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corvid-munin

Advice for feeding two cats with opposite habits

Diet/Allergies

Hi there,

I currently have two kitties. One has been with us for 5 years and we have a new girl thats 2. The older cat is more of a grazer who eats a little at a time, and the new kitty is a food obsessed horker that will eat everything in sight.

Right now we have an automatic feeder that dispenses to both of their bowls, and we usually have to stand and monitor them so new kitty doesnt just take over both. She will also eat anything the grazer leaves behind.

Grazer car has adjusted a bit and has switched to just eating all her food, but horker cat will still try to butt in or commandeer the food bowls. This has introduced a bit of friction - grazer cat will sometimes chase horker off to one of them bedrooms and wont let her leave until she gets properly fed, and horker cat will keep trying to leave because she knows theres food.

What we usually end up having to do is stand and watch, and then move horker to another room while grazer finishes her meal. Horker has adjusted to this by trying to inhale her food as fast as possible so she might sneak in some extra bites before we notice. Unfortunately, we cant always be there and horker has stolen a few extra meals.

I dont mind she loves food, but i dont want her to get overweight and I dont want our grazer cat to starve. Weve considered an RFID feeder for grazer so she can eat at her pace, but its a little costly and will have to wait a bit. Another idea I had is a slow feeder for horker so she takes more time with her meal and lets grazer finish, but that wont solve the problem of trying to butt in on her sisters meals or opting to take hers because its easier to access.

Does anyone have any advice or tips on how to best handle two cats with opposite feeding behaviors, where one will literally gorge themselves on any available food?

Posted Apr 2, 2026, 6:44 PM UTC

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