Dry and wet -- one cat's experience

"Phil P." wrote in message
...

"cybercat" wrote in message
...

"Phil P." wrote in message
...

"Kelly Greene" wrote in message
...

"Phil P." wrote in message
...

"Kelly Greene" wrote in message
...

"Stan Brown" wrote in message
t...
. I
obeyed, but there was a problem because Milo likes to take a bite
or
two, walk away, then come back later. So the food quickly dried
out
and became unappealing. There was thus a constant demand for me
to
replace uneaten (and expensive) food with fresh.

Don't leave more than a bite or two when you leave in the morning.
He'll
be
hungry enough when you get home to eat more at one time. He needs
a
feeding
schedule. Soon he'll learn he has to eat everything at one time as
cats
do
in nature and not nibble all day long.

Ah- but in nature cats *do* eat all day long:

Ah, - but they do NOT eat all day long.


Okey dokey...





lol! It would've been an endless debate- and like trying to nail jello to
the ceiling.


Particularly with this wingnut. I don't blame you a bit.

"Phil P." wrote in message
...
lol! It would've been an endless debate- and like trying to nail jello to
the ceiling.

You could tell us where you saw cats eating constantly and all day long.
You could have told us what they were eating. Mice? Birds? Small snakes?
Baby rabbits?

I just told you what we observed where I live among the feral cats.

--
The Parrish *~, American-American-American.
* * * * * *
"The Mass is the most perfect form of making money."
* * * * * * * *

"Phil P." wrote in message
...

"cybercat" wrote in message
...

"Phil P." wrote in message
...

"Kelly Greene" wrote in message
...

"Phil P." wrote in message
...

"Kelly Greene" wrote in message
...

"Stan Brown" wrote in message
t...
. I
obeyed, but there was a problem because Milo likes to take a bite
or
two, walk away, then come back later. So the food quickly dried
out
and became unappealing. There was thus a constant demand for me
to
replace uneaten (and expensive) food with fresh.

Don't leave more than a bite or two when you leave in the morning.
He'll
be
hungry enough when you get home to eat more at one time. He needs
a
feeding
schedule. Soon he'll learn he has to eat everything at one time as
cats
do
in nature and not nibble all day long.

Ah- but in nature cats *do* eat all day long:

Ah, - but they do NOT eat all day long.


Okey dokey...





lol! It would've been an endless debate- and like trying to nail jello to
the ceiling.



And pointless, because, "Cats" don't do anything. Individual cats do
things.....Some eat all day long, and some eat once or twice a day.......

"Kelly Greene" wrote in message
...

"Phil P." wrote in message
...
lol! It would've been an endless debate- and like trying to nail jello
to
the ceiling.

You could tell us where you saw cats eating constantly and all day long.


I didn't say cats eat 'constantly' all day long, now did I? I said "in
nature cats *do* eat all day long". Followed by "Cats typically eat 10 to 20
small meals throughout the day and night." 10-20 smalls a day breaks down
to about 1 1/2 to 2 1/2 hours between meals. That is not 'constantly' but
it *is* "all day long". That is the natural feeding behavior of cats in the
wild and from where the grazing feeding behavior in house cats evolved.

Here's a brief excerpt from a study by John Bradshaw- the feline biologist,
published in the Journal of Nutrition a few years ago:

"That they are descended from a specialist predator is readily apparent from
their dentition, which is dominated by large canines, used to sever the neck
vertebrae of mammalian prey, and carnassials for shearing flesh from bone;
the incisors and molars are relatively small. Unlike wolves, they are
exclusively solitary hunters, and therefore usually take prey with much
lower body-mass than their own, necessitating several kills per day. This is
reflected in the ad libitum meal-patterning of
domestic cats, which take several small meals, spread throughout the 24 h of
the day"


Anyone who free feds their cats can tell you their cats nibble at least
10-15 times a day- or more if they're active.



You could have told us what they were eating. Mice? Birds? Small snakes?
Baby rabbits?

An average-size mouse provides about 25-30 kcals- smaller mice and babies
provide less. An intact cat in the wild has a daily energy requirement of
about 60 kcals/kg or about 30 kcals/lb. Do the math.



I just told you what we observed where I live among the feral cats.

I understand that- but you don't know what they're doing or how often they
eat when you don't see them. Cats are like icebergs- there's a hell of a
lot more to them than what you see.

Do a search on the origins of the feeding behavior in domestic cats-

"Bill Graham" wrote in message
...

"Phil P." wrote in message
...

"cybercat" wrote in message
...

"Phil P." wrote in message
...

"Kelly Greene" wrote in message
...

"Phil P." wrote in message
...

"Kelly Greene" wrote in message
...

"Stan Brown" wrote in message
t...
. I
obeyed, but there was a problem because Milo likes to take a
bite
or
two, walk away, then come back later. So the food quickly dried
out
and became unappealing. There was thus a constant demand for
me
to
replace uneaten (and expensive) food with fresh.

Don't leave more than a bite or two when you leave in the
morning.
He'll
be
hungry enough when you get home to eat more at one time. He
needs
a
feeding
schedule. Soon he'll learn he has to eat everything at one time
as
cats
do
in nature and not nibble all day long.

Ah- but in nature cats *do* eat all day long:

Ah, - but they do NOT eat all day long.


Okey dokey...





lol! It would've been an endless debate- and like trying to nail jello
to
the ceiling.



And pointless, because, "Cats" don't do anything. Individual cats do
things.....Some eat all day long, and some eat once or twice a day.......


Speaking of pointless...

"Phil P." wrote
Anyone who free feds their cats can tell you their cats nibble at least
10-15 times a day- or more if they're active.

