Fostering harmonious feeding with a number of cats

Petra Richli/inventory.adobe.com

All cats have completely different wants and needs in the case of meals. Some have meals anxiousness and can’t eat with others, some want prescription diets, and a few might be choosy about what they’re consuming out of. When taking all of those elements into consideration, and bringing in one other cat or extra, how can purchasers make sure that their pets are consuming, or cease these pets from stealing one another’s meals or intimidating the others?

Ellen Carozza, LVT, VTS (CP-Feline), shared eventualities that may assist a multicat family throughout meal occasions, and the way veterinary groups may help purchasers beat challenges that come their method, throughout her lecture “Chew With Your Mouth Closed! Preventing Food Phobias & Fighting at the Dinner Table in the Multi-cat Household,” on the American Association of Feline Practitioners (AAF) Conference in Memphis, Tennessee.¹

“We need to provide multiple and separated key environmental resources such as food, water, toileting areas, stretching areas, lay and resting or sleep areas for every single cat. So that means if you have more than one cat in the home, you better be able to fulfill the pillars for every single cat. Because a lot of cats don’t like to share their pillars,” mentioned Carozza.

Where and when to eat

Every cat within the home wants their very own area, together with the place they’re consuming. If the consumer’s home permits it, have them arrange feeding stations in separate rooms inside the home. This will assist the pets not battle over assets and pets with consuming anxiousness preferring to eat alone or at a time when the opposite cats aren’t round. If the consumer’s home isn’t large enough to accommodate pets consuming in separate rooms, have the meals bowls be distant from one another with the cats not going through one another. To assist higher perceive the state of affairs your purchasers are coping with, Carozza instructed attendees to begin by having an open and sincere dialog with them.

“Ask them open-ended questions to get more information from them. Can your cats eat in a safe place? Can you separate them? Especially if they’re not part of the cat family. Because you will always have that one outsider in a home that’s not getting along. Can you provide multiple and separated key resources? Can you create food stations for them in multiple locations in the house? Can you provide them with the opportunity to actually hunt for their food?” requested Carozza.

“Cats really need to have some sort of enrichment. They get bored, they get sedentary, and they become obese. We want to make sure that we’re enriching their lives and the easiest way to do it is with food. Food is a reward,” she concluded.

Carrozza additionally instructed attendees that it’s nice to maintain feline sufferers on a feeding schedule as a result of they just like the consistency. She even shared about her personal cat who, like others, will escort her to the kitchen when it’s time to eat. Once purchasers create a routine, they should respect it. She additionally supplied a tip that if the consumer is scuffling with the cats waking them up early within the morning for feedings, even when it’s not the scheduled time, adjusting their dinner schedule to in a while within the night time may help fight this response.

Alternative locations to eat

If pet homeowners are scuffling with separating their cats throughout meals, there are options they will use to assist in giving pets the area they want. For instance, she talked about field feeding stations. Although some have issues, comparable to just one entrance or see-through, she mentioned they may very well be a protected area for kittens in a home with an older cat.

“In a lot of homes, this is a great way to feed your kittens, especially if we have an older cat in the house that loves to eat kitten food—and they all love to eat kitten food—and you don’t want them to have access to the kitten food,” defined Carozza. “You can feed your kittens within the closed feeding stations. It’s fantastic, particularly if you happen to solely have to chop out [a space] large enough for the kittens to go out and in and the large cat cannot even get an arm in there and attempt to pull all the pieces out. [A closed feeding station] does present a protected sufficient area for them.”

If the closed feeding stations aren’t to your consumer’s cats, Carozza additionally prompt attempting a multi-tier feeding construction. Each pet can have its personal degree giving them an opportunity for enrichment by climbing up the construction to get their meals.

Takeaways

If your purchasers are scuffling with their cats, having an sincere dialog with them may help get them the assist they should succeed. Educating them on their choices and listening to their issues may help them bear in mind they will do that. Carozza additionally inspired veterinary professionals to share their wins and losses with their very own pets to assist relate to the consumer, letting them know that they’re on this collectively and can assist them get their liked pets the meals they want.

References

1. Carozza E. Chew With Your Mouth Closed! Preventing Food Phobias & Fighting on the Dinner Table within the Multi-cat Household. Presented at: 2023 American Association of Feline Practitioners Conference, Memphis, Tennessee. October 13-15, 2023.
2. Ellis SLH, Rodan I, Carney HC, et al. AAFP and ISFM feline environmental wants Guidelines. J Feline Med Surg. 2013;15(3):219-230. doi:10.1177/1098612×13477537