I'm taking your advice

catmum22

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I start my free feeding tommorrow tonight I put there food away and will leave it out for 30 mins in the morning I'm also going to buy there new wet food diet that I'm going to transition them too, got 2 questions though are all meat by products bad? Are all cereals and by products bad? I'm going to stat with wet food mixed with biscuits and wet food only being 25% , is 30 mins enough in the morning and I'm going to get them use to timed feeds before I start the transition to wet food, any advice or encouragement greatly affected my cats know how to sook to me and make me feel guilty
 

irinasak

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Hello there, the decision to stop free feeding is a great one, but the road might get tough sometimes, or at least it did for me.

I would advise at first to try giving them 4-5 meals a day, leaving them out for 30 minutes, decreasing the number of meals when they start adapting to the schedule. When I transitioned my cats to scheduled feeding, I tried to give them 2 meals a day. It was not enough, one of them lost a lot of weight, and she was thin to begin with. So 30 minutes in the morning is not enough. Even if you work full time, you might be able to feed at least 3 meals - before work, after work and before bed, even if they are not evenly spaced apart.

Depending on your cats' age, health condition, metabolism and activity level, you will be able to figure out a schedule that suits you all.

Meat by products are not all bad. Of course it would be great to avoid them all together, but many times it is not so easy. Cats in the wild eat some by products, so a small amount won't hurt them. Cereals are a total different story. There is no need for cereals in a cat's diet, and they are probably the number one culprit for food allergies and intolerance.

I would not advise mixing kibble with wet, unless you have a stubborn kibble addict and you use the kibble as a topper. If your cats eat wet food, I would at least feed them in different bowls, but even better, at different meals. Take a look here, if you haven't already: catinfo.org,great site written by a vet.

One last thing, please pay attention to their weight  they might lose some at first, and it wouldn't be good to lose too much. One of mine had a hard time grasping the concept of scheduled feeding and lost a bit too much during the transition (she was already thin).

Good luck, stay strong and keep us posted!
 

allenkm

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I had to make this transition quickly per vets orders....when I took the food dish away Boots sat there where the dish was for 18 hours straight in protest. It broke my heart but we all adjusted now and my boys are much healthier.
 

mrsgreenjeens

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Good for you!
  Have you read this article  http://www.thecatsite.com/a/transitioning-free-fed-kibble-kitties-to-timed-meals

Additionally , on your questions about by-products and cereals, thee is no "exact yes or no answer".  Did you read these:  http://www.thecatsite.com/a/what-makes-the-best-canned-cat-food   AND  http://www.thecatsite.com/a/grain-free-cat-food-what-does-it-mean

Yes, 20 - 30 minutes is all the time you should leave their food down.  They need to get used to it being down for a short time, because once you convert them to canned, that's the amount of time it will be down for them
.  Then pull it up and if they weren't finished, they should be nice and hungry when they see those dishes again 8 - 12 hours later, right?  (or whenever, depending on what your schedule will be)

Just remember...touch love.  They won't starve to death in 12 hours.  They may be hungry, but they'll survive and hopefully by the first evening they'll eat heartily.  We're here with questions if you have issues.
 
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catmum22

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Well I was naught today maple I think was angry for taking there bowls away an wouldn't eat this morning so I left it out and now I'm questioning changing it because they seem quite healthy, and I just want them to drink more water so was going to get them a water fountain but idk please help I want the best for my cats but what is the best?
 

mrsgreenjeens

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OK, deep breaths
.  If you stress out, they will stress out.  No one says you HAVE to switch.    Only you can make the decision to do it.  Here is another article that you can read about cat food that may help with that decision.   http://www.thecatsite.com/a/choosing-the-right-food-for-your-cat    Some people feed kibble their entire lives and their cats live to be 22 or older.  BUT,as you already know, it is important to make sure, if being fed kibble, that they do drink lots of water, so here is another article on how to get your cats to drink:  http://www.thecatsite.com/a/tips-to-increase-your-cat-s-water-intake
 
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catmum22

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I'm going to try find biscuits in my budget that has no cereals or where cereals are listed meant that's it main ingredient, and add more wet food today I found a wet food that's just meat and jelling agent, and going to eventually get a water fountain to encourage more wTer intake oppions? And do chicken necks really help cats teeth? And is there water in chicken necks? I'm thinking of changing feed routing to timed feed 30 mins in the morning and 1hr in the morning, I'm also going to give them 1/4 cup biscuits for barely and 1 single tin serve every 2nd night and on the other days going to give them 1/2 cups biscuits for Brent and chicken neck each for dinner? Oppions?
 

mrsgreenjeens

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If you are going to feed them chicken necks, yes, they are good for their teeth, but you must feed them raw, you understand that, right?  And they may or may not eat them, since they are currently used to eating bisquits.

AND, a chicken neck doesn't really have that much meat on it, and since you aren't actually feeding a raw diet, I would actually treat giving them a chicken neck once in awhile more as a treat than as a meal, since feeding a raw diet requires more than just tossing them some raw meat.  It requires balancing meat, bones, and organs to make it nutritionally complete
  But certainly this would make a marvelous treat once in awhile
  necks or wings.   And, yes, there is moisture in chicken necks...not alot, but some.  Cats who eat raw rarely drink water because they get enough from the meat that they eat. 

When you give your cats the wet food in the jelling agent, you can always add more water to that.  Sometimes those jelling agent NEED watering down a bit anyway, at least they seem kind of dry to me. 

So...have you got them on a schedule yet, or not? 
 
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catmum22

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haven't got them on complete schedule yet I have changed so there not fully free feeding they only get enough food that they finish it all, and yes I know to never give them cooked chicken, my cats eat chicken necks if there isn't biscuits out, so is it's ok this morning I gave them 1/2 a cup of biscuits and plan to give them chicken necks for dinner and tommorrow they get 1/4 cup biscuits and a tin of wet food
 
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