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Delilah and I have been together now two weeks. I think I figured out what foods to feed her, but now it's "how much". I'm still trying to get my mind out of dog feeding quantities (sister's beagle eats anything in his bowl in 2 minutes, looks for more, will eat anything you're eating if he can reach it).
Delilah is 7 pounds. The first few days I had her she was devouring everything in the bowl. Now she's not eating as much. I suspect her earlier eating habits were from the shelter where she had to eat what she could when it was there, and now that she is an only cat, she's eating till satisfied. I don't mind that. I just don't want to be wasting food. Kibble I can bag, canned not so much.
She is coming off free feeding kibble and wet food twice a day at the shelter (she was Nermal to a room full of Garfields - she didn't get that much of the wet food). I want to have her on an eating schedule, especially since that's going to be the best way for her once I start back in the classroom. What I've been doing is wet food in the morning, dry mid day, wet food evening, dry food bedtime (she grazes on this - if I don't leave a bedtime meal she is staked outside my bedroom waiting for my middle of the night bathroom run, meowing pitifully when she sees me emerge).
Delilah isn't very active. She has a kitty crazies flurry in the morning, and naps most of the day while I'm doing my online teaching. I don't want to be overfeeding her.
So how much should I give her?
Delilah is 7 pounds. The first few days I had her she was devouring everything in the bowl. Now she's not eating as much. I suspect her earlier eating habits were from the shelter where she had to eat what she could when it was there, and now that she is an only cat, she's eating till satisfied. I don't mind that. I just don't want to be wasting food. Kibble I can bag, canned not so much.
She is coming off free feeding kibble and wet food twice a day at the shelter (she was Nermal to a room full of Garfields - she didn't get that much of the wet food). I want to have her on an eating schedule, especially since that's going to be the best way for her once I start back in the classroom. What I've been doing is wet food in the morning, dry mid day, wet food evening, dry food bedtime (she grazes on this - if I don't leave a bedtime meal she is staked outside my bedroom waiting for my middle of the night bathroom run, meowing pitifully when she sees me emerge).
Delilah isn't very active. She has a kitty crazies flurry in the morning, and naps most of the day while I'm doing my online teaching. I don't want to be overfeeding her.
So how much should I give her?
That's roughly 20 to 25 calories per pound of ideal body weight daily. If 7 pounds if your cat's ideal weight, then feed 140 to 175 or so calories daily. Calories are listed on the pet food label, usually per cup of dry food or per can. Dry foods are very calorie dense so try to limit it to a small amount daily.
