Free-Choice Abundance Feeding anyone?

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Caring4Claire

Member Since 2017
Hi! I was just doing a little more research about low carb foods. I have some samples of Young Again Zero on the way now. When perusing their website I read the snip bit on Free-Choice Abundance Feeding. It actually makes a good deal of sense to me and I am wondering if anyone here uses this method. If so, what has been your experience in relation to FDM?

I have two cats. 9.5 lbs with diabetes, and 12 lbs without. Both healthy weight but also loooove to eat. Currently on Friskies classic pate twice a day with EVO purple left out in small quantities.

This is the info from the website and a link for those interested:
https://www.youngagainpetfood.com/zero-formula.html

The best way and the only way we recommend feeding any of our Young Again Cat Foods is Free-Choice Abundance Feeding (FCAF). FCAF is easy for you and the best way to ensure that your cat will not over eat our food. Overeating will always lead to obesity and greatly increase the likelihood of your cat developing a more serious condition like diabetes, kidney disease, stones and/or crystals.

Rules

  • You need at least one bowl of food for every cat in the house. The bowl must be 8-10 inches across and about 1 inch deep. A standard 9 inch pie plate you can buy anywhere is perfect. Do not use those cute, little 4 inch cat dishes they sell everywhere. Water can be in any size bowl you want but we recommend bigger the better.
  • You must put 2 full 8oz cups of food in each bowl. The bowl must never be allowed to be less than half full at any given time; never. If you have to fill the bowl more than every 3 days then you need more food in the bowl.
  • Each bowl must be placed around the house so that when a cat is standing at any one bowl they will not be able to see any other cat, at any of the other bowls. Place bowls in different rooms and floors for best results.
That’s it follow these simple rules and you will have a happy healthy house and here is the reason why. Cats are fiercely independent; they are not pack animals. They live in the wild, by themselves, except when mating or rising kittens. In the wild when they are hungry they go hunting. In the home if the bowl is half empty they think the food supply has dried up and they are going to starve. They are naturally independent and can’t reason out that you are going to show up and fill the bowl again. So they do the only thing they can do and that is to eat as much of the dwindling food supply as they can before one of the other cats does the same thing. They will over eat a dwindling food supply even if they are not hungry, in the hopes that sometime in the future things will get better.

We know this is a different way to feed your cat, but when feeding Young Again Cat Food, it is the best way. Please read our paper on obesity/overeating in cats.

Before and during use, please close bag securely and shake to evenly distribute the external flavoring, probiotics and enzymes that settled during shipping.
 
My house includes 3 civvies and 1 diabetic. In the past, free fed kibble 24x7 to all. That stopped when Rosie was diagnosed. They all miss the free access to crunchy food so I tried YAZ in "free feed" mode as per the directions. The change was huge. There was no fighting, no furry alarm clocks, and all the cats were basically in a food coma for 3 days. I abandoned the free food mode because Rosie's blood sugar numbers went up. I called YA and discussed my concerns. They had a good point - my cats were not used to this nutrient dense free food and simply overate. Rosie over ate and some of the excess protein spiked her blood sugar.

I still believe this is a great food - they love it. I have reordered it and will continue to use it, but not in free mode until I have way to stop the over indulgence. I'm struggling to get Rosie better regulated and want to eliminate the variables. If she gets any YAZ, it is the very small portion they recommend to start with (< 2 tsp) making sure she doesn't have food at least 2 hrs before AM/PMPS testing.

As an additional info tidbit - when you order, they inquire if your pet has health conditions - I indicated I have a diabetic and they included additional detailed instructions for use of this food with a diabetic cat. They are strong advocates of testing because remission with food is possible with this food. Indeed we have several members here who credit this food for their cat going into remission.

