how much should i be feeding my cat?

Question

he is 2 years old, he has been wormed. one friend said he looked thin, another said he was fine. i currently mix cat meat with dry food twice daily. he is an active cat who is out & about a lot. am i feeding him correctly?

Answer 1

I feed my cat one can of cat food a day (you know the regular size, not the large soup can size). I split it, he gets half in the morning and the other half in the early to mid evening. I also fill a small (not too small) dish of dried cat food for him to nimble on during the day. As well, occasional cat treats are a must - your cat will get very excited and enjoy his surprise ... so will you!

Answer 2

Some cats, like people, are naturally thin. If you haven't had him very long and he comes from a poor background he may need a little "plumping" up.

Meals twice a day are just fine. The recommended amounts on cat food bags are usually on the high side. A 6 oz. can daily is usually enough for a full-grown cat.

If the cat has had a poor background you can always use kitten food for a while. It is higher in protein and fat than regular cat food.

Do not use dry food only! Male cats should have 50% wet. Please take the time to go to: www.littlebigcat.com and read the article on the horrors of dry food in general. Jean Hovfe, DVM runs the site. She is a past-president of the Amer. Assoc. of Holistic Veterinarians.

Answer 3

Old Cat Lady has it right once again! The only variation I would add is that in the wild, cats food has a 70% water content. Not to concern you much, other than he needs wet food too.

We leave dry down all day long, with a "treat" of cat food at night. When you feed them twice a day, you should be doing exactly what you're doing.

Plenty of water - especially for a male. We have water fountains, which supposedly encourage them to drink a lot of water. The theory is that lots of water flushes the urinary tract system to prevent urinary tract disease (more common in the male) and renal deterioration.

By the way, Hayley's cat sure has HAYLEY trained! :-)

Answer 4

The food has a label on it that tells you how much your cats needs as a guideline. If your cat is on the thin side a little extra food will not hurt. If he gobbles up his food every time then he is hungry and needs a little more or maybe a 3rd feeding. My cat has food in her dish at all times and shes only 7 and a half pounds. My other cat however is 10lbs and she will eat anything she finds so she is given the recommended amount of food on the purina cat food label.

Answer 5

I feed mine usually twice a day with those pouches. The odd treat thrown in like a plate of tuna or something and if she keeps hassling me ill put some dry biscuits down. She is 7 but acts like and has the energy of a 2 year old and shes fine. Goes out every day and still hunts. Twice a day with a bit extra here and there.

Answer 6

What I do with my four is feed them wet food twice a day and always leave a bowl of dry food out for them , with a bowl of water, at all times.

Cats will only eat as much as they want....they won't carry on eating when they are full. Actually, I get tired of throwing the wet stuff away.

Just to make sure he isn't hungry, why don't you leave some dry stuff down for him for a few days and see what happens? Don't forget the water though.

Answer 7

If he isnt neutered, he should be, as his sexual activities can cause fluctuations in weight; he is also vunerable to a great degree to illness, disease, traffic injury death by dog or pervert. I should put down the dry food and the moist food in separate dishes, as this may mean a better balance in the moisture levels. He also needs a bowl of fresh water, but I assume you already do that. Some cats are just slim by nature, like people, and others are plump lumps!!!

Answer 8

I feed my cat exactly the same food, but he is fed more than twice a day, usually he is fed about 2 pouches of cat food a day and he is given half a pouch each time he is fed because he never eats a whole pouch in one go and then food just gets wasted as a result. I'm sure your cat will be fine on its current diet, just feed it whenever its hungry...

Answer 9

You may need to increase his intake. Have a vet check him out first and then go from there. It could be a diabetic problem, thyroid or liver issue.

Cats are grazers, it's better to leave the dry food out for them all the time and feed the meat for breakfast and dinner. Use a premium quality food and increase the recommended amount on the packet.

Answer 10

I keep my cats on Science Diet or Iams. Both are wonderful cat food and you can mostly follow the directions on the bags. Contrary to belief, cats do not require meat with their dry food. It's best your cat is on the thin side, as long as he is healthy and has had all his shots.