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My kittens, now nearly 9 months old, gobble up their canned/wet food. They have plenty of food to eat since there’s always dry food available which they graze on throughout the day. On occasion, one of them eats so fast that she vomits the food right back up. They’re very healthy and I’ve consulted with vet who suggested feeding them in smaller portions, possibly in different bowls, located in different areas! They get very excited when I open the canned food. I thought all this excitement and fast eating might calm down as they got older, but I’m not seeing that yet. Have any of you successfully slowed down your cats eating. Perhaps used a ‘slow feeder’? Thanks in advance for sharing your experiences!
I can't offer any advice but I have a similar problem with my 8 month old kitten Luna ("Luna-Tuna")
Both my cats are black with white "stars" on their chest so they look almost identical. I mention this because I think Luna must have some Siamese in her while Leila (3 yrs) doesn't. Luna is very vocal and meows constantly when not engaged in play or resting. Naturally, I think she's hungry so I feed her and she's the first one to her bowl. I got her about a month after I got my 3 year old Leila who seemed perfectly content being fed twice a day. Since adopting Luna I now feed them 3x/day most days with some treats in between. I notice Leila has gotten a tad heavier and Luna (the kitten) is growing like a weed.
In the AM I feed them kibble (Blue Wilderness) I've had to mix both the kitten chow and the adult chow together as Luna was so voracious she would eat out of Leila's bowl instead. Now that we're down to a routine I won't have to do this any more. They are content to eat side-by-side so I just have to make sure I put Luna's bowl down first.
In the early/mid afternoon if Luna squawks and/or I find Leila patiently waiting in the kitchen for me I'll feed them a small amount of kibble.
For dinner (around 5-6 PM) I mix half a small can of wet food (also Blue Wilderness) with any left over kibble. I started to do this because sometimes they would leave half a bowl of the canned food and I didn't want it wasted.
Maybe doing a half-half mix will slow your kittens down some. I suspect that they're hungry because they're still growing and expending more energy.
I'll be following this thread to see what more experienced cat owners recommend.
There is this slow eater bowl and it has like ridges inside. Think of it like a maze so your kittens would have a harder time getting the food so resulting for them to slowly eat.
First, I would get rid of the kibble. They don't need it and it's not good for them.
Each cat should have his or her own meal spot and own dish. From your post it sounds like you are feeding them together? This causes stress and makes them feel like they are competing for resources.
Each cat should be fed in a different spot, preferably out of sight of the other, or at least on opposite sides of the room or at different heights.
Feed smaller meals more often. Try four meals a day. Add a little water to each meal to slow them down a bit.
If I see mine is eating too much too fast, I try and distract him a little with something interesting and start playing with him so he doesn't eat a whole can of food in one quick setting.
Daisy, sorry to hear you’re dealing with similar issues. Adding kibble to the wet food like you suggested might work! Interestingly, they don’t ever ‘ask’ to be fed. but once I take out their bowls and the can, they’re so excited that if they were kids, you’d say they were jumping up and down!
Nanny Goat, do you use those bowls for wet/canned food? These seem quite large!
Sunday mornings. I’m going to keep searching for a bowl that slows their eating,
Cats mom, yes they each have their own bowl but they’re not all that far apart. I’ll try separating them further to see if that makes a difference. And I like the idea of adding some water to the food! Another thing for me to try! Thanks!
Jowel, my cats are so focused on the food that I don’t think I could distract them even if I stood on my head! LOL!
There is this slow eater bowl and it has like ridges inside. Think of it like a maze so your kittens would have a harder time getting the food so resulting for them to slowly eat.
I wish I had had that 17 years ago. Both of my cats are 17. One still gobbles it down, just like she did when I got her when she was a few months old; only now it comes back up every few days. She's still a tiny thing though, maintaining her svelte 7.5 lbs all these years despite how much she eats. She literally eats three to four times the amount of the other cat.
I just ordered 2 new bowls which are ‘’slow feeders’. They seem like they would help! They’ve got a raised heart shape in the middle of the bowl so it’s more difficult to get at the food. Plus I’m going to try moving the cats further away from each other while they’re eating; I can even fairly easily make them unable to see one another. Ok, we will see what works, or what combo of things work!
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