Good luck with using this - I'd be interested to know how it goes and if you see a "food coma" :cat:
 
Thanks! We're going to give it a try in a month or so. I just switched her from a higher carb dry to the Evo, so I won't make another switch too soon.
I can first switch out YA for EVO and then slowly decrease wet. I'll look over their recommendations. My other cat (not the diabetic) meows incessantly at meal times, but usually leaves his food and doesn't eat quickly. I don't see either of them as over eaters, the small amount of Evo I keep out doesn't get eaten quickly. Both are already at optimal weight. Not sure if it'll work though since both cats are now wet food junkies I'll be monitoring her throughout any changes.
 
I did notice all the extra info they sent via email. Seems like an awesome company that definitely knows their stuff about FDM.

P.s. What does civvie mean? I've seen it used and assume it's non-diabetic cats. But I don't understand what it stands for.
 
P.s. What does civvie mean? I've seen it used and assume it's non-diabetic cats. But I don't understand what it stands for.

Civie = 'Civilian' as in not in the FD Army... :) If you poke around in the Lantus/Levemir forum, you'll find a 'slang' post. Some of it is specific to those insulins but others are used throughout the site. It's fun to read....
 
Hi! I was just doing a little more research about low carb foods. I have some samples of Young Again Zero on the way now. When perusing their website I read the snip bit on Free-Choice Abundance Feeding. It actually makes a good deal of sense to me and I am wondering if anyone here uses this method. If so, what has been your experience in relation to FDM?

I have two cats. 9.5 lbs with diabetes, and 12 lbs without. Both healthy weight but also loooove to eat. Currently on Friskies classic pate twice a day with EVO purple left out in small quantities.

This is the info from the website and a link for those interested:
https://www.youngagainpetfood.com/zero-formula.html

The best way and the only way we recommend feeding any of our Young Again Cat Foods is Free-Choice Abundance Feeding (FCAF). FCAF is easy for you and the best way to ensure that your cat will not over eat our food. Overeating will always lead to obesity and greatly increase the likelihood of your cat developing a more serious condition like diabetes, kidney disease, stones and/or crystals.

Rules

  • You need at least one bowl of food for every cat in the house. The bowl must be 8-10 inches across and about 1 inch deep. A standard 9 inch pie plate you can buy anywhere is perfect. Do not use those cute, little 4 inch cat dishes they sell everywhere. Water can be in any size bowl you want but we recommend bigger the better.
  • You must put 2 full 8oz cups of food in each bowl. The bowl must never be allowed to be less than half full at any given time; never. If you have to fill the bowl more than every 3 days then you need more food in the bowl.
  • Each bowl must be placed around the house so that when a cat is standing at any one bowl they will not be able to see any other cat, at any of the other bowls. Place bowls in different rooms and floors for best results.
That’s it follow these simple rules and you will have a happy healthy house and here is the reason why. Cats are fiercely independent; they are not pack animals. They live in the wild, by themselves, except when mating or rising kittens. In the wild when they are hungry they go hunting. In the home if the bowl is half empty they think the food supply has dried up and they are going to starve. They are naturally independent and can’t reason out that you are going to show up and fill the bowl again. So they do the only thing they can do and that is to eat as much of the dwindling food supply as they can before one of the other cats does the same thing. They will over eat a dwindling food supply even if they are not hungry, in the hopes that sometime in the future things will get better.

We know this is a different way to feed your cat, but when feeding Young Again Cat Food, it is the best way. Please read our paper on obesity/overeating in cats.

Before and during use, please close bag securely and shake to evenly distribute the external flavoring, probiotics and enzymes that settled during shipping.
I was leaving three bowls of it out for cc. It doesn't raise her bg so I didn't ever bother picking it up. Not even before shot time.
 
@JanetNJ are you still free feeding YA in combination with FF? I see that CC is in remission and wasn't sure if you're still feeding FF if not giving shots.

Claire loves wet food and it's a really useful distraction during shot time! if we did the YA FCAF, I would still need a special treat for shots unless we can get her into remission.
 
@JanetNJ are you still free feeding YA in combination with FF? I see that CC is in remission and wasn't sure if you're still feeding FF if not giving shots.

