How much to feed?

[Ollie]

I thought I figured this all out with my first sphynx, but thought I'd ask all you experienced Raw feeders. I have read that over a year old sphynx eat approximately an ounce of raw food per pound of their weight. Is this accurate or does it depend on each cat? Oliver is between 8-9 lbs and eats 8 ounces of raw a day. I think the most we fed him was 9 oz as a kitten always judging his hunger levels and whether he looked like he was filling out. When his belly pouch would get a bit big, we would cut back on extra treats and eventually settled on 8 oz as the magical number. Now that he is over a year I'm not sure if his nutritional requirements change? He seems healthy with a slight belly pouch, only when sitting.
With our new girl, I'm again unsure if she is just loving the raw or whether she is really hungry and requiring more food. She didn't eat a lot her first day but since then has been voracious! She weighs between 6-7 lbs and we are feeding her 8 oz over 3 feeding plus a plentiful amount of freeze dried raw treats twice a day. She is a crazy food thief!! Oliver would never touch food on a plate. Gracie stole a piece of beef tenderloin last night and was trying to rip it apart. She licks any empty plate. I guess I should give her more time to settle in so I can get to know her needs better. Because I take it out the night before I was just wondering if 8 oz sounds like enough for a 6 month old? She might just be catching up as she has been on dry kibble for some time ( perhaps from 12 weeks old) I'm guessing from the previous owner. Thanks for reading and any thoughts. I'm sure I'll figure it out but always nice to hear I'm on the right path.

 

[zoinks]

We feed 8oz to our adults so a kitten may need more as she is still growing.

We fed way more to our boys up until they hit around 1 year now we watch their weight. Some days as much as 15oz. Just made sure they weren't hungry and didn't care so much about portion control.

 

[Ollie]

Wow 15 oz! Okay I will take out an extra block or two in case she is hungry. She heads right for our other guys bowl when she is done her 3 oz so perhaps she is.

 

[Condo commando]

FWIW I feed 6 oz amd 5.5 oz. My cats weigh about 9 lb each with one being more active and one less. It just depends on how much they can eat without gaining weight.

 

[MisterPinkk]

I am having the exact same problem with my female! She is a crazy food thief, and in an attempt to test her limits, we gave her nine freakin Primal nuggets and she ravaged that plate and looked up at us ready for more! I'm worried about the cost, but can't even imagine going back to kibble - it's night and day the difference in her on raw. I'm considering grinding my own and adding Better in the Raw, but I have to run the numbers and see what works best. Primal is $20 for 48 nuggets - but that also factors in time I don't have to waste and a grinder I don't have to buy.

 

[Condo commando]

@MisterPinkk , it doesn't have to be hard or time consuming. I have a butcher shop near me that can grind whatever I buy, including meat with bone. I like that my cats get their calcium from bone, which is how it would be in the wild.

It's important to note that if you use meat with bone you can't use BITR. I use Alnutrin instead (the one that is specifically for meat with bone). As a side benefit, Alnutrin costs less than BITR.

 

[MollysMom]

I am having the exact same problem with my female! She is a crazy food thief, and in an attempt to test her limits, we gave her nine freakin Primal nuggets and she ravaged that plate and looked up at us ready for more! I'm worried about the cost, but can't even imagine going back to kibble - it's night and day the difference in her on raw. I'm considering grinding my own and adding Better in the Raw, but I have to run the numbers and see what works best. Primal is $20 for 48 nuggets - but that also factors in time I don't have to waste and a grinder I don't have to buy.

We grind our own and use Better In the Raw. The initial investment was $120 for the grinder (on sale at Cabelas) and a digital kitchen scale for $20.

I find if you grind the meat and freeze it in 2 lb packs, it saves a lot of hassle. When it is time to make cat food, I defrost however many lbs that I want to make, mix, and freeze in baggies.

You could easily check with a butcher about the price of meat. I get mine for free as all of the guys in my family hunt, so my cats eat deer meat. But bear in mind it doesn't have to be "choice" cuts as it is being ground. I include meat from the lower legs (very tough) and areas that they would normally discard. This can significantly lower your costs.

Bear in mind that by grinding it yourself, you do not have the "unknown" factor of bacteria from the butcher (since once it is ground, it is virtually all surface area).

 

[Condo commando]

Replying to @MollysMom , the surface area problem is if you buy meats that sit out after they are ground, such as in a grocery store. I buy from a butcher shop and they freeze it right away. It is also packed in airtight food bags (no condensation inside).

 

[Xandria]

In Vancouver we have numerous butchers, farms, meat processors etc. I've spent the last couple months investigating my options.

While there are cheap meats to be had, they are not hormone or antibiotic free. I really don't want Max eating something I wouldn't eat.

Mootique butcher shops are stupid expensive. But they have to obtain their meat from somewhere.

On to the major suppliers I went. I found one that sells exotic meats quite cheaply and also has deals for bulk orders. I have also made some deals with my regular butcher who buys whole carcasses from the farms themselves... I'm a carnivore myself, so I love gazing at the windowed meat locker. Lol.

Living in smaller cities does make things tough. But I did read something on the forums here about a company in the USA that ships frozen rabbit and smaller animal meats.

Pardon rambling. Need more coffee.

 

[MunnkieSphynx]

I don't have a scale. does anyone have an estimation of how much 8 oz of raw chicken is, cup wise??

 

[zoinks]

@MunnkieSphynx 8oz is 1 cup.

Though I would recommend getting a scale if you are splitting into meals - ours has been a life saver! What I thought was 3oz when guessing was more like 5oz :facepalm:

 

[Xandria]

That's about a cup.

 

[Xandria]

I love my OXO scale. But there are others as well... not that expensive really.

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_1?url=search-alias=aps&field-keywords=oxo+scale

 

[zoinks]

@Xandria



This is the one I got and it is holding up great. After a few months I was so mad, the display was looking all dirty and wrinkled, I thought to myself that it was a cheap piece of crap until I realised I hadn't taken the plastic off of it

 

[Xandria]

@zoinks LOL LOL. That's funny.

I bought this one:

While it's pricey (although I got a great sale price on it), I love that the display lights up and is removable. Sometimes the bowl I put on top is so large, it'd cover up the reader. I'm going to try weighing Max on it!! :cat:

 

[Calicocious]

I am having the exact same problem with my female! She is a crazy food thief, and in an attempt to test her limits, we gave her nine freakin Primal nuggets and she ravaged that plate and looked up at us ready for more! I'm worried about the cost, but can't even imagine going back to kibble - it's night and day the difference in her on raw. I'm considering grinding my own and adding Better in the Raw, but I have to run the numbers and see what works best. Primal is $20 for 48 nuggets - but that also factors in time I don't have to waste and a grinder I don't have to buy.

Best deal I could find for commercial raw was Bravo balance in a 5 lb chub. They were around $12 a chub. I'd thaw it in cold water in the sink just until I could cut it up. Part would go in a gallon ziplock bag back in the freezer and partwould go in a large Tupperware in the fridge to finish thawing. I'd scoop out of the Tupperware for each meal using a scale to measure. One chub would last my two sphynx a week or just short of. A bit messy I like the nuggets better but it is a better deal money wise.