Automatic feeders and feeding raw

[lilas]

Hello savvy raw feeders! 

As some of you may know, I am slowly transitioning my kitty Sherlock back onto raw food after a week of non-stop regurgitation that was mostly likely onset by hairballs (thank you to everyone who commented on the other thread -- HUGE help!). 

 I also suspect he eats his food way too fast as we had a happenstance of coughing/retching sound but nothing came out. 

 I've been feeding him smaller meals (1.4-1.5oz, wait an hour, feed another 1.4-1.5oz in the morning and at night). 

What I would like to be able to do is feed Sherlock 3 times a day, but as of right now that is impossible because I commute about an hour away from where I live so it's not feasible to come back. So my idea was to get an automatic time feeder, but I don't know how those would work with raw feeding. Does anyone use one? What are your experience with it? There are 2 on amazon that seem to come with an ice pack, so that should keep the raw food relatively fresh, but I always warm up the food in a hot bath before giving it to him so that it's "mouse temperature."



Thoughts? 

 

[ritz]

I am gone for 11, 12 hours at a time and been considering getting a timed feeder.  Ritz seems to be less hungry/food obsessed when I am able to feed her mid afternoon. 

I read some reviews about the Cat Mate products and they seem less than reliable.  The ice packs work, but sometimes the timer doesn't.

What I've thought of doing in lieu of a timed feeder is leaving a piece of frozen raw food in Ritz' bowl just before I leave for work.  It will defrost by late morning/early afternoon.  But I am somewhat worried she'll eat the meat frozen and throw up; she is not a picky eater.

 

[ldg]

I'll see if I can find the reviews.... because I'm pretty sure there are some reliable timed feeders.

But what about using freeze dried food (dry) - like Stella & Chewy's? Maybe just leave a small, unrehydrated measured amount out? :dk:

 

[ritz]

That's a good idea about leaving out some freeze dried food; how would I incorporate it in a raw feeding?  Ritz needs to lose about a pound.  (Was feeding her around 4.2 to 4.5 oz of meat plus liver/kidney; now 4 oz of meat )

 

[txcatmom]

I was reading up on automatic feeders and thinking about this recently.  (We also feed raw.)  Some life changes might have us taking more day trips in the future and a timed feeder would come in handy for their midday snack and dinner time if we were out and arriving home late on some days.  Anyways, I thought this one sounded pretty reliable, based on reviews....

http://www.petco.com/product/103940...5&mr:keyword=&mr:match=&mr:filter=51515413435

I'm also still thinking through what to put in it.  Mine do like Stella and Chewy's freeze dried raw so that is an option. Since it would only be occasionally for us, I'm thinking using the cooling packs with some good canned food would work too.

I'll check back to see if any other reliable timed feeders are recommended here.  Good topic.

 

[feralvr]

That's a good idea about leaving out some freeze dried food; how would I incorporate it in a raw feeding?  Ritz needs to lose about a pound.  (Was feeding her around 4.2 to 4.5 oz of meat plus liver/kidney; now 4 oz of meat )

I use Stella and Chewey's FD for both cats and dogs. You can use the dog patties because they contain taurine!! The lamb dog patties do not soak up much water so I only feed those to my dogs. I always soak the FD before serving. If I have to be away, then I just leave out some cubes, which I have broken up a bit, in their bowls. I have two cats that will not for the life of them eat the FD My six all seem to eat different raw meats which makes my life still quite complicated at times.

Anyway, I found out I was completely overfeeding my cats on the Freeze Dried raw a while back. My cats were turning into fatties. :lol3: This is how it compares to raw meat: 1 ounce of Freeze Dried raw (soaked or not) is equivalent to 4 ounces of raw meat in calories!!! I figured that about 14 - 15 cubes of Stella and Cheweys Freeze Dried is equal to about one ounce. I used my scale so I would know how many cubes would equal one ounce. This makes it easy when I want to offer someone 1/2 ounce about seven cubes for a meal which equals two ounces of raw meat. Hope that helps. They even make the Stella and Chewey's FD in single serving packets now. That way you can just soak a cube or two to get Ritz started and see if he will like it without buying a large bag and it going to waste.

 

[ritz]

Thanks.  I'll look for S&C next time I'm at the high end pet food store. I do know Ritz likes their treats (marketed for dogs I believe, but since they are 100% chicken, no problem).

 

[kcoutts]

If you have $550 to spend, you can get the Catsomat from Germany, which has 7 trays.  Not only does it refrigerate to refrigerator temperatures, but it also pre-warms the food to room temperature as well.  No, I don't have that kind of money, but maybe you do?  I just called and a cat sitter charges $45/day or $25/visit!!!

Don't know what the delivery charges are...

 

[mark krugel]

Hello together, I'm a project Manager of CATSOMAT. Momentarily, we do not deliver outside Europe. But if you are really intererrested in our world novelty, please send us an email to [email protected]. We will find a way....Thx

 

[mark krugel]

Futher information under www.catsomat.com

 

[mark krugel]

We have also an English language version of our Website

 

[kcoutts]

There is also the Koolatron Pet Dish from costco.ca, with mixed reviews. http://reviews.costco.ca/2070-en_ca...olatron-pet-dish-six-days-reviews/reviews.htm   It is only $40, and can be set at 6 hour intervals.  It comes with two ice packs.  Most problems seems to be related to the cats being able to take the top off.  One reviewer had a solution: "HOWEVER, when I took it apart I figured out a way to MAKE IT totally cat proof-I removed from the bottom piece the screws that hold the plastic notches in place. This leaves 4 holes that correspond to 4 holes at the bottom of the motor (where it used to snap into place. If you run screws/washers through these holes, and use bolts on the bottom---NO CAT WILL BE ABLE TO OPEN IT!!!! "  Also available at amazon:  
The reviews indicate that the food can be kept cool for 1-2 days.  I am guessing you can ensure this for the later feedings by freezing them in addition to using the ice packs.  Test the system when you're at home before you do your first experiment then you'll know for sure.

 

[kandymoon]

I googled. It looks like there are feeders. My cats can't eat out of plastic tho. And reviews of these things aren't good besides. Grim throws things around, so I don't think it'd hold up. We were never able to find a water dish he couldn't upset. I just leave the faucet dropping all the time.

 

[sophie1]

 
What I would like to be able to do is feed Sherlock 3 times a day, but as of right now that is impossible because I commute about an hour away from where I live so it's not feasible to come back. So my idea was to get an automatic time feeder, but I don't know how those would work with raw feeding.

This is precisely why I've stuck with the free feeding method.  Plus there's the problem of how to deal with business travel (several times a year for me).

There's no way to provide warmed food in a timed feeder, so you could just try leaving out a chunk of frozen food when you leave in the morning.  It will defrost and then eventually come to room temperature, and hopefully your cat will learn to simply graze on it.  You could also try leaving some food out in a FrostyBowlz if you want to try to get your cat into the habit of grazing on cold food.  Putting some golf balls or other impediments in the bowl will slow Sherlock down if he decides to gobble it up too fast.

Another option is to provide him with a "treasure hunt" for freeze dried raw food pieces when you leave in the morning.  He'll spend part of the day searching for treasures, so you'll get entertainment for him plus midday food at the same time!