Overnight Travel & Cat W Kidney Disease & Feeding

[Clearcat]

i have to fly out of town for a job interview (yes!) but it’s going to be about a 2 day event. Flying in the night before and then leaving the following evening. My cat has been doing well with her food and semi normal bowel movements. I no longer have to give her hairball formula to have a bowel movement. She goes on her own.

Here’s the problem, I only give her wet food. She’s been off any dry (dental treats) since beginning of February per vets orders. I live alone, no family in my state and my friends are scared or hate cats. So! Any suggestions as to how I can keep my cat healthy for these 24 hours or so.

Nope, no money for boarding. Hence the job interview in another state. My first bite in almost 9 months!

 

[Clearcat]

My old girl end of April.

 

[KarenKat]

What a beauty, and congrats on your job interview! Good luck!

Have you looked into a cat sitter that can come by once or twice a day? We hire one once per day for $30. She comes by for food, water, litter box and play for 30 min.

There are also refrigerated automatic feeders you can buy for wet food that can be on a schedule. I would try it out when you’re home to make sure it’s working correctly though.

We have a similar dilemma. We will be gone for a week and our girl is food oriented. A cat sitter will come by and feed her a meal in the morning but we are going to try a timed feeder for the afternoon. Good luck on the kitty food and interview!

 

[Clearcat]

Thanks!

Refrigerated auto feeders??? Never knew. I’m trying to think how this will work. At the most, she goes from 8 or 9 pm until 5 am without food. But then it’s about every 4-5 hours. Around 11 am and 6 pm being the big meals. So she’d need at least 3 meals while I’m gone.

I’m going to look for this refrigerator auto feeder.

Thanks.

Oh, I live on someone’s property behind a gate and they have a big dog. No, unwanted guests are not welcome.

 

[KarenKat]

Yeah, I just found out recently too. There was a great article I was just reading on different feeders on this site. Looks like the wet food feeders use ice packs, rather than an actually refridgeration process. So it would depend how long the icepack could stay cold.

Best Automatic Feeders For Cats - Which One Should You Choose?

Maybe that will help? I have personally not tried the auto-feeder system yet.

 

[Clearcat]

The cautionary tale scared the crap out of me....

“Some automatic feeders are refrigerated so you can safely keep wet foods in them for several days if needed. Some types of food may dry out a little by the time of serving but it’s not likely to spoil, i.e. bacteria will have a hard time multiplying in it. Other units have a compartment where you can place a freezer pack to keep it cool.

While some sources will claim you can keep wet food out for a longer period of time without refrigeration, consider this cautionary tale from forum user FakeGourmet:

“… my late brother’s cat died from food in the auto-feeder developing bacteria in the summer months. She was elderly, but the vet tested the food and said that is exactly why she died. The food was out less than 8 hours…”

Now how bad would it be to set out high end kibble for one day? Bacteria and wet food has just scared the crap out of me.

 

[KarenKat]

Personally I think the risks are lower to feed kibble than trying wet food with no one checking on the cat. You had mentioned she was on wet food per vet’s orders and I wasn’t sure if that was something serious that had to be adhered to. I am also nervous with wet food in a feeder, and I just saw @Frankophile Feline Fan post a comment on that same article that after trying the ice pack autofeeder the food was warm after 6 hours. That was news to me today and I agree worrisome.

Full disclosure we are going through our own digestion issue with our 10-year tabby and he’s on kibble only until we sort those out (his digestion seems better on the kibble than trying a wet food transition). He has had dry all his life, and as long as your girl is fine eating the food I don’t see an issue feeding it for a couple days. Obviously my non-expert opinion.

 

[Clearcat]

My cats always been on wet but I’d give her dental bites which are crunchy. Vet told me to stop them, so I did. Vet was happy to know I only fed wet and told me to continue.

For all I know, regardless of what I put out, she’ll strike until I return. My absence might upset her. She’s done that years ago when I tried new food. She can be stubborn.

She’ll have loads of fresh water. I’m going to look at some high fiber dry food from my specialty pet store. They sell small bags unlike Petsmart and Petco. My other cat that died last year loved Origen. Well I’m gonna be honest, he ate anything. This one, is far more picky.

Honestly , I’m stressing more about her than the interview!

 

[KarenKat]

If it helps you can set up a camera so at least you can see and if she’s ok?

 

[Clearcat]

Omg you read my mind!

 

[Clearcat]

I was up for 4 hours after midnight worrying about what to feed her. Running up and down Tanya’s site. Settled on Hills. It’s non therapeutic but numbers are close. I’m exhausted

Hill's Science Diet Adult 11+ Indoor Age Defying

Phosphorus 0.60
Protein. 35.30
Sodium. 0.30
Fat. 19.80
Carbs. 30.70
Cal. 3755

Hills prescription diet k/d

Phosphorus 0.51
Protein. 30.10
Sodium. 0.25
Fat. 23.10
Carbs. 40.50
Cal. 4239