How much [i]should[/i] he eat????????

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Detta

How much [i]should[/i] he eat????????

Post by Detta »

Hi there....
My name is Detta, and my partner and I have just adopted our second cat from the SPCA.
He's settling in nicely, and is proving to be a wonderful addition to our little family, making us laugh on a daily basis with his crazy antics.
:lol:
Our only concern is how much he eats compared to our other cat.

Our first cat is a petite 8lb Short hair tortoiseshell....our new cat, Max, is a kingly 14lb long hair beast!!!! He isn't fat at all, in fact he's very trim and muscular, and our vet didn't seem overly concerned (just surprised) by his size. From tip of tail to tips of ears he is probably 3ft long and 1.5 high...we swear he's half shetland pony!!!! :lol:

His age has been put between 1-2 years, although the vets weren't really sure.

Max will eat at every given opportunity, in fact we sometimes forget how handsome he is as his face is nearly permanently in a food bowl.

Our first cat, Phoebe, has always self-regulated her dry food intake and we have always left food out for her to help herself as and when.

Should we control the amount of food our big boy eats?? Do you think this will unsettle our resident cat who is still getting used to the new addition?
Do cats self-regulate or is this just a myth?? Could this just be post-shelter stress that will settle in it's own time???

Answer/advice would be greatly appreciated.....in the mean time I'll try and post a pic so you guys can see how big he really is!!!!

Thanks,
Detta (",)
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shalimar775
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Re: How much [i]should[/i] he eat????????

Post by shalimar775 »

Congratulations on a big, healthy boy! My cat's name is Max,also-denominating his size. I adopted him from my cousin who became ill and could no longer take care of him. It was a blessing as I lost my own baby , Pepper of 11 yrs. do to cancer. Max is the most lovable joy of my life but he too loves to eat. He gets a can of Fancy Feast for breakfast and dry food the rest of the day. My vet says thats a normal amount yet he is 18 lbs.! I have a female cat, Molly, 3 yrs. older that eats just as much as Max yet she's slim and trim at just 8 lbs. Go figure! I think cats are like people--some can eat anything and stay slim and others get heavy just looking at food! :D
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Tambrey
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Re: How much [i]should[/i] he eat????????

Post by Tambrey »

My "Baby Roo" is the biggest of them all! We found him in the fields when he was literally a palmful of fluff...had to give him baby kitten formula and wean him onto regular kibbles eventually...he eats anything and everything...and even though we hand raised him...he still acts as if he never knows where his next meal will come from...and there is constant dry food in 4 dishes in the kitchen, and 4 more in the entry hall...so there is ALWAYS food somewhere for him and the others to eat...

He is grabby for our food too...and we really get on him for that...last week, I was sitting here in the living room eating chicken (I know, that should be done in the dining room!) and he reached a paw up, grabbed a piece of food from my plate on my lap and had it in his mouth, growling...all the way to the kitchen...my husband went after him and took it back away from him and told him no...but still...he always thinks he just HAS to eat...
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Traci
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Re: How much [i]should[/i] he eat????????

Post by Traci »

Since you probably don't know his health history, I don't think it's necessary to control the amount he eats. Since he was in a shelter environment and probably fed generic food, it would be good for him to be introduced to a quality adult maintenance food and free-fed for a while to see if his appetite changes in any way.

Assuming your vet de-wormed him? If not, now is the time to do so. Worms deplete a cat's nutrition/substance...so make sure he has been properly dewormed.
..........Traci
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Re: How much [i]should[/i] he eat????????

Post by LinZ »

I concur with everyone else...Max's eating habits seem normal. If he scarfs down food like there's no tomorrow and loses weight, THEN you can be concerned. ^-^

.......

And I assure you, my kitties' eating habits are bizarre as well. Rolly and Caspurr are both 5 years old and are brother and sister. Caspurr eats like a pig and always likes to beg and she refuses to leave you alone if she knows you have food, yet she is very petite. Now she's not bony - she's a healthy size, but still rather small for her appetite. Her brother on the other hand...I think the last time I saw Rolly eat was when he was still chowing down on kitten formula. He doesn't seem to like to eat, yet I'd say he weighs about 15 pounds. He's a big kitty, and is healthy. And a very big baby that slobbers when he's happy X) .

So as I said, don't be too worried about Max's eating, unless the scenario develops into the one I mentioned, where he eats nonstop and sheds pounds.

......

LinZ - can hardly lift Rolly with both arms
"There's three ways to a man's heart - through his stomach, through his crotch, and through his rib cage." - Squeak
Detta

Re: How much [i]should[/i] he eat????????

Post by Detta »

Hey guys,
Thanks for all your repiles, it does make us feel a little better about our "big baby". We have had him dewormed...but he's still eating like there's no tomorrow...hey ho. He is very active, so maybe he just needs all that energy...you can actually hear him running through the house!!!! Such a lump :)

He really is food obsessed, but we're hoping to use it to our advantage and get training him! Luckily he hasn't clued onto our food....yet!!!

Once again, thanks for all your replies,
Detta....head over heels in love with Max :)
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