How much do I need to feed them

Question

I have 2 indoor cats, a 6lb female and a 12lb male. If I mix dry and canned foods how much should I be feeding them? I know the male should be getting more. They are both 1 year old. Thanks!

Answer 1

I feed my two girls once in the morning--1/2 can fancy feast each, once around noontime--the other 1/2 can each, and their main course, Royal Canin Indoor #37 at 4PM.

The Royal Canin is split differently because one cat is 16 lb and the other is 10 lb. The bigger girl gets 1/2 cup dry, the smaller kitty gets 1/4 cup dry. Plenty of fresh water all the time.

This is a feeding schedule I developed with my vet and it sounds like it would work very well for your two kits.

Answer 2

If you feed them appropriate foods then they will tell you how much they need. Appropriate means no dry





Nutrition since there are so many bad things out there is very important to your cat’s health

Contrary to what you may have heard; dry foods are not a great thing to feed a cat.

Please read the label on what you are feeding? What are the ingredients? Do you know what they mean? Is the first ingrdiant a muscle meat like chicken or meal or other things?

http://www.catinfo.org/#Learn_How_To_Rea...

http://iml.jou.ufl.edu/projects/Spring04...

Dry foods are the number 1 cause of diabetes in cats as well as being a huge contributing factor to kidney disease, obesity, crystals, u.t.i’s and a host of other problems. Food allergies are very common when feeding dry foods. Rashes, scabs behind the tail and on the chin are all symptoms

The problems associated with Dry food is that they are loaded with grains and carbohydrates which many cats (carnivores) cannot process.  Also, Most of the moisture a cat needs is suppose to be in the food but in

Dry, 95% of it is zapped out of dry foods in the processing. Another thing, most use horrible ingredients and don't use a muscle meat as the primary ingredient and use vegetable based protein versus animal. Not good for an animal that has to eat meat to survive.

http://www.catinfo.org/#My_Cat_is_Doing_...

You want to pick a canned food w/o gravy (gravy=carbs) that uses a muscle meat as the first ingredient and doesn't have corn at least in the first 3 ingredients if at all.    The best food for cats does not contain any grains at all.

Fancy feast is a middle grade food with 9lives, friskies  whiskas lower grade canned and wellness and merrick upper grade human quality foods. I would rather feed a middle grade canned food then the top of the line dry food.

Also, dry food is not proven to be better for teeth. Does a hard pretzel clean your teeth or do pieces of it get stuck? http://www.felinefuture.com/nutrition/bp...

Please read about cat nutrition.

                               http://www.newdestiny.us/nutritionbasics...

                               http://www.catinfo.org/feline_obesity.ht...

      http://maxshouse.com/feline_nutrition.ht...

Vetinarian diets  The reason your vet thinks so highly of the pet food they sell probably has more to do with money than nutrition. In vet school, the only classes offered on nutrition usually last a few weeks, and are taught by representatives from the pet food companies. Vet students may also receive free food for their own dogs and cats at home. They could get an Iams notebook, a Purina purse and some free pizza.  http://iml.jou.ufl.edu/projects/Spring04...

Answer 3

cats will usually eat what they need without overeating.  Feed them the mixed at a certain time of day...after a short time clean up any leftovers but leave a bowl of dry food.  If it all is eaten by the next day leave a little more dry.  Do this until there is a very small amount left over.  Then stay at that level until it all disappears..then add a little more for the next day.  Exercise has a large impact on a cats appitite.

If they have been active they will need some extra.  Good luck with your cats. Suggestion over time change over to a good grade of dry food and gradually eliminate the canned.    Don  aka donsilvercat

Answer 4

if you leave a full bowl of cat food out the cats will take care of themselves and eat only when their hungry. but with the wet cat food, you can give them a spoonful or have a can each per day.  

Answer 5

If you are mixing dry and wet together, you cannot leave the mixture out for more than several hours, or it will spoil.  I assume you are meaning a mix of a bowl of dry kibble out at all times, and wet food put out several times a day.  I know nothing about your male cat, but at 12 pounds, he is a big boy.

Most cats self regulate the amount of food they will eat, and do not overeat.  Many cats are browsers, since in the wild they would be catching critters throughout the day and the night.

If you cut back to where nothing is left in the morning, then you can add a bit more to try and get a balance.

And despite what some may feel, a decent quality dry food is just as good as wet food, although a good source of water is necessary, and even a fountain can encourage them to drink more.

The key to cat food is quality.  I have provided a link to a general discussion of what your cats needs in the way of food.