#31
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My cats are also free fed a good quality kibble and they get canned food, also on demand morning, afternoon and evening (they let me know when it's time for breakfast, lunch and dinner), None of them have weight issues, if they did I'd have to control the canned stuff a little better. They all have their likes and dislikes, I agree with chico2, cats prefer variety I think, so changing up the kibbles and variety in the canned foods keeps the kitties nice and picky and me good and broke , especially feeding 4 of my own and the neighbours cat. I wouldn't have it any other way.
Cindy |
#32
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Quote:
Also more about obesity: Quote:
I am in agreement with most of this. I think it makes a lot of sense.
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I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it. ~Voltaire |
#33
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That video is hilarious! But goes more like this one at my house. I've been trying to train Buddy to get on...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xg1oszADX04
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Windy~Smoke~Buddy~Palomine~Fagan~Asker~Mickey Blue Eyes Venus “The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated” -Mahatma Gandhi "We're the renegades, we're the people; With our own philosophies; We change the course of history; Everyday people like you and me"- R A T M |
#34
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Dahmer, that's exactly what my Vinnie would do
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"The cruelest animal is the Human animal" 3 kitties,Rocky(r.i.p my boy),Chico,Vinnie |
#35
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Cats are awsome.
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I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it. ~Voltaire |
#36
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More Help Please!!!
Quote:
Do you recommend I do with Luna what the second article suggests below? (if she doesn't like the grain-free wet foods, and so far she won't touch them): "You MUST stop free-feeding dry food. After you've established set meal times for a few days or a week, begin setting out meals of ONLY good canned food. If your cat refuses to touch it, take up the food and try again a few hours later. Yes, it takes some patience to get a cat off of dry food and onto something healthier..." Thenk lower down it also says: Ideally, your feline weight loss client should eat at least a little something every 12 hours. It really is okay to let her go 12 hours without food; hopefully a bit of hunger will help as an incentive to get her to eat healthier, non-dry, food. Does anyone think though that grain-free kibbles are ok for at least part of their diets, that maybe this was written before they were available or known???? Yes I did read the whole article, but your thoughts on trying this would be so helpful everyone... to me that system seems a bit harsh, to make her eat wet food she doesn't like... but I want her to have the best too...
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Pet-parent to my sole charge 'Luna' - a six year old black cat. |
#37
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Scary,I did not read the article,but a cat can be very stubborn and if he does not like his food can make himself sick from not eating,I do not agree with keeping the food and let him go hungry for 24hours.
I have been free-feeding dry for many years and my cats will take a few bites in between their canned meals,they do not pig out.
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"The cruelest animal is the Human animal" 3 kitties,Rocky(r.i.p my boy),Chico,Vinnie |
#38
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Quote:
__________________
I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it. ~Voltaire |
#39
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Thanks again you two...
Chico2 - just FYI and to be fair, the article does mention that too (thanks though!), and just so everyone knows I would never let it go that long. Maya - thanks again for so much input! I agree with everything you said (easy answer, but true too!) I may add some unpopular wet food with or near her kibble so she gets used to the smell, maybe the taste... Luna likes wet food and gets very excited when she knows its coming... but if its not a Nutro one that she's had for years, she sniffs, maybe tastes, and always walks away. I have tried about 4-5 grain free kinds so far with no luck... would love to find one and will try a couple more. Her 1/2 cup of EVO (grain free) kibble per day - she's been off of the Nutro higher-carby-stuff 2 months only now - will stay on the floor. I may cut it down as I encourage her to try more wet foods. I know cats lose weight slowly so will be patient with that, but at 14 pounds I don't want her gaining! Vet says she's healthy at 12lb. More chat welcome, I'm back Monday... Sunny weekends to all!
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Pet-parent to my sole charge 'Luna' - a six year old black cat. |
#40
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Last thought...
Forgot this! Like my post wasn't long enough...
I do know - from occassional tastes - that Luna loves real chicken... I do NOT cook at all, but I know you can get pre-made 'meat-only' foods - thoughts? (I'm not interested in exploring/learning/feeding raw at this point.) OR is it really as easy as buying some chicken pieces and boiling them? Would that help if she won't eat canned wet food? Given what's fed to chickens though, I don't know if its even safe anymore... I hate industrial farming and myself am going more and more veggie. Holy run-on posts today!
