2007-12-17 07:53:17 · 7 answers · asked by Anonymous in Pets ➔ Cats
I advocate YES. Leaving food down at all times for cats to pick at encourages them to overeat and get fat. Getting them in to a routine of set mealtimes helps them appreciate food more!
In the wild their feeding routine would be irregular i.e they would be eating what they could get when they could get it - but your cat is not a wild animal and you can do better than that by him.
Chalice
EDIT: Do NOT feed a cat only chicken, they will slowly die from malnutrition, they need a wider variety than that! And certainly do NOT give chicken bones unless you fancy risking have the cat opened up to fix a perforated gut.
2007-12-17 08:17:48 · answer #1 · answered by Chalice 7 · 0⤊ 1⤋
I think it's best. It often works out that way naturally - you feed the cat in the morning before you go to ____, then again when you get home.
If you're home during the day, you could add a third meal and do breakfast, lunch and supper, but I think 2 is fine.
Free-feeding (leaving dry food out all the time) can lead to obesity as some cats don't know when to stop. In addition, it implies that you're feeding dry food which I don't advocate as that too can lead to obesity among other things.
2007-12-17 16:09:11 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
Cats really aren't like dogs. They are smarter and don't eat until the bowl is empty! Thus you should only need to fill up the bowl once a day (maybe even once every two days depending on your cat) and they will pace themselves and eat when they feel hungry! In response to all the other answers about cats getting fat from have their bowls full all day...my cats are perfectly normal size, the only way to prevent your cats from getting fat is to make sure they get EXERCISE! Make sure your kitten has plenty of toys to chase around!
2007-12-17 18:22:11 · answer #3 · answered by ~Jack~ 2 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Well, to truly answer this question properly you have to consider the digestive system of a cat. THey are obligate carnivores, meaning they can't process vegetable matter. They must get all of their nutrition from animal matter. Vegetable matter causes problems like kidney disease, liver failure, diabetes, obesity, and UTIs.
When a cat is fed a commercial dry (or even canned) cat food, they are inundated with carbohydrates. Because they can't get their full quota of nutrition from a single setting, they must eat repeatedly throughout the day, and this leads to obesity and diabetes.
If you feed your cat a diet comprised of raw chicken thighs (including the bones) the cat should only eat once a day, giving it's body time to filter out the ketones from the high protein serving.
2007-12-17 15:58:52 · answer #4 · answered by not too creative 7 · 0⤊ 1⤋
i have 2 cats and I don't have them on any kind of schedule. I leave a bowl of food and when it's gone I will refill it. I just don't give them people food.
2007-12-17 16:01:00 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
Of course they should.
Once you give them a feeding schedule then when they get older they will understand when feeding time is.
Not whenever they are hunger.
2007-12-17 16:20:17 · answer #6 · answered by g.horrorpops 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
yes, it will be more likely to over eat and get fat my cats are fed at 6am, 6pm and 10pm
2007-12-17 16:24:28 · answer #7 · answered by macleod709 7 · 0⤊ 1⤋