Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I have 3 cats. 2 of my cats are 'grazers'..they'll eat a little at a time and then walk away from their food, only to come back later to finish it. I have one cat, though, who scarfs his food down and would eat anything in sight. This is a problem because he goes after the other cats' food. As a result, I made the decision not to allow free-feeding at the outset and have been feeding them all twice a day at the same time. We've all adjusted to the routine..Sol eats all his food up at once and is done and the other two sort of graze, though when they walk away from their dishes I have to put them away or Sol will eat their food. When they're hungry again i take their dishes back out and they finish. This seems to have developed into a tolerable pattern. Here's my problem:

Beginning in May my husband and I will be taking several extended vacations..first our honeymoon for 7 days, then two four-day trips the following two months. I normally have someone come in and feed my cats twice a day, but it gets expensive to do that. I would much rather just leave food out and have someone come in once a day or every other day to clean the litter and replenish food and water.

1) How do I get Solomon adjusted to free-feeding?
2) How many feeders do I need for 3 cats - do I need 3 separate feeders?

Please help!

Why don't you buy one of those automatic feeders? They dole out a measured portion at the times you set. Most good pet shops carry them. If you were concerned whther it was working, have someone come by every other day just to make sure they're fed and watered.

Alternatively, if it's just for a few days I *would* consider just leaving the food out -- enough that the scarfer can scarf but leave plenty more. The scarfer is unlikely to overeat to extreme levels -- I have the same issue -- two grazers and a scarfer -- and I now feed at set times but if I'm away I just leave food out. Pippa doesn't eat *massive* amounts if she has free choice, but she does eat enough that I'd prefer to keep her waistline 'metered' :^). However, a brief holiday snackfest for her isn't going to cause any major issues with her, and probably wouldn't for yours either. I used to put LOTS of food in a big bowl for my three when I'd go away for short stretches, but now have a friend come in daily and keep the bowl topped up -- so they free-feed. Works fine.