Feeding wet food in Cold weater

[wakoko]

our stray cats usually come out late night, so food get frozen by then. We leave more dry food when temperature is low. But I know they enjoy wet food...
There is no electricity access. It is at empty lot. nothing around. We just put plastic box side way and leave food and water. Any suggestions, appreciated. Also, which form of wet food is harder to get frozen? Pate, Bite, Shredded.. Thank you!!!

 

[shadowsrescue]

I used to heat a microwave heated disc and place the wet food on top. This is a hard round plastic that does not contain any chemicals. It helped for a short time.

The best thing is to get the cats on a schedule so that they will come right away and eat the wet food. Then leave dry as well.

 

[backwoodsvet]

I can't help on the leaving wet food long enough to freeze-up......Anytime I put wet down it gets gobbled up in 5 min......
I've heard, never used one, that microwave pad holds heat for several hours but thats probably not long enough for you.....
I agree with the " your best bet here is to try to get cats more on your time line", my colony is waiting on me every morning at about the same time....That's probably your best bet on wet freezing up before consumed..........And don't forget "talk" when you put food down, they over time they will find your voice a comfort, it will help you move to a better time line for you and them, I know how they like wet...........

 

[dahlia]

I have struggled with this as well. I decided that pate was better because it didn't have the additional liquid but that is just a guess on my part. One year, when it was really cold for several days in a row, I started putting the food in a microwave safe container and warming it up before I brought it to my feeding location. It seemed to help keep it from freezing for a bit longer but really there isn't much you can do if the cats don't come out pretty quickly. A lot of days I end up picking up frozen wet food and putting it out where I know the ravens will come and get it.

 

[DeesCats]

W wakoko , bless you for feeding the stray cats!

Some suggestions offered by feral cat organizations are:

-Use spray foam insulation (the kind used to fill cracks on your home) on the exterior and bottom of plastic bowls or you can use a cardboard box or larger bowl and spray the insulation between the containers. If you use a traditional dog food bowl that has a gap between the inside and outside, spray the insulation in that space. Be sure to avoid getting the foam in the bowl where the food is.

- Use a nylon stocking or knee high stocking with uncooked rice, tie it off so the rice can't escape and heat it in the microwave until it's hot. Place it underneath or around the bowls you use to feed the cats and it should help to keep the food warm longer. It's reusable though may need to be brushed off of any food residue before using it again.

You may also want to consider adding dry kitten food to their winter meals to provide the extra calories they need instead of feeding canned food.