question for multi-cat parents

My family so far has been a one cat at a time household.  Therefore, when I read the thread listing the number of cats folks have, it got me thinking.  When you have a multi-cat family...

Do they all eat at once? Same food?

Do they all sleep at the same time?

Use the litter box simultaneously?

Do they all interact with each other?

Do they fight for your attention?

Do they all beg at the table at meal time? 

Do they all meet you at the door when you come home?

I'm sure I could come up with more questions, but really, I'm just interested in hearing about life in a multi-cat family.

We have 4 indoor only cats. Sweetie (8 year old, neutered, male, long hair white with black tail and black on his head), Cimba (19 month old,  neutered, male,black short-hair), Dante (19 month old, neutered, male, black short-hair) and Dutchess (19 month old, spayed, female, tuxedo short-hair). The last 3 are siblings from a feral cat. Mom was TNR with ear tip.

Do they all eat at once?

I feed them all at the same time. Wet 0600 am, 1200 pm  (I have the luxury of coming home at lunch) and 530 pm.

Same food?

Yes, I buy foods that everyone will eat.

Do they all sleep at the same time?

Usually they sleep at the same time. One of my younger males (Cimba) likes to follow me around for his one on one petting time while the others nap.

Use the litter box simultaneously?

They take turns. We have two large litter boxes with 4 cats.

Do they all interact with each other?

Yes, they all play and chase each other. They nap together, except out little female (Dutchess) will go to bed in the middle of the day.

Do they fight for your attention?

Only one (Dante) will push anyone off my lap because he is jealous. He was my runt and got a lot of attention to eat when he was a kitten.

Do they all beg at the table at meal time?

My two younger males do. They like grilled chicken breast. My older cat (Sweetie) would never even look at any human food.  When he got sick the vet said to tempt him with tuna. That was a problem because he will not even touch it.

Do they all meet you at the door when you come home?

Yes, they all greet us at the door when we come home from work.

We have 2 girls, one is 2 and one is 4. We had a male up till August last year, he was 13. So......

Do they all eat at once? Same food?

Yes they all eat at the same time and they all eat the same wet food. They have a couple of treats each after their evening playtime before bed.

Do they all sleep at the same time?

More often than not, yes especially if they are home alone. We almost always come home and find them dozing upstairs. After they have had their 10 minute mad run around the house when we all go to bed they will sleep till hubby gets up in the morning.

Use the litter box simultaneously?

No. They each use the box at random times throughout the day.

Do they all interact with each other?

Yes, Sasha (4 years old) used to play and snuggle with our boy but now Sasha and Amber will play together but they don't sleep together or groom each other.

Do they fight for your attention?

Not really, they each have their own times when they like to snuggle. Amber (2 years old) likes to snuggle in bed in the morning and Sasha will be on my lap most evenings. Sasha was never a lap cat before our boy passed. Monty liked to be pet with a scratch under the chin and neck but wouldn't sit on any lap.

Do they all beg at the table at meal time? 

No but Amber likes to sit behind me on the dining chair just so she can see what's on the table. I have offered her food before but she isn't interested, she is nosey more than anything.

Do they all meet you at the door when you come home?

If they are not asleep then it will be Amber that will be waiting at the door to greet us.

We share our home with three cats.

Do they all eat at once?

Yes, they eat at 9 am, 7 pm and 11 pm. At breakfast and dinner they eat in different rooms (Harley in the bedroom, Amelie in the hallway and Sophie in the living room), the 7 pm snack is served in the living room for all of them. It's our routine and they all know the time and the place where they eat.

Same food?

Usually no. They each have different tastes, likes and dislikes and I try to respect them and feed the accordingly.

Do they all sleep at the same time?

Most of the time. Harley is more active at night.

Use the litter box simultaneously?

We have three litterboxes. They use them when they need to use them.

Do they all interact with each other?

Yes, they all interact with eachother.

Do they fight for your attention?

They never fight for anything. I give each and everyone as much attention as I can, but they usually share me

Do they all beg at the table at meal time? 

Actually this is a behavior that humans reinforce. Until two weeks ago, we ate on the floor, like we see in Japanese movies. None of them bothered us during mealtime, but then again, none of them ever received anything to eat during our mealtimes. 

Do they all meet you at the door when you come home?

Ummm... Not quite. If I come home earlier than they are used to, none of them comes. If we come home at the usual hour, Sophie stands by the door, Harley takes a few minutes to wake up and stretch himself, and Amelie doesn't care we are home.

I have always had at least two cats at a time, so I'll try to answer your questions, but I think most of the answers can be summed up with "it depends".

Do they all eat at once? Same food?

Not necessarily. I like to feed them all the same food at the same time for convenience, but it isn't always possible, depending on individual health issues and taste preferences.

Do they all sleep at the same time?

Yes and no. They all tend to sleep a lot, being cats, so there's plenty of time when everyone is asleep. But they each have their own sleep habits too, so they are often awake at different times.

Use the litter box simultaneously?

No. They tend to like their privacy.

Do they all interact with each other?

It depends on their personalities and how well they get along. Sometimes certain cats avoid each other. My current two, Charlie and Crumbs, spend most of their time in separate rooms (their choice). Sometimes they'll share a sunbeam during their afternoon naps, but their main "interaction" is Charlie annoying Crumbs and her hissing at him. I have had cats who loved each other and spend a lot of time together, and others who completely ignored each other.

Do they fight for your attention?

Not really. I spend time with each individually and with both/all cats together, so I suppose they don't feel the need to fight about it.

Do they all beg at the table at meal time? 

Generally not, because different cats like different things. If I have cheese or ice cream for example, Crumbs will want a taste, but Charlie is only interested in meat. I once had a cat who would beg for things like tortilla chips, beans, tomatoes, and olives.

Do they all meet you at the door when you come home?

No, it depends on each cat's personality. Right now, Charlie is the only one who greets me at the door. Crumbs is always happy to see me but expects me to come to her.

I currently have 6 cats - 5 males and 1 female. I had 8 at one time but 2 have passed from health related illnesses at old ages (17 and 19.5 years).

Do they all eat at once? Same food?

They are all fed wet/canned food at the same time 2x daily. Same kind of food except 1 cat who is on a k/d for renal disease.

Do they all sleep at the same time?

Mostly but not always. There is usually 1 cat awake.

Use the litter box simultaneously?

Not normally but it happens on occasion where 2 cats will be using separate pans.

Do they all interact with each other?

Yes they do and mostly they get along to various degrees. They do get a tad testy, especially around meal time so they are fed  in a variety of areas. There are 3 that  don't get along as well - 2 boys and the girl.

Do they fight for your attention?

No though they do have a stare down. I usually try to distract them so it won't escalate.  I give each cat their own personal time during the day.

Do they all beg at the table at meal time?  

2 of the boys do. The others don't. 1 of the boys is currently being treated for hyperthyroidism and still working on the right dosage for him.

Do they all meet you at the door when you come home?

Not all of them do. Usually just 2-3 of the boys. The others wait until I am inside to greet me.