People That Feed Only Wet Food, How Do You Afford To Do This?

[LTS3]

Yeah I'm confused with the wellness feeding instructions. According to them, a 14 pound cat should get three 5.5 ounce cans, but now I'm hearing it should only be one 5.5 ounce can?

Ignore the feeding instructions

Generally, you don't feed by the size of the can. You feed by calories. Two different brands of the same size and similar variety can have very different calorie amounts. Brand X chicken dinner might have 175 calories while Brand ABC chicken dinner has 125 calories. A general rule of thumb is to feed 20 to 25 calories per pound of body weight daily. A 10 lb cat might need 200 to 250 calories daily but every cat is different. Adjust calorie intake if the cat is gaining or losing weight. One 5.5 oz isn't enough for most adult cats daily so you'll need to add in part of another can. If you feed 3 oz cans or those pouched / tray foods, you may need to feed 3 or 4 or more of those daily.

Buying cans in cases instead of individually can be more cost effective. Some brands are available in 13 oz can sizes which you can split up into portion sizes and freezer if needed. Buy during those giant pet food sales Petco and Petsmart often have.

 

[WillowMarie]

This thread really helped me find great deals and got me checking chewy daily to catch really good sales: Cat Food Deals Forum? I post in there often, and feel free to post as well if you find a good deal anywhere!

My sale price I buy at is normally ~40-50 cents/3 oz., but have sometimes seen lower. If my stock is getting low, I may grab sales closer to 60 cents/3 oz. I stock up with multiple cases to get free shipping and keep a surplus, which I rotate brands and flavors. I've been able to get Dr. Elsey's clean protein, wellness complete, BFF, Whole Earth, Hound and Gato, Merrick, Nutro Max, and American Journey under 60 cents/3 oz. My kitties all love fancy feast, so still mix that in, and the kittens get friskies (sales 20-30 cents/3 oz) or other toppers to mix with healthier pates of better brands they are hesitant to eat on their own. Luckily my older girl will eat anything, so she gets all the better brands in her rotation with little to no friskies.

They get 2 3 oz. servings each a day, with a tablespoon or less each or dry food to maintain healthy weight. So for 6 3 oz. servings if paid at the higher end of 50 cents, I pay about $3/day.



If there are sales on gift cards where I normally stock up on cat food or litter, I take advantage and buy a couple to have on hand. So sometimes saving 5-10% with those deals just by using the discounted gift cards. There are also sites to buy discounted gift cards people are reselling. So a couple months ago when Petco was having great sales on food, I saved even more by purchasing some gift cards at 6% discount to pay for my order.



I also have cashback sites that offer a percent back on online purchases, like 1-10% back. Sometimes they have special promos, like in Dec. a site had a limited time $10 back on $50+ orders on Chewy. Some of my other sites offer $3-5 bonuses on smaller purchases occasionally. Those savings can normally get transferred to my bank account once credited (can take a couple months) to put towards future purchases. Hope some of these tips and tricks are helpful to you! I love chatting deals, so if you have any questions, etc. feel free to reach out!

 

[LTS3]

Check the clearance section of big box store and grocery stores for pet food. I remember one time when I was at Wal Mart and there was a huge shelving section with FF on sale for like $0.30 each. None were close to expiring or damaged. The "end caps" of store aisles at big box store often have clearance items. Not the end facing the main aisle but the other end, usually facing the store wall. You can sometimes find really good clearance items on the end caps.

 

[susanm9006]

One 5.5 oz can would definitely not be enough for a 14 pound cat. My 14.5 pound cat eats 8.5 oz a day of wet food and 3 tablespoons dry. If he wasn’t eating any dry, he would be eating maybe around 11 oz a day of wet. I have him at 25 calories per pound of body weight a day. I ignore the feeding instructions on the bags and cans. Just add up the calories.

The differing needs of cats. My 14 pound girl gets 3.9 ounces of wet food a day plus a tablespoon of kibble and six pieces of temptation type treats. She has been on this for a couple years hasn’t lost anything weight.

 

[arr]

The differing needs of cats. My 14 pound girl gets 3.9 ounces of wet food a day plus a tablespoon of kibble and six pieces of temptation type treats. She has been on this for a couple years hasn’t lost anything weight.

Yes, they are all so different! Maybe it’s because my boy is an active one year old and I think he’s still growing a little.

 

[maggie101]

Thanks for sharing! Just curious, 4 times a day is a lot, isn't it recommended to feed your cat 2 or 3 times a day? For scheduled feedings?

For an adult cat it is best to feed smaller portions many times a day. I keep telling my cat peaches, you can't eat like that anymore! So feeding 4x a day she is not as starving for her next meal. She would gobble it up then throw up. It seems, older they get,more delicate their tummies. Just like people!

 

[mizzely]

My 9 lb cat eats about 180 calories a day. That's about 1 Friskies or 2 Fancy Feast. I shop sales and keep to more "budget" brands. Costs me $30 to $45 a month for 100% canned diet.

 

[Katdog]

On a separate note to this particular thread- mizzely how active is your cat? I ask bc I’ve considered lowering my 25 cal per lb to 20 cal per lb for my cat but idk sounds like it’s not enough for her and I don’t want her to feel hungry all the time either?

 

[mizzely]

On a separate note to this particular thread- mizzely how active is your cat? I ask bc I’ve considered lowering my 25 cal per lb to 20 cal per lb for my cat but idk sounds like it’s not enough for her and I don’t want her to feel hungry all the time either?

She's not very active, and she is spayed. She's 11. She rarely finishes all her food over 24 hours so I know she's not starving.