Re: Fwd: [NMHP] Silly bugs, kibble is for cats!-To Michelle
Michelle, I love Best Friends! I think what they are doing is fantastic. They are VERY well connected too. I am sad today because I had to cancel our reservations to visit and volunteer in the cat sanctuary at Best Friends early next month. My husband took a new job and we cannot take off. We will eventually make it there though! Angel Canyon is supposed to be beautiful! :) Wendy --- [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: > Forwarding for those of you who feed ferals... and > because I found her > answer on slugs to be very amusing. It's from the > Best Friends No More Homeless > Pets forum, which I recommend by the way and can be > joined via their website. > > Michelle > > > > To: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > From: "NMHPForum" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > Date: Tue, 13 Jun 2006 08:58:24 -0700 > Subject: [NMHP] Silly bugs, kibble is for cats! > > Question from Louise: > It's almost summer and with summer come bugs! How > do I keep them away from the cats' food? Do you > have any other feeding advice? > > Response from Meredith Weiss: > Typical bugs attracted to cat food are ants, flies > and slugs. Ants can be kept out of the food by > building a small moat. Take a plastic tray or > Tupperware container -- something flat and fairly > wide with raised sides -- and fill it with a quarter > to a half inch of water. Then put the food in a > separate bowl and place that in the middle of the > tray with the water. The water will prevent the ants > from reaching the food, while the cats can easily > lean over and eat. > > Slugs - well, strange as it sounds the way I solved > this problem was to feed the slugs separately! Just > take a little bit of dry or wet food and put it on > the ground near the slugs, at least several inches > away from the cat food bowls -- they'll be happy to > not have to climb into the bowls. > > Flies become a problem when the food is left out > uneaten in warm weather. They are more of a problem > with canned food than with dry. If your colony > isn't trained to eat at a scheduled time, don't > leave out wet food on hot days. Feed in the evening > or at night instead. Or leave out dry food only. > > In the case of a sudden rainstorm, it's recommended > to have a covered feeding station for your colony. > If this isn't possible and you have to put food out > unprotected from the elements, you can try this > method to keep it dry: Again, take a Tupperware > container, or a typical styrofoam take-out container > from a restaurant, usually about nine inches wide. > Fill it with dry food. Place the matching lid on > the container upside down so it is covering the food > but not snapped on. Put a few pieces of food on top > of the turned-over lid. Even in this position, the > lid will keep the rain out. When the rains stops > and the cats come out they'll smell the food and > flip the lid off to get it. > > Both pigeons and raccoons love cat food! Hopefully > in your area you only have one or the other -- not > both! If you have pigeons, feed after dark when the > pigeons are sleeping. With raccoons, just the > opposite; usually they rarely venture out during > daylight hours. And if you do have both in your > neighborhood -- good luck! Leave out plenty of > food. Raccoons and cats can get along and eat > together if there's enough for everybody. > > What to feed. Feed the best quality food you can > comfortably afford. If you have a colony of three > you may be able to feed a higher quality (more > expensive) food than if you have a large colony. > You may find that if you switch from a low quality > to a higher one you'll soon be feeding a smaller > quantity, so when you average out the cost, it may > not be much greater after all. And if you do > switch, do it gradually, mixing in the old with the > new. > > Generally, canned food is more nutritious than dry, > but almost all feral cats will have to be given dry > food at least some times for a variety of reasons. > Check the ingredients on the label. If the first one > is some kind of grain, or byproducts, it's not the > best food as it contains mostly that ingredient. > Remember, cats are carnivores and actually require > no carbohydrates at all. > __ Do You Yahoo!? Tired of spam? Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around http://mail.yahoo.com
Re: Fwd: [NMHP] Silly bugs, kibble is for cats!
[EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: Forwarding for those of you who feed ferals... and because I found her answer on slugs to be very amusing. It's from the Best Friends No More Homeless Pets forum, which I recommend by the way and can be joined via their website. Michelle Thanks! If I know my ferals, they'll eat the slug's food first, then eat what's in their dish! I'll give it a shot and let you know if it works for us. I like her idea about feeding during rain when you can't use a covered station. I'm going to try that one too! Nina
Fwd: [NMHP] Silly bugs, kibble is for cats!
Forwarding for those of you who feed ferals... and because I found her answer on slugs to be very amusing. It's from the Best Friends No More Homeless Pets forum, which I recommend by the way and can be joined via their website. Michelle --- Begin Message --- Question from Louise: It's almost summer and with summer come bugs! How do I keep them away from the cats' food? Do you have any other feeding advice? Response from Meredith Weiss: Typical bugs attracted to cat food are ants, flies and slugs. Ants can be kept out of the food by building a small moat. Take a plastic tray or Tupperware container -- something flat and fairly wide with raised sides -- and fill it with a quarter to a half inch of water. Then put the food in a separate bowl and place that in the middle of the tray with the water. The water will prevent the ants from reaching the food, while the cats can easily lean over and eat. Slugs - well, strange as it sounds the way I solved this problem was to feed the slugs separately! Just take a little bit of dry or wet food and put it on the ground near the slugs, at least several inches away from the cat food bowls -- they'll be happy to not have to climb into the bowls. Flies become a problem when the food is left out uneaten in warm weather. They are more of a problem with canned food than with dry. If your colony isn't trained to eat at a scheduled time, don't leave out wet food on hot days. Feed in the evening or at night instead. Or leave out dry food only. In the case of a sudden rainstorm, it's recommended to have a covered feeding station for your colony. If this isn't possible and you have to put food out unprotected from the elements, you can try this method to keep it dry: Again, take a Tupperware container, or a typical styrofoam take-out container from a restaurant, usually about nine inches wide. Fill it with dry food. Place the matching lid on the container upside down so it is covering the food but not snapped on. Put a few pieces of food on top of the turned-over lid. Even in this position, the lid will keep the rain out. When the rains stops and the cats come out they'll smell the food and flip the lid off to get it. Both pigeons and raccoons love cat food! Hopefully in your area you only have one or the other -- not both! If you have pigeons, feed after dark when the pigeons are sleeping. With raccoons, just the opposite; usually they rarely venture out during daylight hours. And if you do have both in your neighborhood -- good luck! Leave out plenty of food. Raccoons and cats can get along and eat together if there's enough for everybody. What to feed. Feed the best quality food you can comfortably afford. If you have a colony of three you may be able to feed a higher quality (more expensive) food than if you have a large colony. You may find that if you switch from a low quality to a higher one you'll soon be feeding a smaller quantity, so when you average out the cost, it may not be much greater after all. And if you do switch, do it gradually, mixing in the old with the new. Generally, canned food is more nutritious than dry, but almost all feral cats will have to be given dry food at least some times for a variety of reasons. Check the ingredients on the label. If the first one is some kind of grain, or byproducts, it's not the best food as it contains mostly that ingredient. Remember, cats are carnivores and actually require no carbohydrates at all. __._,_.___ SPONSORED LINKS Biology Healthy dog Best friend Feral cats YAHOO! GROUPS LINKS Visit your group "NMHP" on the web. To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to the Yahoo! Terms of Service. __,_._,___ --- End Message ---
