hard food worked. We switched them to canned food. Completely normal stools all around.

The issue is that they are constantly begging for food. I know wet food is basically cat crack so I don't always listen. I feed them the reccommened amount and maybe a little extra depending if the hours I fed them were a little off. Before they had dry food out all day and ate tiny bits whenever they wanted. Now its a scheduled morning and evening meal times. They seem OK about it. Normal energy levels etc. But at night is when I'm worried. We live in a studio apartment so no bedroom door. Bowie will wake me up scratching and biting me and damn that jaw is strong. No blood is drawn but it wakes me up and he will harass me until I feed him. Its been between 1 and 4 am pretty much since the switch.

What I'm asking is am I basically starving my cats? Is he just being a brat, should I ignore him and hell get use to it and leave me alone? What should I do to ensure he doesn't starve during the night? I dont really want to put hard food down because if instantly makes their stomachs upset. What food schedule do you other wet food feeders use?

What do you feed?

How much do you feed per meal?

How long has it been, since you started the schedule feeding?

Are the kitties fed seperate, so they can't get into each others foods?

I feed at 6am and 6pm, like you said, sometimes the hours are a little off, depending on work schedule, and they have no issues. It took mine about 3 days, to figure out, they are no longer going to be able to graze, and they are fed in their carriers, each one gets a different amount, depending on their weight and metabalizim, and level of activity. I have 2 brothers, same litter, and one gets more than the other.

I also mix the wet, with room temp water, so its like a thick soup. It fills them up, keeps them hydrated and flushed out.

The first few days, they begged, they know better, so I told them it wasn't time to eat yet. I don't give into bad behavior. I am the head of the pride, lol.  

The loose stool with blood in it sounds like a reaction to some dry food. My Max (pictured) experienced this at one point and we determined that it was some dry food that he was not processing well. So we switched and the problem went away.

It can be tough transitioning cats to a regulated diet, but it can be done so don't lose hope.

Max is a big eater and can be very 'vocally' demanding. He used to come into our bedroom each morning anywhere from 4:30Am to the crack of dawn and  howl his head off until one of us got up to feed him. That was then. He no longer does this as I wouldn't tolerate it. Tossed soft pillows, calling out to him to go lay down, and basically ignoring him finally did the trick.

Dry food particularly can be hard to kick when cats have been allowed to freely graze. All of my cats now get 1/4 cup of low fiber dry twice a day at the same time. They start the day with Wellness Grain free wet food which they get a good portion of. My new years resolution is to eventually  transition all cats off dry food at some point.

Flint makes a good point to ensure that all cats are only eating their food. Our little Maggie who is half of Max's size has often had her food gobbled up by Max, and so we feed her in another room by herself to ensure that she eats.

Cats will beg and eat and eat until they explode if you give them what they want. So it is important not to give in. The regulated diet is good for cats for a variety of reasons. Better digestion of food when their bodies learn to utilize the food as energy and nutrients, rather than consume food as something to do when they are bored. Regulated diets can also prevent obesity and possible diabetes later on.

oneandahalfcats (way cool name!) is right. Thats the mistake alot of pet parents make, they give in to the whinning, so the kitty just learned, if he meows meows meows enough, mommy or daddy give in, in the middle of the night, and feed him. 

That is rewarding bad behavior. 

I used to free feed too. Then the judges told me, he is getting too fat, so I took him to the vet, and she said, yes, the judges are right, you are going to have to schedule feed him. I said, "he ain't gonna like that", she said, "ya ain't gonna like it, if the judges stop Finaling him and ya ain't gonna like it, if he gets sick, because he is too fat". LOL. Point made.

The first few days were awful, he meowed meowed meowed, I put him in his carrier, he only ate a little, after 10 min, I took him out. He soon learned, what was put in front of him, was what he was going to get, until the next feeding, lol.

Now kittens that come into the household at 8 weeks, are schedule fed from the start, so they don't know any better. I start them at 4 meals a day, then 3 meals a day, then 2 meals a day.  I just divy up, what they should get per day, into the 2/3/4 feedings.

They too, meowed meowed meowed at night, I just ignored them, if I had gave in, just once, they would never learn. 

Schedule feeding is also a good way, to see if one is not eating or that you know how much each one is getting, its easier to adjust up or down if needed, and know, thats exactly, what they are getting, and nobody else is eating their foods.

Feeding them in their carriers, is also a good way to teach them to load. Carriers is goody places, they has foodies in them.  That the kittens loaded on command, saved their lifes, in a hotel fire. Fire alarm went off, they ran under the bed. Oh crap, now what! Then I remembered they load on command. I opened the carrier door, in they ran. 

