Feeding : Scheduled, or Open?

buzbyjlc10

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Oliver has one of those kibble dispensers that looks like an office water cooler (there's one for water that matches it too, made by Le Bistro) so he's free fed dry kibble 24/7... he won't even touch wet food, so I dont worry about that and he controls how much he eats: ie - he only eats when he's hungry and doesn't stuff himself, he knows when he's full... this way I don't HAVE to be home at certain times every day for feedings and I don't get rudely woken up in the wee hours of the morning.... seems to work great! The vet has no problem with his weight either
 

lionessrampant

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Well, I am trying scheduled feedings now...we have problems with the underweight resuced kitten eating the Nutro Lite and the giant still slightly overweight adult guy eating Nutro kitten food. Neither one is really big on wet food (as Leo WILL NOT eat anything wet), but I can usually get the kitten to eat it once a day for extral moisture and protein.

I spend around 20-30 a month on food, total for both cats.

All of their food is mixed with whole freeze-dried chicken, again, for extra protein.

I am looking to switch to Evo pretty soon, as soon as I am done price shopping and can find the largest bags. It doesn't seem economical to buy those little ones every few days and it's all I've been able to find in my neighborhood.
 

rang_27

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I feed on a schedule, because of my Levi. He would eat all day & do nothing else if the food was there. I tried free feeding, but he just eats & eats. The problem with doing this in a multi cat house hold is that cats that would other wise be OK free feeding develop the food obssesion. With 2 it was easy, now that there are 4 it takes little while longer to measure out food. The boys get feed twice a day 1/4 cup dry food each time. Once in a while for a treat I replace the night time feeding with a can of wet food. I don't limit how much Maggie eats at once because she's still growing, but I do have to put the food away when she walks away from it because of the boys. I've also been offering her food 3 times a day just to be sure she's getting enough. (she's only 3 months old)
 

prissykitty

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We have dry food down 24/7. I feed the cats 1 pouch of iams food that only 4 of them eat but they all share. We've got 7 cats and some of them have unusual eating habits or are concerned to go near the food bowl if someone else is near it etc. We do not have a problem with any of our cats overeating but I have found that if I put two pouches of the wet food down someone will throw up because they gorge themself on it.
 

momofmany

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Originally Posted by ElecMoHwk

I'm pretty worried also about putting in wet food, because of just how much it would take to feed everyone. On occasion we let them all split 2 or 3 cans of tuna spread out on a plate... but daily wet food feedings would get to be very costly I'm afraid. We already go through about $50 of dry food each month.

What do you guys spend on food per month? For how many cats? How old are they?
With my 13 cats, outside ferals and dogs, I spend about $100 a week on food. I free feed the cats dry food, and split 2 cans between 13 once a day in the evening. The smaller cats get fed in specific places and they get a larger portion than the others. Most get about a tablespoon of food - just enough to make them happy.

I stock up on canned food when it is on sale - I'll buy a couple cases if the price is real good. But even with that, I go thru it real fast.
 

purr

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I feed Cupid 3x a day: morning (whenever I get up), 4 hours later, and 4 hours after that. Sometimes I feed him a 4th time if I get up early. That's because that's when he gets hungry--about 4 hours after he last ate.

I feed him raw food and it costs about $80/mo plus an additional $15 every few months. The stuff that goes in the food is about $20 every two weeks. The meat is about $60/mo because I have to order it online since we don't have any organic farms here and shipping is expensive. The additional stuff lasts a few months, so it's only $15 when I need it. This is all "about" because I've never really figured it up. I just get it when he needs it. Sometimes he's eats more and sometimes he eats less.

Oh, and he'll be 2 in 45 days, 14 hours, and 42 minutes.
 

darkeyedgirl

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I used to free-feed ("open") my 6 cats, until my oldest got blocked up by Crystals. Part of the problem was too much dry food --- not enough moisture.

After that scary incident, I switched all 6 cats to canned ONLY. They get fed in the morning and in the evening. Very on schedule and controlled!!!

I've noticed my big ol fat cat Zorro has slimmed down and is looking leaner... and the cats are happier / more playful and healthier since I started them on the canned stuff.
 

kittycats74

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Originally Posted by ElecMoHwk

I'm pretty worried also about putting in wet food, because of just how much it would take to feed everyone. On occasion we let them all split 2 or 3 cans of tuna spread out on a plate... but daily wet food feedings would get to be very costly I'm afraid. We already go through about $50 of dry food each month.

