Raw Diet Update
The raw diet is still working out very well with the cats. All three of them prefer it to kibble, but all three will take kibble if I offer it, too. The odd thing is they all turn their noses up at canned wet food now.
The positive aspects of the raw diet:
They get to eat more because of the water content, but still be on a diet.
They get enough moisture in their food. They don't need to drink as much water as they would with kibble. Bart has urinary issues (high specific gravity in his urine at times because he doesn't drink enough water), and this is the best preventive measure.
The poop does not smell. We LOVE this.
The poop is of the appropriate consistency to maintain proper anal gland health. Archimedes has problems with that when on a kibble diet. This helps him.
Meat is better for an obligate carnivore than plant products are.
The cats love to eat it.
The negative aspects of the raw diet:
It costs more than a kibble diet.
It is time-consuming to make.
Archimedes gets hairballs with it. I have no idea why this is.
The dishes are messier (but, we have a dishwasher, so that helps).
Bart and Milhouse get the raw diet almost exclusively. Archimedes doesn't eat as much as they do, and he is a grazer whereas they are gorgers, so Archimedes only gets a little bit of the raw diet now (or else he'd leave most of it, and the other two would eat it, negating their diet). I supplement it with free fed kibble whenever he asks for it. I have to guard it from the other two, and I'm not so great at that, but it's better than just leaving it out all the time, because those two hoovers would still manage to starve out Archimedes. Archimedes has put on some weight with this new system that he'd lost over the last few months. I still think it would be cool if Tim built a remote-controlled cover to the food dish that would open with a remote/signal attached to Archimedes' collar, though. :-)
Currently all cats get two meals per day. Milhouse gets 2.25 oz of raw diet per meal. Bart gets 2.5 oz of raw diet per meal. Archimedes gets about 1.5 oz of raw diet per meal, supplemented with as much kibble as he can eat.
The positive aspects of the raw diet:
They get to eat more because of the water content, but still be on a diet.
They get enough moisture in their food. They don't need to drink as much water as they would with kibble. Bart has urinary issues (high specific gravity in his urine at times because he doesn't drink enough water), and this is the best preventive measure.
The poop does not smell. We LOVE this.
The poop is of the appropriate consistency to maintain proper anal gland health. Archimedes has problems with that when on a kibble diet. This helps him.
Meat is better for an obligate carnivore than plant products are.
The cats love to eat it.
The negative aspects of the raw diet:
It costs more than a kibble diet.
It is time-consuming to make.
Archimedes gets hairballs with it. I have no idea why this is.
The dishes are messier (but, we have a dishwasher, so that helps).
Bart and Milhouse get the raw diet almost exclusively. Archimedes doesn't eat as much as they do, and he is a grazer whereas they are gorgers, so Archimedes only gets a little bit of the raw diet now (or else he'd leave most of it, and the other two would eat it, negating their diet). I supplement it with free fed kibble whenever he asks for it. I have to guard it from the other two, and I'm not so great at that, but it's better than just leaving it out all the time, because those two hoovers would still manage to starve out Archimedes. Archimedes has put on some weight with this new system that he'd lost over the last few months. I still think it would be cool if Tim built a remote-controlled cover to the food dish that would open with a remote/signal attached to Archimedes' collar, though. :-)
Currently all cats get two meals per day. Milhouse gets 2.25 oz of raw diet per meal. Bart gets 2.5 oz of raw diet per meal. Archimedes gets about 1.5 oz of raw diet per meal, supplemented with as much kibble as he can eat.