Feeding cats question.........

nebula11

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Ok........

So in my hospital procedure's class which is taught by a awesome knowlegable vet tech....taught us that cats need to be fed on a dog schedual twice a day, and you are not supposed to keep food out all day.....

to keep food out all day can result in fatty kits.........

Well I am not sure if I am doing things right....But john and I feed the kits twice a day, but there is food in thier dish throughout the day.....not because we keep filling it, but because our cats are the kind that take a few bites walk away come back take a few bites ect.....

are we doing this right????

Emmet is our only overweight kit....and he needs special dissolution food, doofus is a "perfect weight" (quote from vet) Mabby is petite (also a vet quote), and Poppy though is gaining some much needed weight is still on the underweight side......

So yeah....am i doing this feeding thing right>//???
 

lionessrampant

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That's how I do it and we have no problems and the vet hasn't said anything...My Lola is petite and my Leo is at an ideal weight for his build.
 
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nebula11

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Originally Posted by lionessrampant

That's how I do it and we have no problems and the vet hasn't said anything...My Lola is petite and my Leo is at an ideal weight for his build.
Cool thats good to know.....

with poor emmet he was starved as a kitten, so when we finally got him and started to feed him on a regualr schedual he kinda ballooned up........

we have mantained his weight.....but he hasn't lost any.....its so hard to get cats to loose weight.........
 

bengalbabe

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Originally Posted by Nebula11

Ok........

So in my hospital procedure's class which is taught by a awesome knowlegable vet tech....taught us that cats need to be fed on a dog schedual twice a day, and you are not supposed to keep food out all day.....

to keep food out all day can result in fatty kits.........

Well I am not sure if I am doing things right....But john and I feed the kits twice a day, but there is food in thier dish throughout the day.....not because we keep filling it, but because our cats are the kind that take a few bites walk away come back take a few bites ect.....

are we doing this right????

Emmet is our only overweight kit....and he needs special dissolution food, doofus is a "perfect weight" (quote from vet) Mabby is petite (also a vet quote), and Poppy though is gaining some much needed weight is still on the underweight side......

So yeah....am i doing this feeding thing right>//???
No.
food should not sit out all day. They only eat what they catch in the wild so there is no food most of the day. They eat small meals (mice, ect.) throughout the day when they catch them. If you start taking the food away and putting it out at regular times the cats should realize that they will be fed at certain times and they will eat more when it is feeding time.
 
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nebula11

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Originally Posted by bengalbabe

No.
food should not sit out all day. They only eat what they catch in the wild so there is no food most of the day. They eat small meals (mice, ect.) throughout the day when they catch them. If you start taking the food away and putting it out at regular times the cats should realize that they will be fed at certain times and they will eat more when it is feeding time.
Ok thanx for the advice....i'll give it a try
 

misscharlotte

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I feed my two cats 2x a day. They are also nibblers like your cats and don't eat all of it at one time. Neither of my cats are fat.
 

semiferal

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Left to their own devices, cats would eat tiny meals many, many times a day.

If your cat is not fat, there is no need to restrict food access.

Sadly, many in the veterinary community regard cats as small dogs. Cats are not dogs and have very different biologies and needs.
 

dusty's mom

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I leave dry food out all the time, but Dusty gets 1/2 can of Fancy Feast twice a day. She is so spoiled that I can't get her to eat any other kind of canned food. And then she will only eat the "gormet feast" - no flaked or grilled or chunks in gravy! She's a regular diva!
 

mrod1

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My vet also says to only feed 2 times per day, or 3-4 if it is a kitten under 1year. I don't use dry food unless I go out for a long time, dry food is a big culpret for many cats with weight issues. Dry food is loaded with carbs. But even dry food can go moldy. I had a cat that I used to free feed with dry and wet, and she became obese and had to go on a strict diet. My buddy was also gaining weight because of too much dry food and whiskas wet. I switched to Nutro premium cat food, and I feed 3 times since he is still a kitten, but not too much dry food, and I remove the bowl when he is done. Eventually your cats will learn to eat all their food when it is given to them if it is not left out. Either that or you could divide their food into 4 times per day, instead of a can in the morning and 1 at night, give 1/2 can 4 times per day instead.
 
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