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Pet-parent to my sole charge 'Luna' - a six year old black cat. |
#41
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Thanks for the suggestions, unfortunately, though I probably can't start feeding 5-6x per day, since I'm not home for a long enough time. And please don't think my cat is starving, she most definitely is not! I do give my cats other brands of kibble mixed in with the Felidae, trying to give them variety. I also have tried giving them wet food and Annie has some type of food sensitivity that I haven't figured out yet. She will, more often than not, puke up all her food if I even give her a bit of the wet stuff. She drinks plenty of water, is active and very healthy with a nice shiny coat. I'm also not sure about experimenting w/ other types of wet food until this recall thing is over. Maya, when I say i don't care how she got to be a 'pig', I mean, it doesn't matter now how it happened. That is how she is and I have to deal with it. You seemed to be saying it was my fault for depriving her of food, when in fact that was not the case. She was free fed for awhile after she came home with me. Micki was also free fed for about 10 years and did slowly gain weight that way. She has not always been eating the same brand and has went through periods during which she got wet food regularly. Now, I feel bad giving it to her and not Annie, because Annie knows when I open a can and gets very demanding. I think the main point to my first post was that I don't think all cats should be free fed... Annie is not the only cat I have had that eats a lot and very fast (which is why i say 'pig'), but the other one was a stray for a short period so I always attributed it to that. For some perspecitive, Annie is not very overweight (12 lbs), nor is Micki (11 lbs). Still, every time I go to the vet, I get scolded.
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#42
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My cats
My cats
Annie Micki |
#43
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Kristin,your cats look beautiful and healthy,if the vet is scolding you,because of their weight,just let it in one ear and out the other
Often,at least my vet,will say the cat is overweight and then try to sell you their Hills or Medi-Cal food,luckily many people are now better informed. My vet wants ALL cats to weigh 12lbs but cats are different,just like people,some are bigboned some are dainty. My Rocky used to weigh 16lbs and was never fat,his paws are twice the size of my other cats,now he is down to 12lb's because of Hyperthyroidism and definetly looks and feels skinny.:sad: As for free-feeding,it's the same,some cats will pig out,others,like mine won't.
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"The cruelest animal is the Human animal" 3 kitties,Rocky(r.i.p my boy),Chico,Vinnie |
#44
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Yeah, she makes me feel bad, and because I want them to be as healthy as possible I feel guilty. However, they are not starving. And no way am I going to feed some Rx diet food! Micki is rather inactive and only picks away at her food, so she gets multiple chances to eat it all while I'm home. Annie is the trouble. Honestly, I have been trying to mix in grain-free high protein kibble and before the recall was experimenting with different wet foods. It is just hard with her because of her puking problem. I am very interested in learning more about raw feeding and trying that out, however, I fully expect Annie to puke some of that up too. It is really not fun to watch or clean up after. I think part of it is because of her fast eating, and part is that she has some food sensitivities.
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#45
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Quote:
__________________
I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it. ~Voltaire Last edited by Maya; May 12th, 2007 at 04:39 PM. |
#46
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My 15 lbs cat gets only 1/2 a cup a food a day with natural balance, He eats in the morning, and by lunch it is gone.
Works well for him. But the only activity this lazy bum gets, is, playing with the dog, LOL He is not overweight at all, just a huge cat, LOL |
#47
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Hooray!!!
I posted this last week:
Quote:
The very informed store rep where I shop feels kibble alone is just fine, especially when feeding EVO or Origen (feeds his own cats EVO dry only). So I'm still unsure about how much wet to give her - but at least the 'what' is answered, if not the 'when' part. I have two other wet foods to try too, so maybe we'll luck out on a second flavor and she'll get some variety yet! Thanks to all that helped.
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Pet-parent to my sole charge 'Luna' - a six year old black cat. |
#48
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Hmmm... a few posts here, not just yours, do mention at 1/2c per day, my cat is probably starving and that this is not enough for an active cat. Looking at what some others are feeding theirs, I'm not sure mine are any more deprived than other's cats. Several do feed theirs 1/2c per day. And now you say it sounds to you like she is on a starving/binging cycle. fyi - she has always eaten fast, including when she was free fed. That is just how she is. She is a very enthusiastic and loving cat, and does everything with gusto. Likewise, Micki eats really slow and is overall a more slow moving, low-key cat. I believe the puking had more to do with her food sensitivities, because when she is on a brand that is right for her, she still eats fast, but does not puke. She doesn't seem to be hungry other than at mealtimes, but of course, if I were to give her several 1/2c meals per day, no doubt she could easily polish more than her usual rations off. Though she would not eat and eat until she explodes, she would gain weight. I think her weight is ok now, but I worry about her gaining more. Her food sensitivity issue has made it more difficult for me to incorporate wet and raw food into her diet, though I plan to keep trying. Unfortunately, I can't remember the one brand of wet food we tried that she seemed tolerant of...
One thing I do like about having feeding times, is that when one of them is not feeling well and is 'off' their food a bit, I can easily tell. Like last summer, I realized Annie was not feeling well because she actually left a few pieces of food in her bowl... |
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