Give him wet food, mixed it with water, so it fills him up, and start with 3 meals a day, then work down to 2, and be patient. LOL.              

Thanks so much! I knew it was a bad idea to start feeding him in the middle of the night and I knew they were most likely tricking me! I just had to be sure it wasn't my fault.  My boyfriend was saying they're starving and the little one needs food- even though he never bothered me in the night it was just the biter. I've had plenty of cats growing up and they we're always fed kibble with only wet food as a treat sometimes.  I felt bad thinking they were being serious and super hungry and I was just ignoring them but now I know they're just big fat liars. Thanks so much, put my mind at ease.  

How old are they? Kittens need up to twice as much as recommended for adults.

And why is wet food crack for cats? 

I have a cat who would gladly have food available 24/7, he weighs 16#....so yeah he' s on a restricted calorie diet.  I feed my cats 3 times a day, even if they beg that is all they get.  Sometimes I will give them some treats, but I wouldn't give into the one that is biting you in the middle of the night.

Lol its like crack because they love it so much and go crazy for it. As soon as they see a can or hear one they come running and screaming.

Kinda funny, lol, when you open n-e-thing, with a pop top, they come running.  

One of my cats, Simone, does this. She is relentless. I never give in. Neither does she.

She bites my nose, spreads her paw out to maximize claw coverage and taps on my face. Over, and over and over.  I put the blankets over my head and she finds a gap and paws at my face. I pet her, she nips on my fingers. Over and over and over. This starts at about 3 AM. 

I've pretty much "forgotten" now to fill the two bowls with the dry food overnight. She doesn't eat it anyway but trying to get the heavier ones off of it.  I only put the dry food in the bowls (when I remember) overnight. There is one cat, Scooter, who will muscle in to anyone's dish and eat their food. Estelle does the same. I have to feed everyone in different spots but it doesn't stop those two from stealing the food of the ones who don't snarf everything at once. As a result, The slimmest ones are the cats that get their food stolen and that includes Simone. I also feed her a night meal and give the other ones just a taste of the food as a snack.

lauraG said:

 
One of my cats, Simone, does this. She is relentless. I never give in. Neither does she.

She bites my nose, spreads her paw out to maximize claw coverage and taps on my face. Over, and over and over.  I put the blankets over my head and she finds a gap and paws at my face. I pet her, she nips on my fingers. Over and over and over. This starts at about 3 AM. 

I've pretty much "forgotten" now to fill the two bowls with the dry food overnight. She doesn't eat it anyway but trying to get the heavier ones off of it.  I only put the dry food in the bowls (when I remember) overnight. There is one cat, Scooter, who will muscle in to anyone's dish and eat their food. Estelle does the same. I have to feed everyone in different spots but it doesn't stop those two from stealing the food of the ones who don't snarf everything at once. As a result, The slimmest ones are the cats that get their food stolen and that includes Simone. I also feed her a night meal and give the other ones just a taste of the food as a snack.

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Chuckling here .. That sounds so familiar .. The things we must do! Just this morning I caught Max trying to 'paw' his way into Thomas' dish of wet food this morning. No shame I tell you

oneandahalfcats said:

 
Chuckling here .. That sounds so familiar .. The things we must do! Just this morning I caught Max trying to 'paw' his way into Thomas' dish of wet food this morning. No shame I tell you

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Exactly. Estelle will put her paw into the dish and pull it out from under the unsuspecting victim and then eat their food. The victim usually just sits there, stunned.  I forgot to add that after putting the dish down for scrawny Simone, she scampers away and then I have to follow her with the dish to feed her in exactly the spot she has selected for that meal. Right now I'm on vacation until the 6th and I feel like I need a vacation from...the cats. ha

lauraG said:

 
Exactly. Estelle will put her paw into the dish and pull it out from under the unsuspecting victim and then eat their food. The victim usually just sits there, stunned.  

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If you ever get that on video, please post it!! 

lauraG said:

 
Exactly. Estelle will put her paw into the dish and pull it out from under the unsuspecting victim and then eat their food. The victim usually just sits there, stunned.  I forgot to add that after putting the dish down for scrawny Simone, she scampers away and then I have to follow her with the dish to feed her in exactly the spot she has selected for that meal. Right now I'm on vacation until the 6th and I feel like I need a vacation from...the cats. ha

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OMG, ROFLMAO.  I'm sure if Munchie could figure out a way to do that, he would.  He normally eats his dinner then heads over and bullies the other kitties out of the way of their dishes, hence he gets fed in an enclosed hallway where he can't get out till everyone is finished with their foods.......that's why he weighs 16# (he's on a diet).