Feeding strays while on vacation

[Crackerboo]

hi folks,

Question first, in case you don't want to read the reasoning; I'm looking for an outdoor automatic feeder that can go for at least 7 days. Any ideas?

The wife and I noticed a stray cat on our deck a few months ago, so when the weather started to get really cold we put food and water out for the stray every day/night. Except for that first time seeing the stray, the kitty only comes to our deck after dark (that we notice), and we never actually laid eyes on him/her. So my wife bought a game camera, and after setting that up, we soon found out that we sometimes had 5 different cats come to our food bowl during the night, as well as the occasional racoons and possums.

Anyway, this is new to us, trying to care for these strays, and I'm wondering what people do when they go out of town, such as when on vacation. I don't want to leave these kitties without any of the food they've presumably come to rely on in these cold months. So I'm hoping to find something reliable that will let me still feed the stray kitties, and not interfere with my wifey's and my ice fishing trip.

Any advice is greatly appreciated!

 

[daftcat75]

I’m not certain there is such a feeder that will store and release seven days of food for multiple cats (and other wildlife.) However, you could hire someone from care.com to fill a feeder or their food bowls once or twice a day.

 

[fionasmom]

I agree. I don't think that the timed feeders are that sophisticated and certainly there is no control of who eats all the food first and leave nothing for the stragglers. A house sitter is your best solution. Since they do not need to come into your house, it is even easier. A reliable neighbor might be willing to do it or try care.com

 

[Willowy]

The most I can find that specify how many days they last is for 5 days, but there are a LOT of automatic feeders to chose from. Maybe one of them would work, or you could have someone come in just once and refill it.
Amazon Best Sellers: Best Automatic Cat Feeders

 

[Crackerboo]

Thanks folks, I'm going to try to modify an auto feeder so that it will work outside while being (hopefully) protected enough from the elements. I'm going to try what this person did.


The feeder should arrive Wednesday, so I'll have almost two weeks to test it out. This feeder can be programmed for 24 cup-sized meals, so should be more than I need for one week.

If this doesn't seem to work out, I'll try to find a neighbor or a service who will feed the strays.