I've been putting my male cat on a diet per vet recommendation. He was 20 pounds and now he's 18 ... and he's getting into everything hunting for food. I just chased him off the dining table. Darn cat. Oh, sorry, it's not a cat - it's a pig that looks like a really cute cat.
The female one is being switched to canned food. She weighs hardly anything; it's a wonder she doesn't just float in the air. She won't hardly touch the canned food. My non-sympathetic self says when she's hungry enough, she'll eat it. Some tiny little voice somewhere is saying to get on the web and look for suggestions on how to make the switch.
Though piglet is hungry, he won't touch the canned food either. In fact, he only eats the dry food and nothing else--not even treats. Our cats have never gotten treats because they simply don't eat them. We've tried. Anyhow, it's simpler that way.
cat problems
Saturday, January 14, 2006
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3 comments:
One thing you might want to try with the cat who's on the diet is actually feeding him more frequently even though you are reducing the overall amount of food. I did that one with one of my dogs as she adjusted to slightly lesser amounts of food. By feeding them more frequently they get over the feel of being hungry. They do adjust. It just takes a little time and patience (and hiding the garbage can).
Good luck -- I have the same problem with my big boy (21.5 pounds) and little girl (11 pounds on a good day.) We leave dry food down for them all the time and when we notice him gorging, we lift it up for a few hours. Otherwise, he tends to just graze at it throughout the day, and then both get a teaspoon of wet food at our dinner time (which they both seem to like and have gotten used to.) Good luck!
Both cats are over 7 years old. Piglet is very playful, but it's true I don't spend much time with them. They're usually curled up sleeping somewhere (right now piglet is in my lap and the grey one is on the floor nearby).
I will try more frequent smaller meals for piglet per Lisa's suggestion. I'm soaking the dry food and then mixing a little of the canned food with it for the transition. It's working and I think it will take a week or two to switch over completely. They're fed separately now so that I can regulate piglet's food and also to keep him out of they grey one's food.
We actually have a large dog crate converted to a cat house (not convenient for cleaning, but oh well). They're usually confined if we're not available to keep an eye on them. Sometimes as a treat, they are allowed to be free while we sleep at night, but usually not.
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