Ok..this is the first Cat I have ever owned...She is about a year and a half old now. I fed her "KITTEN CHOW" the first year with a full bowl at all times because that was what I was told because she was so little and needed the nourishment. When she was a year old I switched to CAT CHOW indoor formula, because she never goes outside. She must really like it cause she is gettong fat. She was fixed at 6 months old. My question is should I stop leaving the bowl down all the time and just feed her a time or two a day? I took it up when I went to work one day and she acted like she was starved to death when I got home (11 hours later) ..and that made me feel bad. What should I do to keep her from getting unhealthy fat?
YES!!!
Obesity in domestic and captive wild felids is a HUGE issue. The average American house cat is fat to obese. Its an issue that predisposes pet cats to virtually all of the same diseases that humans get, from hypertension to heart disease to diabetes to hepatic lipidosis (if a fat cat drops weight too quickly). Stop and think about the natural history of cats....they are pure carnivores---meaning they only eat what they are able to hunt down and kill. This means they won't necessarily be able to eat all the time and they have to work to get what meals they have, yet the situation you've got with a cat who has free access to food all the time is a virtual all you can eat buffet. The nature of a carnivore is to eat because they may not be able to catch something tomorrow.
Now you've created that monster, with a cat who expects to get food all the time. I recommend feeding small felids with meals. And I recommend smaller meals spaced out through the day. For example, feed the cat in the morning a quarter to a half of cup of food (base this on what you are feeding and the feeding guidelines for the individual food type/brand----I don't want to get into the whole cats are carnivores issue, but you do need to carefully evaluate the foods you are feeding. Some are way better than others.) and then when you get home in the evening feed a second meal. This duplicates a domestic cat catching a mouse for a meal in the AM, then in the evening. If you can get the cat to do it, exercise through the day is very, very important. A few minutes of the cat chasing a ball or laser pointer duplicates the physical activity of the cat hunting for a meal. This changes the larger the cat gets. Obviously lions are designed to kill much larger prey so they need to be fed larger meals spaced further apart. Feeding small frequent meals to a big cat will actually do the opposite and predispose them for obesity. Since most people don't own cats like that its not a big issue. But if you own an ocelot, lynx, bobcat, serval or a caracal, then feed them like a domestic cat with smaller meals through the day to mimic their hunting and catching prey.
Now, if you've got a fat cat and you suddenly change, expect rebellion. Lock up your garbage and any food that the cat might get into. They are going to decide they are hungry and they will most likely start foraging. This actually isn't bad because the fat cat is getting activity that they need, but its also going to be a pain in the ass because the cat may get into trouble. Just be aware of that.
