What is too much... (Food)

[Becki]

I still feed Kovu as much as he wants at 8 months because he is still growing. I can tell when he is having a spurt because he eats like a teenage boy. He eats a lot, and is still quite lean! His diet is 90% raw, 10% canned, but only Weruva that looks like shredded chicken. He won't eat any other canned. Nyah is all raw, maybe a bite of Kovu's canned here and there. She is my picky girl and I break hers up so she gets some while Kovu eats his side of beef. Otherwise, she would be a chubby SV! They haven't eaten kibble in awhile, I did have Orijen out for them, but kept throwing it away untouched.

 

[MM3]

I have always aimed at 10% of body weight for daily feedings until a kitten is 6 months old. I am content to throw some food away that they don't eat, just don't want them ever being hungry.

I also like to get away from the on demand dry food as soon as possible. It's definitely helpful while you are getting dialed in but long term it can pose some issues.

Ideally, I want to end up feeding them 2-3x a day and quantities they can consume in 15 minutes. That will keep them healthy and trim into their adult years.

Curious about your view on not leaving out dry food and possible issues.

 

[Brigitte Cowell]

Curious about your view on not leaving out dry food and possible issues.

What issues from not leaving out dry? Do you mean if you are home late and they don't get their meal on time? Other than that, I'm not sure there IS a downside in not allowing them to graze continually. They don't do that in the wild, and we shouldn't do it either!

 

[WitchyWoman]

Curious about your view on not leaving out dry food and possible issues.

This page explains the rationale against free-feeding. It is just one source of many regarding the subject http://feline-nutrition.org/nutrition/free-feeding-food-cats-are-not-cows

 

[Becki]

As with most things animal related, there are strong opinions on dry food. As I researched raw food, by default I ended up reading a ton of information on dry food. I found the heavier side of credible information pointed to not feeding kibble for many reasons from lack of nutrients to causing issues with kidney functions due to lack of hydration. I am really giving high level here, obviously. Anyway, I decided my cats would get everything they needed from raw with a bit of high quality canned, and then offer the highest quality kibble I could. That was mainly for the days no one was home to feed the raw during the day, but I have found those days are few and far between so I am simply not offering kibble any longer.

People chose to feed kibble due to convenience and I get that. If that is the situation, there are certainly brands that are better than others (the best I found is Orijen). I found in my research feeding high quality canned is preferable to kibble, feeding mainly raw is better and I am sure feeding whole prey is probably best. I haven't crossed that bridge, though! Luckily, my vet is a strong advocate for raw. That isn't always the case.

 

[Brigitte Cowell]

My vets are typically supportive of the raw diet I offer to my lot... last visit I saw one of the younger vets in the practice (as my regular one was not available) and he said he feeds his dogs raw but they don't advocate it to patients for concerns about the pet owner not being careful enough about bacterial contamination and about making sure it is properly balanced. That makes sense to me... these are both important concerns when feeding a raw diet...and far easier to simply recommend kibble and canned diets.

Definitely kibble is convenient... and I like to be able to have the cats I take to cat shows for the weekend able to eat kibble and cans rather than raw only as it is a PIA to have to pack it along. Especially if flying to a cat show! But when one of my cats went into early kidney failure (as a result of years of taking heart medication), taking away kibble from the household stabilized his kidney values and pointed out to me that it really may not be the best option for their health.

 

[Angie Panczak]

This page explains the rationale against free-feeding. It is just one source of many regarding the subject http://feline-nutrition.org/nutrition/free-feeding-food-cats-are-not-cows

I like this article, I feed 100% raw, so do not leave out, but when I feed my cats I take into consideration body condition, too fat, cut back too skinny add more. I do 6% body weight for kittens and goes down to 2% for adults. I do believe free feeding creates bored eaters and leads to obese pets. I don't fast though, I think that day would be hell for me, they wouldn't leave me alone.

 

[SV Dad]

John, I can't recall reading on these forums about a SV kitten eating so much they got fat in their adolescence. And to toss another thought, Elsa's nephews eat whatever they want, and they are still skinny as adults. These cats grow better than fertilized and watered dandelions.
Relax, Elsa seems to be a totally normal SV kitten from all of your documentation! Didn't you eat your folks out of house and home in your teenage years?

 

[John Campbell]

John, I can't recall reading on these forums about a SV kitten eating so much they got fat in their adolescence. And to toss another thought, Elsa's nephews eat whatever they want, and they are still skinny as adults. These cats grow better than fertilized and watered dandelions.
Relax, Elsa seems to be a totally normal SV kitten from all of your documentation! Didn't you eat your folks out of house and home in your teenage years?

Rascaldad, How much do you feed your 2? Approx weight?

 

[SV Dad]

4.5 ounces per cat per day. And all the dry kibble they want, and it is evident they are snacking on it.