Feeding Frenzy

Of all the times of the day, first thing in the morning is when Im at my worst. Its been like this for a long time, and I have tried to take measures to limit exposure to me from other folks until I am steady on my feet. Ive (more than once) taken a scoop of coffee intended for the coffee maker and put it in the dog dish, then spent a minute or so just looking at it, realizing that something is wrong, but not being able to figure out what. While I may have wasted coffee and dog food, at least it never got to the point that the dog had the option of eating it, and I never did go so far as to put pet food in the coffee pot....yet.

All this is to give you an idea as to the challanges that face me in the morning when Marley gets me up, and Ive managed to get through a constantly swirling mass of cat bodies to the kitchen where they expect to be fed RIGHT NOW. Its gotten worse recently since they have started changing the whole food ritual, and I dont do well with change at that hour of the morning.

It all started out with Marley, who was kind enough to have well established rules for food, and these rules didnt change. I did pretty well with that. Marleys only real variable was when he wanted to eat as related to when I wanted to feed him. His rule was inviolate - he ALWAYS wanted to eat. He would undertake strategies sometimes to trick me into feeding him early, and harass me for food constantly, but the habit became ingrained and I didnt have too much difficulty. Marley's actual canned food preferences were pretty simple: it had to be seafood of some sort, and it had to be in gravy (not sauce, not just meat, not pate). You could count on the fact that if the can said something that was just seafood and had the words "in Gravy" on the label he would eat it like a vacuum cleaner and hope for more. He would also get a small amout of dry food, and that again could not vary by brand, flavor or consistency.

So in come our new cats, and my blurry early morning world fell apart. Lucky and Powder Puff were both pretty emaciated looking, and Lucky acted in accordance with that view - he made Marley look like a slow eater, and has become the most consistent of the eaters. Put a dish of dry food in front of him and hes off to the races. If you were to ask me what would be a good sound to describe his eating process Id say a chain saw. And he is my favorite, because thats all he wants and he is as happy as a clam. In fact, sometimes he goes over to Powder Puffs bowl and take a whiff which makes him put on a disgusted face and immediately try to bury her food. He does have one quirk, but since it isnt in the morning, Im not worried. If he can get at chicken or turkey destined for people, he will go right after it - raw or cooked. We have to keep a wary eye out for him during dinner preparation, but Im better prepared to handle this at that hour. Lucky has responded well to his food, is strong and no longer looks emaciated

Powder Puff has presented a little more of a challange. She doesnt eat much. Like Marley, she also likes gravy, although at first she would only eat the gravy. Weve tried the pates the sauces, etc, and she likes in gravy the best. Her appitite has improved somewhat, but it isnt consistent, and as you will see, I still dont have it right.

We started her with just dry food like Lucky, and she would eat a little, then leave, after which at some point one of the boys would polish off her food. She would then ask for more on occasision, but we learned that most of any more would end up being eaten by the bottomless pits that are her brothers. So we settled into a routine with a little canned food and a little dry food. The key phrase here is "settle into a routine" because at that point I can deal with it. But it wasnt to be. Some days she polishes off all of her canned food, some days nothing but the gravy, and it doesnt appear to relate to what is in the can.

One blessing we have is that there isnt any fighting over food in the house. The one constant is the dry food, which they all eat, but in separate bowls, something I started when the other cats were new, and we didnt know how Marley would handle this.

So last week Powder Puff does the unthinkable. When I put down Marleys canned food, she immediately goes to it, and despite the fact that it is seafood, eats greedily. Marley and I are both staring with our mouths open, and Lucky is wondering where his food is. Finally Marley settles in and begins to eat his dry food, something he has never done first. I finish putting down the rest of the food but my morning tranquility is shattered. we havent had a repeat of this, but instead, Marley has started eating her canned food leftovers, something you couldnt have forced him to eat a few months ago.

There are a whole series of these dynamics which are evolving and serve to make my early mornings more difficult. Lucky is challanging Marley for the "power Position" on the pass through where they can watch to make sure I am preparing their food; Marley has learned that if he eats his canned food, he can then cautiously go to the other cats food and eat their dry food while saving his dry food for last, etc, and all the while I have to be sure that Powder Puff is getting enough to eat without letting the boys go hog wild on any food she leaves.

Regardless, its too early for me to deal with appropriately. As long as I keep the pet food out of the coffee I guess I can deal with it though...