How many times a day are you supposed to feed your cat?

Question

My cats are outside cats but I let them inside to be fed because I can't leave the bowl outside or neighbor cats will eat it all. (I do leave the water bowl outside) But it seems like they meow to be fed like 3-4 times a day! I thought they were supposed to be fed just once a day, and my husband says that you're also supposed to let them fast one day for the benefit of their digestion. What's the rule about this?

fast one day a week, I mean

Answer 1

In your situation, set the total amount for them for the day, and then split that into as many meals as you're around to feed them. If you can only manage 2 that would be fine, but more is fine too.

Perhaps you could give them one meal outside - just enough that you know they'll finish up, and then let them inside for another meal. That way even if you have a busy schedule, you could feed them before leaving for work, and then again when you get home. Or something like that.

Fasting isn't a good idea on a regular basis. It is better for cats' digestions that they aren't feed too much or too often - their systems need time to deal with the food that is already present, but there's no benefit to mandated fasting for the average cat.

Answer 2

It's best to feed you cats twice a day, morning and night. Depending on the size of the cat, you should be doing 1/4 cup twice a day for the smaller cats and more for larger cats.

As far as the fasting thing, that is not something our doctor would ever recommend to an owner. Starving the cat for one day a week will not help with digestion, that just seems plain mean. Cats have very sensative stomachs and are often picky because of this. Normal cats can control their digestion very well, unless there is a hairball problem. Just feed high quality food and there should be no problems.

Hope this helps

Answer 3

I think it depends on the cat. Some say once a day, some twice a day. Mine eats all day or whenever she wants. She is very active and I think she requires more food. If I don't give her food when she wants it she will jump on the washer, climb on the shelf above and knock her box of food off. Then she pounces on it and begins trying to open the box. That's when I save the day and feed her. Haha. Yeah my friends and family say she's spoiled but that's ok. :) Just feed your cats 2 times if they are still actiing like they want food after only 1 feeding. Maybe morning and night would be good. I've never heard of the fasting thing. Good luck and Meeeowww! :)

Answer 4

I think that depends on the cat -

But if you take a look at a cats physiology - the cats stomach is no bigger than a few tablepoons, and a cat on its own will eat several small catches a day -

So, I think if you can manage it, it would be better to feed more times, spread out, rather than once a day.

I feed my cats four times a day - once in the morning, when I get home from work, at 9:00pm and then right before I go to bed.

Answer 5

no! never make a cat go 24 hrs without food. I feed my cats 3 times a day, when I wake up, when I come home from work and before I go to bed. Look on the bag of food and see what the feeding instructions are per weight and divide that portion up into 2-5 meals a day.

Answer 6

Depends on how old they are and how much you feed them each time.

I don't think fast is good idea at all. I've never heard of it. If you buy their food(either dry or wet), it will say exactly how much you need to feed them depends on their age/month.

For example, for my kitten, I feed him whenever he meows for food. I give him 1/3 cup of dry food in the morning. And when I come home after work, I give him some wet can food(just a little amount-one or two table spoon- that he can finish. if you give too much, they'll leave it and leftover wet food isn't good anymore).

Also, sometimes, I feed him some treat snacks that he loves(once a day). Before I go to bed, I give him different kind(I have two different type of dry food) of dry food for him-about 1/4 cup just in case he gets hungry during the night.

So for me, I guess I'm feeding him 3-5 times per day. My cat is a kitten(almost 4 months old). But at first when I got him, I fed him differently. I also asked his vet, and he said it's o.k to feed him as much as he wants when he is a kitten.

But if your cats are older, you just want to feed them twice per day at least/at most. Every cat food has different directions, so you want to follow the direction of the food that you get.

Answer 7

You usually feed them twice a day once in the morning and again at night. This guidline is for 5.5 oz can and only if you are feeding canned food and not dry food.

4 lbs cat should eat 1/2 can a day
8 lbs cat should eat 1 can a day
12 lbs cat should eat 1-1/2 cans a day
16 lbs cat should eat 2 cans a day

Answer 8

First talk with the vet. Different breeds, different needs. Beware that as outside cats, yours' maybe eating out more than you think, especally if there are other outside cats in the area. Age can also be a factor. Younger cats will need more than older ones. A one day a week fast maybe grood, IF you have a zoo raised lion or tiger(Because of the relative inactivity.). However, unless your vet approves the idea,you will only make it easier for your cats to eat out more often.

What ever you decide,Good Luck!

Answer 9

Well most food will have the recommendations on the bag to tell you the correct amount, I personally feed my cat once a day, at supper time, and he gets 1 cup of food. He is 5 years old. If I were to feed him twice a day it would be two portions of half a cup. It depends on age and weight for the correct amount, if you are not sure, you can call the vet and ask.

Answer 10

Check the feeding suggestion on the cat food package. I feed my cat 3 times a day (breakfast, lunch, & dinner) by dividing up the suggested food amount for the day into 3 different increments. This seems to work out pretty well. Of course, you may need to alter the amounts (more or less) depending on your cats needs. The suggested amount is simply a baseline.