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After a week of intense holiday travels (we were on the road for at least 90 minutes almost every day), we’ve finally returned home. After doing so we discovered something that led to the latest chapter in Feeding Time in a Multiple Pet Household, or as I like to call it, Gluttony: Thy Name is Cat.
Whenever we’re away for more than a few days I like to have someone check in on our cats. That was most important to me when Cole was an only feline child, as I knew he would really appreciate even just five minutes of someone’s attention. One might think that after we adopted Chrestomanci, whose main reason for entry into the household was to keep Cole company (though I do love having two cats for other reasons), I shouldn’t worry as much about leaving them alone.
Cats are supposed to graze on their food, right? When I told people I was having someone stop by to feed the cats they would tell me how they bought their cats those automatic food dispensers. As the cats eat their bowls are gradually filled with more. Perfect for cats that graze on just the amount of food they need.
That’s not the case in my house. My cats are well-documented gluttons. I wanted someone to stop by the house roughly halfway through the time we were gone because I knew if I left them five or six days’ worth of food they’d eat it all long before we returned home. This way I only left them two days of food, and on Saturday a friend stopped by and put out the rest that they’d need.
My husband had to return a day before me, so he was the one who got to come home and see what the cats had wrought. Thankfully they committed little mischief, unless it was to their food supplies. I received a text from my husband after he got home, but it wasn’t to tell me that he’d arrived safely.
No, Jon wanted to inform me about the state of the cats. He said that although it was clear our friend had stopped by, they must have eaten their four days’ worth of food in around half that time. He said they acted desperately starving upon his return, more pathetic and mewling than they normally are when we come back from a weekend away.
Although their greed is clearly exaggerated when their sources of regular feedings aren’t present, my cats are like this all of the time. Jon got back early in the afternoon, and out of pity he fed them half of what they normally get, then their full meals at the normal time before bed.
But the next day once I got back, they still acted desperate when bedtime rolled around. You’d think they’d be at least a bit better off as they’d gotten extra food the day before. But no, they’re always like this. The photo of their licked-clean bowls was taken mere hours after feeding time, and they came running when they heard us moving the bowls (we put them in a different room for better photography light).
What should I do about my glutton cats? Mostly I feel inclined to leave it; I know Cole is getting just the right amount of food, his veterinarian said so, and we watch his weight. Chrestomanci needs to lose weight and he has a vet visit in a few months, so we’ll find out for sure how much food he should have then. In the meantime, although perhaps it’s less convenient for when we travel, I’m amused to have cats that continue to circumvent the stereotypes about them.
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