Kittens stealing each others food... how can I make sure each kitten is eating the right amount?

Yania

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I have two 4 1/2-month-old kittens Oreo and Nugget, and Oreo has been stealing Nugget's food for the past week. The whole reason why I am concerned is that while Oreo is getting bigger, thicker, and longer, Nugget is staying tiny and skinnier. For the longest, we've kept their plates close to each other side by side but today I tried a method of feeding only Nugget in my room which works sometimes, she eats more if I feed her from my hand. But anyway the dilemma is that for the longest, my mom and I gave them 3-4 meals daily (now we've increased the daily half-can of wet food for each kitten to one can of wet food for each kitten) but now they are leaving most of their food and Nugget isn't really eating that much which gives Oreo the opportunity to eat both her food and Nugget's which isn't fair for Nugget. Today they left most of their food and we fed them like 3 times, and I fed Nugget in my room earlier but since she and Oreo can't sleep in my room bc of my allergies I put her plate of wet food outside my door because I thought moving their bowl locations would help. I just caught Oreo eating Nugget's food when Oreo has her bowl full of wet food plus she has another bowl of water and dry food, and yesterday Nugget barely ate and Oreo ate about 2 extra cans than she should've. But also earlier I caught Nugget eating Oreo's food which made me discouraged because I want to feed both of them but I don't want them to steal each other's food. They weren't really picky but I don't know why they aren't leaving their bowls empty like they did not so many months ago. I want to keep them on wet food so I don't really want to put them on a dominantly dry food diet. Can you guys please help me solve this problem and send some suggestions?
 

danteshuman

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Just over feed them until they are 2 years old. Some dry kitten food on the side usually solves the problem.

That said my cat Jackie is slender his brother Nick is stocky (& weighs 3-4 pounds more than than my cat.) Both cats are well fed. Sometimes it is just genetics & different fathers.

Jackie (white) Nick (black .... has 3 pounds of muscle on him,)
0B1A52F3-2ED8-49DF-9027-FA3F8CE522E1.jpeg
 
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Yania

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I leave a bowl of dry food next to their wet food bowls, they still don’t eat their wet food which they’ve liked since they were smaller. I don’t know if they don’t like the food anymore but I’m wasting cans of food that they should be eating, when they do eat, Oreo will eat nuggets plate which doesn’t have much wet food since she eats less and Nugget will eat out of Oreos plate which is full but she won’t eat as much as Oreo will. My mom has fed them treats (tube and dry) and for treats they get hungry but for the wet food they waste it and I’m not sure if this is normal. My mom doesn’t think anything is wrong but when they’ve been eating 4 meals a day and finishing their food to now not eating that much and stealing each other’s food, this is a visible change that I’ve observed and she won’t hear it from me anymore which has made me turn to the cat site.

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I have two 4 1/2-month-old kittens Oreo and Nugget, and Oreo has been stealing Nugget's food for the past week. The whole reason why I am concerned is that while Oreo is getting bigger, thicker, and longer, Nugget is staying tiny and skinnier. For the longest, we've kept their plates close to each other side by side but today I tried a method of feeding only Nugget in my room which works sometimes, she eats more if I feed her from my hand. But anyway the dilemma is that for the longest, my mom and I gave them 3-4 meals daily (now we've increased the daily half-can of wet food for each kitten to one can of wet food for each kitten) but now they are leaving most of their food and Nugget isn't really eating that much which gives Oreo the opportunity to eat both her food and Nugget's which isn't fair for Nugget. Today they left most of their food and we fed them like 3 times, and I fed Nugget in my room earlier but since she and Oreo can't sleep in my room bc of my allergies I put her plate of wet food outside my door because I thought moving their bowl locations would help. I just caught Oreo eating Nugget's food when Oreo has her bowl full of wet food plus she has another bowl of water and dry food, and yesterday Nugget barely ate and Oreo ate about 2 extra cans than she should've. But also earlier I caught Nugget eating Oreo's food which made me discouraged because I want to feed both of them but I don't want them to steal each other's food. They weren't really picky but I don't know why they aren't leaving their bowls empty like they did not so many months ago. I want to keep them on wet food so I don't really want to put them on a dominantly dry food diet. Can you guys please help me solve this problem and send some suggestions?
 
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Yania

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By the way they are not spayed, they will be spayed in a month but for now Nugget just got her first heat cycle which has been going better than Oreo’s first heat cycle (I’m not sure if that matters) but they’ve been doing this for the past few days. Oreo has done this last month where she barely ate like less than 2 times, and today more noticeably but in both of them.

I have two 4 1/2-month-old kittens Oreo and Nugget, and Oreo has been stealing Nugget's food for the past week. The whole reason why I am concerned is that while Oreo is getting bigger, thicker, and longer, Nugget is staying tiny and skinnier. For the longest, we've kept their plates close to each other side by side but today I tried a method of feeding only Nugget in my room which works sometimes, she eats more if I feed her from my hand. But anyway the dilemma is that for the longest, my mom and I gave them 3-4 meals daily (now we've increased the daily half-can of wet food for each kitten to one can of wet food for each kitten) but now they are leaving most of their food and Nugget isn't really eating that much which gives Oreo the opportunity to eat both her food and Nugget's which isn't fair for Nugget. Today they left most of their food and we fed them like 3 times, and I fed Nugget in my room earlier but since she and Oreo can't sleep in my room bc of my allergies I put her plate of wet food outside my door because I thought moving their bowl locations would help. I just caught Oreo eating Nugget's food when Oreo has her bowl full of wet food plus she has another bowl of water and dry food, and yesterday Nugget barely ate and Oreo ate about 2 extra cans than she should've. But also earlier I caught Nugget eating Oreo's food which made me discouraged because I want to feed both of them but I don't want them to steal each other's food. They weren't really picky but I don't know why they aren't leaving their bowls empty like they did not so many months ago. I want to keep them on wet food so I don't really want to put them on a dominantly dry food diet. Can you guys please help me solve this problem and send some suggestions?
 

Bri5

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I have 2 sets of m/f siblings. The 2 year set has a hefty male with a huge skull, and a slim and slinky female. The 1 year set has a slightly rotund female who prefers dry food, and a somewhat petite male who eats anything. :)
 

Norachan

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Spay cycles can upset a cat's appetite, so this may be why they're not eating as well as they used to. You can spay them at 4 months old if you can get a vet appointment. The earlier the better really.

I agree that four smaller meals a day might be better for them than two large ones. Kittens have smaller stomachs but faster metabolisms than 2 or 3 year old cats, so small, regular meals work out better for them.

You could try feeding the less dominant cat up on a table or counter top and the dominant cat on the floor. That has worked for me with some of my nervous cats. Being in a higher spot makes them feel safer and it's more work for the other cats to try and steal their food.

What is your mum's objection to smaller meals?
 
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