Should We Go From Free Feeding To Scheduled Feeding?

Question

My mom just adopted a cat from the S.P.C.A. We were told the cat only ate dry and only ate on free feeding. We switched to feeding her some more wet as I asked in my other question but I want to know will it be easy to switch to scheduled feeding? How willI do it? Should I take all her food away for tonight then give her (what ever her food bag recommends) in the morning then feed her that same amount at night, an so on? Or should I only feed her in the morning, or keep free feeding?

I need help, please!!!!

Btw the cat is 6 years old, so I don't know, if it will be easy... :S

Answer 1

Scheduled feeding is easy. They get fed for 20 minutes first thing in the morning (then take the bowl up). Then again around 5pm when you get home from work/school. Then again for 20 minutes around 8pm. This gives them in between time to sleep and whatever, yet still allows enough time to eat as much as they need.



Make it a special thing--call them with a special call and tap on the side of the bowl with a spoon. Make a fuss when you set it down and say their name as the bowl gets put in front of them. The cat will learn the routine very quickly.

Answer 2

Switching to scheduled feeding is easy and it's a much healthier choice for the cat since she won't be able to overeat and you'll know how exactly how much she's eating (helpful for determining whether or not the cat is sick).



I would recommend starting to restrict the amount of time the free-feeding bowl is out to an hour in the morning and an hour at night. This will introduce the concept that when food is down, you have to eat before it goes away. Once she catches on to this, you can start measuring out the food as indicated on the package and give her half in the morning and half at night, with a half hour each time before taking the food up again.



It took my cats about a week to transition from free-feeding to regulated meal times but it was totally worth it and now they know that I'm the one feeding them rather than some magical, always-full bowl :)



**Added** A cat who was previously starved is exactly the kind of cat who needs regulated meal times, because she is going to eat as much as she can and when the food is endless, she will get obese. I have a dog who we brought in after being a stray and now 15 years later he still eats and eats and eats like there is never going to be any more food, ever. He would weigh 200lbs if we didn't restrict his intake.

Answer 3

seems to me that loose feeding could bring about weight income and better meals costs, by using fact which you are able to no longer administration how plenty they devour. they'd devour like the meals is going to vanish on scheduled feeding, yet as quickly as that is long previous, that is long previous, and you recognize in simple terms how plenty the canines ate! I even have constantly had scheduled feeding. That way i know how plenty they are getting, who's eating what, and - considerable - whilst somebody *isn't* eating...by using fact that which would be an illustration of a difficulty. i individually like my canines to bolt down their meals, whether i will understand why it alarms some people. It makes feeding plenty much less complicated once you're vacationing with the canines.

Answer 4

Best to feed not more then 3 meals a day till she gets used to scheduled meals. Then go to 2 meals a day. She will get very fat if you free feed her at her age.



Only kittens up to 5 months old should be free fed - after that 2 scheduled meals is best.



You can monitor how much they are eating or not eating. With free feeding you have no way of knowing how much the cat really is eating.