Do Your Cats Share A Plate?

amysuen

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Our cats won't share a plate, even when I've used a big one and made separate piles of food. But when I give them separate plates they eat half their food then go check out what everyone else has. :rolleyes2: On the one hand it's not a big deal, but on the other hand we go through 12-16 plates every day. :dizzy:
 

Kieka

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I have bowls just for the cats and they each have their own. Hand wash between feeding so I only use 3 bowls a day. I couldn't imagine it going good to try to combine their food onto one plate. Cats are territorial and asking them to share a single plate for food might push them too much.
 

orange&white

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When I first switched to raw food, my three cats at the time shared one community dinner plate. Worked pretty well for several years until one of them decided he wouldn't eat raw food anymore. Now, with one overweight cat and one growing kitten (plus a new tiny little feral I just trapped), they not only eat on separate plates, they eat in different rooms. I have 4 saucers rotating for 3 cats, so there is always at least one clean plate by the food scale when someone's hungry.

I feel like a waitress at a busy restaurant!
 

IndyJones

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I have always been told not to do that because they would fight. Was also told never touch an animal who is eating or you will be bitten.
 
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amysuen

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My father-in-law always had dogs and taught them to be submissive when their food was taken away.

Our cats have never fought over the food - most of the time the original eater walks away and leaves the rest for the interloper. If it's Snickers he'll just leave, Laelia will come back later to see what's left. I guess it'll be better to keep doing separate plates. Time to hit Goodwill for more dishes!
 

IndyJones

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Had an experience with Hector when Kabby tried to take her food she slammed him down screamed and ripped his skin. She did not want him near her food.
 

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The resident feral cats at the shelter have no problem with sharing plates of food, and neither do litters of kittens. It's a whole different story with the tame cats in the cat rooms, so the dishwashers get run three or four times a day! Some of them tend to trade dishes half way through a meal. They just don't want to eat from the same dish simultaneously.
 

dorimon

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Even if your kitties will share a plate, I don't recommend it. It's a lot easier to monitor everyone's eating habits if they have their own separate plates/bowls.
 
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amysuen

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Had an experience with Hector when Kabby tried to take her food she slammed him down screamed and ripped his skin. She did not want him near her food.
Yikes! Cinder tries to get ferocious when someone gets too close to her food, but she's really not. When she and Toothless were really small she'd growl and put her paw on top of his head to keep him from getting too close. It was so cute!

The resident feral cats at the shelter have no problem with sharing plates of food, and neither do litters of kittens. It's a whole different story with the tame cats in the cat rooms, so the dishwashers get run three or four times a day! Some of them tend to trade dishes half way through a meal. They just don't want to eat from the same dish simultaneously.
Interesting, I'd think the ferals would be less likely to share than the tame cats. Mine eat half of what's on the plate then check out someone else's plate too.

Even if your kitties will share a plate, I don't recommend it. It's a lot easier to monitor everyone's eating habits if they have their own separate plates/bowls.
True, except that I have to watch like a hawk because when I look away someone switches plates and scarfs down the rest before I can see who ate what. Free fed kibble was so much easier all around!
 

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Our cats won't share a plate, even when I've used a big one and made separate piles of food. But when I give them separate plates they eat half their food then go check out what everyone else has. :rolleyes2: On the one hand it's not a big deal, but on the other hand we go through 12-16 plates every day. :dizzy:
Use paper plates
 
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amysuen

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Use paper plates
I've thought about that but we try to be "green" (cloth napkins, cloth diapers, "unpaper" towels, etc) so it would feel hypocritical to me. Besides, the couple of times I tried it with paper plates we had hanging around the cats licked them across the floor. :lol:

I probably need to work toward just 2 meals a day for them instead of 2 meals for everyone at once and snacks in between for individual beggars. They know I'm their slave. :biggrin:
 
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