How to switch cat to meal times

[Rshep]

Hello everyone,
I had my cats on free feeding and kibble for a long time, I have now switched them to wet food fully, it's been about 2 weeks and my oldest cat loves it. I am having trouble switching them to meal times though as I have to go to work super early in the morning, I am awake at 3 am during the week. My oldest cat wakes me up to eat around that time, I also hear him munching at some kibble left out overnight for my other cat to eat as she isn't crazy about the wet food as much. He then wants to eay again before I leave for work around 5 (this is the same can/bowl as he doesn't finish the whole thing at once usually) he wants to eay again 4 hours later (9 am) and again around lunch time, usually around noon. Usually he won't eat again til dinner time around 5/6 pm and a little before bed of the same can used for dinner. I would like to transition him to meal times instead, how can I go about doing this? When he wants to eat, he will follow me around or tap my leg. He usually eats around 2 cans a day I think, I would just like him to wait and actually be hungry for a meal and finish a full can

 

[Furballsmom]

Hi - would an automatic feeder help? However, the thing here is that he's already on a schedule, and it's actually recommended that cats eat/graze throughout the day.

If I have cat food left in the dish/bowl, I just leave it down. Some suggest that wet food can't be left out very long, especially if the house is hot but I've not had any issues that I'm aware of leaving canned food out for 12 hours.

 

[Rshep]

Hello everyone,
I had my cats on free feeding and kibble for a long time, I have now switched them to wet food fully, it's been about 2 weeks and my oldest cat loves it. I am having trouble switching them to meal times though as I have to go to work super early in the morning, I am awake at 3 am during the week. My oldest cat wakes me up to eat around that time, I also hear him munching at some kibble left out overnight for my other cat to eat as she isn't crazy about the wet food as much. He then wants to eat again before I leave for work around 5 (this is the same can/bowl as he doesn't finish the whole thing at once usually) he wants to eat again 4 hours later (9 am) and again around lunch time, usually around noon. Usually he won't eat again til dinner time around 5/6 pm and a little before bed of the same can used for dinner. I would like to transition him to meal times instead, how can I go about doing this? When he wants to eat, he will follow me around or tap my leg. He usually eats around 2 cans a day I think, I would just like him to wait and actually be hungry for a meal and finish a full can

Edit: I would like him on a more timely schedule as we are planning on switching him to a raw food diet soon- which he would eat about 3 times a day just want to get him used to a schedule instead of feeding whenever

 

[Furballsmom]

Maybe there's something in one of these;
Transitioning Free-fed Kibble Kitties To Timed Meals - TheCatSite

Transitioning Your Cat From Kibble To A New Type Of Food - TheCatSite

And this has some very good information as well;
Homemade & Raw Food For Cats - A Collection of Guides - TheCatSite

 

[Cat McCannon]

Figure out how much per day you need to feed your cat to meet its caloric needs. Divide that by three. Pick three times you're gonna feed your cat and feed them. It may take some time to get your cats used to it, but you can make it work with patience.

It's ok if the first feeding of the day is at 3 am.

 

[maggie101]

Usually,domestic cats eat like wild cats,3x a day so transitioning should not be hard. Having food timers will help. Being without food for 12 hours is hard on a cats tummy

 

[cmshap]

I'm not saying this can apply to all cats. But I used my cat's hunger "against" him.

I gradually introduced one scheduled meal per day, after picking up the kibble a couple of hours ahead of time. Then introduced a second mealtime, etc.

For me, it was pretty easy introducing mealtimes for my cat. I just started feeding him small meals on a strict schedule. If he didn't eat one, I'd pick it up, and save it for the next mealtime.

As this continued, I kept sticking to the set mealtimes. He is very food-motivated, so it didn't take long for him to realize if he didn't eat, he'd have to be hungry and wait for the next time.

 

[cmshap]

I will add that I've read (others can correct me or contribute here) that not feeding a cat for 24 hours can be dangerous.

That was never an issue with my cat. So when I used hunger, we are only talking about about 5 hours or so between a missed meal and the next one. (I was feeding 3x per day when starting wet food).

If he refused a meal and had to wait 5 hours, he DEVOURED the next one.

 

[maggie101]

My cat peaches would immediately through up food if devoured it so she cannot miss any meals. My other cats would be ok

 

[cmshap]

My cat peaches would immediately through up food if devoured it so she cannot miss any meals. My other cats would be ok

Like I said, I am not trying to recommend the "hunger strategy" for all cats. From what I understand, they need frequent meals.

This was just something that worked with my specific cat.

It is something that can be tried, however, with one meal. See how the cat reacts.

 

[maggie101]

Like I said, I am not trying to recommend the "hunger strategy" for all cats. From what I understand, they need frequent meals.

This was just something that worked with my specific cat.

It is something that can be tried, however, with one meal. See how the cat reacts.

Thanks. Totally understand. She's 10 yrs old and has been an issue since she was 1. Only 7 pds. Loves to eat but she has limits.