What do you guys spend on food per month? For how many cats? How old are they?
[Late in replying]
I remember reading somewhere that tuna was bad for cats? I'm not sure, but that's what I heard :s Well I guess it'll be better to research that a lil bit more before making any drastic changes
 

kittycats74

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Lately, Oreo usually disappears during the daylight hours [when it is the hottest times of the day] and comes back towards dinner time. Around that time, I re-fill her bowl and give her about 2/3-1 cup of dried food. I don't often feed her wet food, only on special occassions. She loves it when I mix rice with it!
 

juniper

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I free feed dry food, because Meeko has anxiety issues about food (if he doesn't have constant access to food, he becomes nervous and anxious and upset, and spends all day and night pacing and wailing, and then when he does get fed, gorges himself and promptly throws it up) - free feeding resolves these issues, so I have no choice (I prefer free feeding anyway, though). We don't do wet food because a) it is insanely expensive - around $2.50 for a 5.5 oz. can, so if I were to feed canned food exclusively according to the instructions (feed one ounce per pound of body weight), it would cost me around $825/month - even half wet/half dry would cost me around $412 - and there's just no way that's feasible and b) Phineas and Henry hate it and refuse to eat it, anyway.
 

graykittenlove

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Originally Posted by Juniper

I free feed dry food, because Meeko has anxiety issues about food (if he doesn't have constant access to food, he becomes nervous and anxious and upset, and spends all day and night pacing and wailing, and then when he does get fed, gorges himself and promptly throws it up) - free feeding resolves these issues, so I have no choice (I prefer free feeding anyway, though). We don't do wet food because a) it is insanely expensive - around $2.50 for a 5.5 oz. can, so if I were to feed canned food exclusively according to the instructions (feed one ounce per pound of body weight), it would cost me around $825/month - even half wet/half dry would cost me around $412 - and there's just no way that's feasible and b) Phineas and Henry hate it and refuse to eat it, anyway.
Samwise is the same way, if there isn't any food down he freaks out. I think it has to do with the fact when he was a kitten he was dumped. Who knows how long the little guy went without food. He was terrible skinny when I brought him home. Thankfully my cousin found him and gave him to me, so now he's spoiled rotten.

I free feed dry so they have access to that 24/7. I also feed wet every day or every couple of days in the evening. Sometimes they get tired of it and won't eat it. I refuse to feed them wet in the morning because they get me up early enough as it is.


As far as cost, I buy the big bag of Innova Adult for $36 every month or so and spend about $10 -$20 bucks a months on wet. Sometimes that last longer than a month sometime less depending on whether they go through a no I'm not gonna eat wet food phase. So about $50-60 a month. They eat better than I do. And they get a treat of cook hamburger whenever I have spaghetti or anything that calls for ground beef. They also get cooked chicken occasionally and the juice off the canned chicken.

And when we visit my parent's Samwise will eat whatever kind of food is down that week for Bubbles my parent's cat. She has kidney disease so tempting her with food is important because she goes through phases where she won't eat at all.

I thought about going raw and even tried to transition over but Gandalf would have no part of it. He's my picky eater. I might try again later but for now I think I'll stick to what I know they'll eat.
 

eburgess

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I used to free feed Limerick, but now that there is another cat in the house, he has to be scheduled.
 

vanillasugar

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Mine get fed morning and night, so it's a schedule. But there isnt' really a fixed meal time, since my schedule is so varied. They get fed sometime after I get up, and usually while I'm making dinner (to keep them out of the way!)
 

fatkitties

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My kitties are on scheduled feeding because they are both overweight. If I did open feeding, they'd eat a whole days worth of food in one sitting! So I divide the amount they should have in a day, in half, and they get fed morning and evening. Fresh water available all the time, though.

Amber
 

fatkitties

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Originally Posted by ElecMoHwk

What do you guys spend on food per month? For how many cats? How old are they?
I bought a 20 lb bag of Nutro Complete Care the 3rd week of July, and it's maybe a third of the way gone. Regular price on that was $27, but I had a $10 rebate!
I also have 3 dogs, two big and one little, and spend maybe $35 a month on Nutro Natural Choice for them.
I don't give the cats canned food at all, they don't like it. I give the dogs a couple spoonfuls from time to time, especially if one's not feeling well and doesn't have much appetite.

Amber
 

katielv

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Originally Posted by bengalbabe

Yikes! that's a lot!! mine costs less then that and I have 5 cats. I feed them meat only!
I was wondering if you can briefly tell me what you feed them. I have two 5 month old babies and I am afraid to give them raw right now. I was thinking of starting them off when they turn 1. For now I do a mix of cooked meat (chicken, turkey and beef) with organs (heart, giblets) and veggies. I like your idea to first cook the food less and then switch to raw. I was wondering how long you're doing the raw? If you give them any veggies? What meat? How often do you feed them? Thank you .
 
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