I never did when we had Boo because she didn't know when to stop. Now that I
have my skinny Gracie and the kitten, I feed them all they want, which does
not wind up being much, but they do look for it at least ten times a day. I
wind up putting a dish out in the morning, then putting it away after half
an hour or so, and putting it out again when they are sniffing around. I
have now have dry out as well, and they graze throughout the day.

"Kelly Greene" wrote in message
...

"Phil P." wrote in message
...

"Kelly Greene" wrote in message
...
You could tell us where you saw cats eating constantly and all day
long.


I didn't say cats eat 'constantly' all day long, now did I? I said "in
nature cats *do* eat all day long". Followed by "Cats typically eat 10
to
20
small meals throughout the day and night." ****10-20 smalls a day
breaks
down
to about 1 1/2 to 2 1/2 hours between meals. **** That is not
'constantly'
but
it *is* "all day long". That is the natural feeding behavior of cats in
the
wild and from where the grazing feeding behavior in house cats evolved.

OK. But that's not what I observed in two rural areas of TN and one in NY
State.

Perhaps you need to observe a little closer.



Here's a brief excerpt from a study by John Bradshaw- the feline
biologist,
published in the Journal of Nutrition a few years ago:

"That they are descended from a specialist predator is readily apparent
from
their dentition, which is dominated by large canines, used to sever the
neck
vertebrae of mammalian prey, and carnassials for shearing flesh from
bone;
the incisors and molars are relatively small. Unlike wolves, they are
exclusively solitary hunters, and therefore usually take prey with much
lower body-mass than their own, necessitating several kills per day.
This
is
reflected in the ad libitum meal-patterning of
domestic cats, which take several small meals, spread throughout the 24
h
of
the day"

YES! Several small meals a day. Not a small meal every 1 1/2 to 2 1/2
hours as you mentioned above (see **** above).


10 to 20 small meals over a 24 hour period averages out to about 1 1/2 to 2
1/2 hours, more or less, between meals. Do the math.


Or nibbling constantly all
day on dry kibble. Worse if it contains filler grains like corn.


I was discussing the natural feeding behavior of cats. That's it for me.

If you want to cite websites that discuss dry verses wet cat food, read
mine. It was the first factual discussion and the best, and from where all
the other sites obtained their references.



Dry Food vs Canned Food. Which is really better?

http://maxshouse.com/feline_nutritio...i ch_is_reall

"Kelly Greene" wrote in message
...

"Bill Graham" wrote in message
...

"Phil P." wrote in message
...
lol! It would've been an endless debate- and like trying to nail jello
to
the ceiling.


And pointless, because, "Cats" don't do anything. Individual cats do
things.....Some eat all day long, and some eat once or twice a day.......


This is true. Unfortunately all to many cats who eat all day long (kibble
left out) are becoming obese and unhealthy. Mine are thriving on 3
wet/raw meals a day. I will probably phase out the raw meat because they
really don't like it and canned is more convenient.
--
Yes. Some of my cats have been overweight from time to time. One had a
thyroid problem and got very obese before we figured out what was wrong with
her, and had her thyroid half-removed....Now she is back to normal and is
doing fine. Another is too thin, but he is over 15 years old, and is not
well at all. We never know whether he is hurting or not. and we keep a sharp
eye on him so we will know when to call the vet and have him put
down......We were going to do just that last month, but he seemed to regain
some ground, and has been doing rather well for the last couple of weeks. He
is my wife's favorite and she babies him all the time. With five of them, we
never know just what to expect, and it is hard to keep their food separate
from one another.....We do what we have to do to keep them all healthy......

"Kelly Greene" wrote in message
...

"Phil P." wrote in message
...

"Bill Graham" wrote in message
...
And pointless, because, "Cats" don't do anything. Individual cats do
things.....Some eat all day long, and some eat once or twice a
day.......


Speaking of pointless...


I think what makes the difference is whether dry kibble is being fed or
wet/raw meat is being fed. And then cats are very much individuals.


B-K seldom eats anything but dry food, although I have been able to get him
to eat some roast chicken from time to time....He was thoroughly sick of
human food after I got him home from the Burger King parking lot.....He is
the one who hunts, so he supplements his dry food diet with fresh kills now
and then......

Suddenly, without warning, Kelly Greene exclaimed (2/23/2010 7:33 PM):

"Bill Graham" wrote in message
...

"Kelly Greene" wrote in message
...

This is true. Unfortunately all to many cats who eat all day long
(kibble left out) are becoming obese and unhealthy. Mine are
thriving on 3 wet/raw meals a day. I will probably phase out the raw
meat because they really don't like it and canned is more convenient.
--

Yes. Some of my cats have been overweight from time to time. One had a
thyroid problem and got very obese before we figured out what was
wrong with her, and had her thyroid half-removed....Now she is back to
normal and is doing fine. Another is too thin, but he is over 15 years
old, and is not well at all. We never know whether he is hurting or
not. and we keep a sharp eye on him so we will know when to call the
vet and have him put down......We were going to do just that last
month, but he seemed to regain some ground, and has been doing rather
well for the last couple of weeks. He is my wife's favorite and she
babies him all the time. With five of them, we never know just what to
expect, and it is hard to keep their food separate from one
another.....We do what we have to do to keep them all healthy......

That's all you can do. It's more than many other people do. Our
two, here since
last Nov 9th, are both slender. But who knows what the future will
bring when they're
older and less active.

Can go both ways. My cat was just slightly chubby most of her life; now
that she's 13 I have some trouble keeping the weight ON her. Although,
that's not so much age as diet. After 3 or so years on a wet diet,
she's still convinced I'm torturing her and if she just asks enough,
I'll relent and feed her dry again.

My dedicated obligate carbivore

jmc