19 October, 2014

Cat Eats


Chuck and Angel, on the pool table

For Chuck and Angel:
Breakfast between 6:30 am and 7:00 am:

A spoonful of organic canned pumpkin
A 1/4 teaspoon of stool softener
A splash of flax seed oil
Careful measure of cat enzymes
Almost a full can of limited ingredient venison and green pea food
Enough filtered water to make it a bit soupy
Divided equally into two bowls
Always put Chucky's bowl down first 
A taste of the 'o' cats food called The Tax (Chuck stops eating until I do this)

Lunch between 12:30 pm and 1 pm: 

1/2 can of limited ingredient duck and green pea food
Divided into two bowls
They always beg for more; most of the time, I give it too 'em

Dinner between 6:00 pm and 7:00 pm (depending on who's still napping and when I get home from work)

Repeat breakfast ritual

Sweetie and Patty O'

For The 'O' Cats:
Breakfast, after Angel and Chuck are served

A big scoop of Brewer's Yeast
Careful measure of L-Lysine crystals
Splash of flax seed oil
Almost a full can of (no fish!), or homemade cooked ground turkey (and sometimes I mix up all the canned leftovers)
A sprinkle of diatomaceous earth to combat fleas and worms
Enough filtered water to make it all mixable
Divided into two bowls, 5/8ths for Patty, 3/8ths for Sweetie (and a spoonful for Chuck)
A garnish of kibble (hidden from Chuck and Angel)

Lunch, after Chuck and Angel:

Leftovers

Dinner:

Repeat breakfast, after Chuck and Angel

Night snack before 9 pm:

A small serving of kibble
Sweetie eats off the deck, while Patty prefers to eat from a bowl

I have to guard the 'O' Cat's food from roaming neighbor Aries, who will run right up and push them off their bowls, and hiss while he's doing it!  I carry a kibble bribe, and feed him his 'treat' in the yard, to draw him away.  If he isn't around for the meal, he'll show up later and lick out their bowls.  No matter what I and the hubby do to get him to scram, he comes back or hides behind a tree until we are gone.  However, he gives great pets and purrs, so we just deal with him.

In the very cold part of the winter, the night snack is eliminated, because the cats won't show up.  Also in the winter, the canned food freezes too quickly, so I just give them kibble.  If the food freezes, Patty will keep licking until he pushes the bowl off the deck.  When Sammy was alive, I stopped feeding kibble entirely, because he could no longer chew it, and I had to heat the canned food to counter the cold.  Today, we emptied the bag of kibble that was purchased this spring, but it's lasted so long because of Sammy.  We bought a new bag this morning, and I had a moment of sad in memory of Sammy.  I went to watch the kittens in the adoption center to counter the sad, until the hubby discovered my location and dragged me away.  He then escorted me to the hardware store, where we purchased more duct insulation to complete the Cat Hotel's ceiling/roof, before it gets really cold.

I feed Angel and Chuck only new food; any leftovers go outside.  We segregate the two sets of food bowls from each other, and from our human bowls too.  We use oblong Pyrex heating bowls for Angel and Chuck; they are ceramic and are low and wide.  The 'O' Cats get flattish old earthenware bowls found at resale shops.  Patty breaks a bowl by pushing them over the deck edge about twice a year.  I use old iced tea spoons to mix their food; the handle length helps me stir the concoctions evenly, and then dole it out proportionately.  Angel and Chuck get the same amount each meal, but I give Patty more because he eats his food so fast, and Sweetie can barely get a full meal before he's nosing in on her bowl...or Aries is mooching around.  Sweetie always backs off first.  

Sweetie at lunch today

Patty today, showing off his widebody in a sun puddle

9 comments:

  1. That is a LOT of work. I didn't know they could ingest the diatomaceous earth- does it really keep fleas away? http://15andmeowing.com

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  2. Wow, you have quite an elaborate routine going on there. I'm sure once you get in the groove, it becomes routine, but it still has a lot of steps. The kitties sure are doing well and benefiting from all your efforts.

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  3. We agree about the work.
    We bet it does wonders foe the kitties,especially the outdoor ones :)
    They are lucky to have found your home.
    Purrs Georgia and Julie,
    Treasure and JJ

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  4. And here I thought OUR routine was elaborate...you have us beat! ;)

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  5. Wow, that's quite the process. Angel and Chuckie sure are well taken care of. :)

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  6. Wow, I echo everyone else's awe of your routine. Lucky cats!

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  7. A lot of care for kitties! We sometimes add pumpkin to kids' dish, too. (Niko tends to get constipated.) And we sometimes add diatomaceous earth, too! We used to use spot-on but it gave irritation to Goro's skin. Then we used tablet but switched to diatomaceous earth.
    The bag of kibble must have brought lot of memory of sweet Sammy. Purrs and hugs to you xoxo

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  8. guys...total lee rockin awesum oh yur mom ...high paws N headbonks...ouch...two her...but we seer ee iz lee gotta a drezz de ...burd...noe fish izzue !!! ♥♥

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  9. Wow! My kitty-crew wants to come over and stay at your place! I keep telling them kitties don't get lunch, now that they know it's an option, I'm done for!!

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