Multi cat household feeding

If you have...oh let's say...5 cats, is it best to free feed or do timed feedings? I'm torn. A couple are grazers, and it seems they all eat a lot less when given the freedom to eat as they like. When I time feed (it's been this way for years), they seem to gobble it up as if it were their last meal. No enjoyment at all :-/

meowstheword said:

If you have...oh let's say...5 cats, is it best to free feed or do timed feedings? I'm torn. A couple are grazers, and it seems they all eat a lot less when given the freedom to eat as they like. When I time feed (it's been this way for years), they seem to gobble it up as if it were their last meal. No enjoyment at all :-/

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In my opinion timed feedings are best especially with multiple cats ..  With free feeding it is really hard to tell if each individual cat is eating .. 

With timed feeding you have a little more control over that .. If possible  space the cats out at feeding time so they are not right next to each other so they have a little room to relax while eating .

I agree, they maintain a better weight and accept wet food more easily.

Are you feeding at the same times every day?  The more small meals that you can fit in at the same time every day the better.  I am home all day so I can do 4 small meals and a snack.  If you are out of the house most of the day, try to get in at least three feedings…maybe four if you are a night owl! Try to feed at the same times if you aren't all ready. Cats like knowing when their next meal is and if you keep to a schedule this may relieve some anxiety.

I know what it is like having 5 cats on the kitchen floor eating at the same time!!!!  I keep it very zen for them…no tv blaring, no kids, no dogs, no talking on the phone.  They each eat in the same spot and I sit on a stool making sure they eat their own food.  This may sound very strict but how else would I know if my 14 yo cat was really eating?

I adapted this routine because, I to, have a grazer and also a scarf and barfer so this schedule took care of both those issues. A little bit at a time more often.

lilabeth said:

 
Are you feeding at the same times every day?  The more small meals that you can fit in at the same time every day the better.  I am home all day so I can do 4 small meals and a snack.  If you are out of the house most of the day, try to get in at least three feedings…maybe four if you are a night owl! Try to feed at the same times if you aren't all ready. Cats like knowing when their next meal is and if you keep to a schedule this may relieve some anxiety.

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I adapted this routine because, I to, have a grazer and also a scarf and barfer so this schedule took care of both those issues. A little bit at a time more often.

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We feed our two cats a lot like this, too: one's a grazer who has a preference for canned over raw, the other's a vulture with a preference for raw over canned. We separate then for the raw meals because of the vulture behavior but leave the canned food snacks out so the grazer can graze. This set-up is always evolving but I also find that fairly set times for four small meals and a snack work very well.

I would have caught Lazlo's appetite problem (turned out to be due to cancer) months earlier if they were on timed meals. I feed 10, and have two that became rather bowling ball looking on free-fed kibble with canned meals. Everyone that needed to lose weight did when I transitioned to timed meals. I would never recommend grazing to anyone. Even with young kittens, I'd suggest a timed feeder that can handle wet food.

http://www.thecatsite.com/a/transitioning-free-fed-kibble-kitties-to-timed-meals

http://www.thecatsite.com/a/transit...-to-a-new-type-of-food-canned-raw-or-homemade

I agree with all the others regarding timed feedings. Its best in almost all situations. We had 6 at one point and fed twice daily. We had 2 that were grazers also, so they were fed in separate bathrooms. That way, if they didn't finish their meal, it would sit there until when they asked for it later. With time, they both got used to the timed thing and ate the majority of their food in 1 sitting. 

I find that to be true that they eat it all with timed feedings of wet anyway. I do not feed dry.

I have 7 and its 4 timed feedings per day. I will admit its hard to be able to go places when I have to be home to feed them all. But I have one on a diet. A couple who would eat most if not all the food while the others stood by and watched.  It takes awhile for the nibblers to catch on and eat when its feeding time. Some days they dont eat it all. I will pick it up so the others dont eat it. They do find weight wise.

We have six cats with timed feedings. It's easier and, because we have a couple of pukers, we have less to clean up afterward.

When we are working, the kids get canned breakfast: 1/3 can of Friskies Buffet for each cat. They'll each get some kibble sprinkled over the top of their canned food. Then a canned dinner when we get home from work: 1/3 can of Friskies Buffet for each cat with some kibble sprinkled over the top of the canned food.  And then their bedtime snack is a handful of assorted kibble (we feed three kinds of kibble, based on what each cat likes). 

But when I'm home during the day, it's pretty much based on demand. That basically means that when one cat wants a snack, they all get a snack. Our BooBoo, of the Bottomless Paws, likes a snack about every two hours or so  , but I can usually spread the snacks out to about every 3-4 hours. (Sometimes I can sneak Boo a quick bunch of kibble without the other guys finding out, but that's rare.)

They all have good appetites, even the geriatric kids. Mollipop is a bit picky sometimes, but I have her pretty much figured out as to what she prefers in canned food.

None of the kids really have weight problems, although Muffin could probably stand to lose a couple of ounces. I'm not going to worry about it. 

We feed Friskies Buffet pate cans for everybody with a few cans of Bits and some cans of Tuna thrown in for BooBoo, Ms. Pepe, and Tabby.

Purina Indoor Chow kibble for Tabby, Amber, and Ms. Pepe, Hills T/D kibble for Mollipop and BooBoo, and Friskies Indoor Delights for Muffin. 

I've tried free-feeding their kibble a couple of times and, without fail, somebody will puke. Always. And Muffin's weight always go up. For us, it's best to do timed feedings.

LisaHE said:

We feed our two cats a lot like this, too: one's a grazer who has a preference for canned over raw, the other's a vulture with a preference for raw over canned. We separate then for the raw meals because of the vulture behavior but leave the canned food snacks out so the grazer can graze. This set-up is always evolving but I also find that fairly set times for four small meals and a snack work very well.

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Quoting myself feels a little odd but I keep thinking back to this thread and this post!

I wrote then that our feeding set-up is always evolving and it has evolved even more because I realized, quite by accident, that the grazer, Ireland, will eat all her foods in a more meal-like fashion if she's shut in a room to eat by herself. I think Ireland was more afraid of her sister poaching her food than we'd thought. Ireland loves to philosophically stare into space between bites but Edwina is a quick eater so they just don't do well in the same room with certain meals. It's also helped tremendously to find some new foods that Ireland loves.

Best of all, Ireland, who's always been a bit nervous, seems noticeably more relaxed now and is eating more happily and consistently. The cats are rescue cats who were underfed ten-month-old kittens when we adopted them, so feeding them has always been a bit of an adventure, both in terms of calories (they ate so so so much for so so so many months!) and what have seemed like food anxieties. I'm sure there will still be adjustments but at least their feeding routines are getting more and more normal after a year and several months!

Thanks to all of you for your posts -- reading them and thinking about all the responses to the OP's question has helped me be more observant!

Feed in separate rooms, timed feedings, I open door when they have finished. I feed just wet, twice a day and a treat before bed of a few bits of quality kibble. Your son might have to do it for you!

Between the 2 of you can you work it out to feed them before or after work. Timed feedings are ideal.

That's how I handle it with my 2. I feed before I leave for work. It doesn't take long for my 2 to eat so it's a few minutes to make sure they each are eating their own. Then I do the same when I return from work and right before I go to bed.