Scheduled feeding or free feeding?

[Ash]

My cats used to be outdoor cats up until about 7 months ago. Although we would feed them in the morning and in the night, they would not only hunt small animals and insects but also sometimes get food from neighbours as well. The outside eating obviously has stopped since we moved to this apartment and we have been feeding them twice a day as we always used to, plus give small amounts of extra food inbetween if they asked for it. The thing is they ask for it a lot, basically every time we enter the kitchen, and I thought they are just greedy. But today I thought, well, maybe they are just used to having food inbetween their main meals cause that's how it always used to be. And maybe it would be better to leave a bowl of dry food out at all times? Would they overeat? I don't know. Once we had forgotten to put the bag back into the cupboard and they feasted that night, with the result that they were not able to eat for two whole days, they were that full. It worried me because this large amounts of dry food could lead to dehydration (is that right?).

I think free feeding would be more convenient for us, and maybe mirror more what they have been used to all their lives, and they would be happier, but would it be good for them? Should I try it?

What are people's experiences here with scheduled vs free feeding? Did anybody ever switch from one to the other?

Another problem is that both cats are on different diets, so maybe its not possible at all (one might eat the others food)?

[Traci]

Since Noodles is on a special diet, you can't risk her eating anything outside of the diet. So, evaluate the amounts you are giving morning and evening to ensure it is enough. What and how much are you giving at other times during the day? If they are quite active during the day, then they could be expending energy in which you may want to increase their food amounts slightly.

Eating dry food doesn't cause dehydration. Eating dry food, however, should encourage the cat do drink slightly more.

[Ash]

Well, the thing is if I give them a large amount at their regular feeding time, they often leave some of it and then come back after a while to eat it. This wouldn't be a problem, but the dogs would eat it up if I just left it, so I give only as much as they eat at once. So, they come after a couple of hours and want some more. (I give them only their cat food food now, no other treats.) They seem to be in the habit of not completely stuffing themselves but eat medium or small amounts 4-5 times a day.

I thought I could put some more food in the room upstairs to eat whenever they want (and where the dogs don't go), but thinking some more about it, with Tommy getting one food and Noodle another it won't work.