I've started feeding a feral and have a small stockpile of really good wet food my cats won't touch. I'm wondering if I can leave it outside for the feral on a hot day and, if so, for how long. It would be in a shaded area.
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Wet Food Outside On Hot Days?
- Thread starter eljuna
- Start Date
Hi!
When the temperature is in the 70's (Fahranheit) you can leave canned food out up to a couple hours (based on USDA recommendations regarding bacteria growth). When the temps are in the 90's bacteria growth is pretty fast and food can stay out for an hour. Would you be able to set up your food dish so it's resting on ice in a dish underneath? That would give you a little more time.
When the temperature is in the 70's (Fahranheit) you can leave canned food out up to a couple hours (based on USDA recommendations regarding bacteria growth). When the temps are in the 90's bacteria growth is pretty fast and food can stay out for an hour. Would you be able to set up your food dish so it's resting on ice in a dish underneath? That would give you a little more time.
Try and set it out around the same time every day, along with a specific noise like tapping a spoon on something, your feral kitty will figure out your schedule after a little bit 
and then the time won't be an issue.
and then the time won't be an issue.- Thread Starter Thread Starter
- #4
A couple of hours is less time than I thought. Okay, I'll have to keep that in mind. I think I can fit an ice pack in the bottom of a bowl and place the plate over it. Will give it a try!
We were typing at the same time so I don't know if you saw my mention to utilize a specific sound too. Your feral will hear it and associate that with the food in a very short time period 
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Between their highly acidic stomach, their short guts, and their picky tastes, I would assume any foul food that somehow passed the nose test would just be regurgitated if it wasn't agreeing. I don't believe cats are affected by bacteria and spoiled food quite the same. I'm pretty sure your feral would just avoid the food past a certain time.
- Thread Starter Thread Starter
- #7
That's a great idea :-) I've been shaking the plate with dry food before setting it down and making kissy noises- I'm probably only succeeding at entertaining the neighbors- but I should probably do something more attention-getting.We were typing at the same time so I don't know if you saw my mention to utilize a specific sound too. Your feral will hear it and associate that with the food in a very short time period
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- #9
That's good to know. I've left wet food out for my own cats (indoor cats) for several hours and I was starting to wonder if I should stop doing that. Two of them have digestive issues and grazing works best for them.
