Suggestions for senior cat

[Anonymous]

So, the little guy I fostered as a sick 4week old found in a snowbank is now 16 years (!) old. Our two dogs have passed away (from old age) in the last 2 years, changing the pack order in the house significantly. Old boy and younger girl (now almost 7) are trying to restructure their place in the house, mostly in relation to food.

Old boy has been to vet and is healthy, just experiencing the normal metabolic issues with older cats (ie. needing more fat and protein). He’s lost a significant amount of weight. The vet suggested this was normal at cat’s age, and that dietary changes would be helpful.

My biggest problem is I cannot completely free feed him, as younger cat comes and steals the food. Since the passing of dog #2, she’s become a food hog and has become quite obese, despite being thin and agile previously.

Does anyone have any suggestions about feeding or for Food? I feed him exclusively when he comes around separately, but his appetite isn’t what it used to be, so it may only be a tsp at a time.

[Anonymous]

Can you feed him separately on a schedule? Like first thing in the morning, right before work, midday (if someone is home), immediately upon return home from work/school (whoever gets home first), dinner time, before bed, e.g.?

[Anonymous]

A vet that I just heard speak talked about this and he distinguished between cats who ate to live vs. lived to eat. In the former situation, it was ok to free feed. In the latter, he recommended supervised feedings at specific times to control for weight, dietary restrictions, etc. He also stated his strong preference for a more wet food based diet (or even better a homemade/raw food diet) vs. kibble.

In your case, maybe try a limited amount of kibble during the day and give a "breakfast" and "dinner" of wet food. For male cats, specifically, they really need a lot of "wet" in their diet to ward of UTI issues.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:So, the little guy I fostered as a sick 4week old found in a snowbank is now 16 years (!) old. Our two dogs have passed away (from old age) in the last 2 years, changing the pack order in the house significantly. Old boy and younger girl (now almost 7) are trying to restructure their place in the house, mostly in relation to food.

Old boy has been to vet and is healthy, just experiencing the normal metabolic issues with older cats (ie. needing more fat and protein). He’s lost a significant amount of weight. The vet suggested this was normal at cat’s age, and that dietary changes would be helpful.

My biggest problem is I cannot completely free feed him, as younger cat comes and steals the food. Since the passing of dog #2, she’s become a food hog and has become quite obese, despite being thin and agile previously.

Does anyone have any suggestions about feeding or for Food? I feed him exclusively when he comes around separately, but his appetite isn’t what it used to be, so it may only be a tsp at a time.

We have a situation like this but with two dogs, one young and healthy and one old and getting very skinny. Like your pets, Young and Healthy gobbles down any food put out.

We try to sneak as many treats to Senior as possible. High value high calorie. We do it when Ms. Thing is going for a walk but you could do it when the younger one is using the litterbox, napping, etc. Have some high value treats ready to go.