Claire loves wet food and it's a really useful distraction during shot time! if we did the YA FCAF, I would still need a special treat for shots unless we can get her into remission.
I feed all my cats fancy feast morning and evening and leave out young again zero and Evo (because one of my non diabetic cats gets the runs from Yaz) all the time to graze on.
 
I feed all my cats fancy feast morning and evening and leave out young again zero and Evo (because one of my non diabetic cats gets the runs from Yaz) all the time to graze on.
Janet, do u chge them to YA right away? My boy is weird. Initially he liked it then he don't. Now I put powdered kibble in his wet n he won't eat if he smelled too much of YA. So I can only put a little bit or I tricked him by spooning out more wet from the can but I actually hid d powder in the can. But if I giv him a bowl of just the kibbles he wld eat a bit. I'm thoroughly confused cos I want to switch him to YA thru d night and while I'm at work. But can he graze all the way before shot ? Otherwise I Hv to get up at 4am or swing by home from work at 4pm to remove the food.
 
Janet, do u chge them to YA right away? My boy is weird. Initially he liked it then he don't. Now I put powdered kibble in his wet n he won't eat if he smelled too much of YA. So I can only put a little bit or I tricked him by spooning out more wet from the can but I actually hid d powder in the can. But if I giv him a bowl of just the kibbles he wld eat a bit. I'm thoroughly confused cos I want to switch him to YA thru d night and while I'm at work. But can he graze all the way before shot ? Otherwise I Hv to get up at 4am or swing by home from work at 4pm to remove the food.
I just straight away put a few bowls out. I always just left it out all the time and didn't pick it up because it never raised her bg. Then fed wet morning and evening. If he will eat it without being mixed in with the wet, why are you mixing it?
 
I just straight away put a few bowls out. I always just left it out all the time and didn't pick it up because it never raised her bg. Then fed wet morning and evening. If he will eat it without being mixed in with the wet, why are you mixing it?
He din eat that much. I thot if I mix it, he will get more of it. Will experiment tonite just leaving a bowl of YA n see if he wakes me up.
 
He din eat that much. I thot if I mix it, he will get more of it. Will experiment tonite just leaving a bowl of YA n see if he wakes me up.
Keep in mind just a small handful is a serving. They eat much less of it than regular kibble because it's nutrient dense and high in calorie. A bowl of it lasts several days in my house.
 
Keep in mind just a small handful is a serving. They eat much less of it than regular kibble because it's nutrient dense and high in calorie. A bowl of it lasts several days in my house.
Alright thank you!
I feel lately my life revolves around insulin doses, his food, blood tests and filling up the SS! Hahaha.
 
Hi! I was just doing a little more research about low carb foods. I have some samples of Young Again Zero on the way now. When perusing their website I read the snip bit on Free-Choice Abundance Feeding. It actually makes a good deal of sense to me and I am wondering if anyone here uses this method. If so, what has been your experience in relation to FDM?

I just stumbled on to this write up on their website today. I just bought a bag of Young Again, and at first put a bowl of that out, and left the original dry food out as well. My cat does not choose Young Again over his old food. I guess I will call them and ask for the additives they are talking about.

The idea of having a full bowl of dry food out for each cat in the house seems crazy to me. That's a way to let a lot of the food get old. Plus who has that many places to put dry food all over the house?

Pam
 
I
I just stumbled on to this write up on their website today. I just bought a bag of Young Again, and at first put a bowl of that out, and left the original dry food out as well. My cat does not choose Young Again over his old food. I guess I will call them and ask for the additives they are talking about.

The idea of having a full bowl of dry food out for each cat in the house seems crazy to me. That's a way to let a lot of the food get old. Plus who has that many places to put dry food all over the house?

Pam
I know rite! I was scratching my head reading the instruction. I'm just giving my cat a teaspoon of ground kibble into his wet.
 
I just stumbled on to this write up on their website today. I just bought a bag of Young Again, and at first put a bowl of that out, and left the original dry food out as well. My cat does not choose Young Again over his old food. I guess I will call them and ask for the additives they are talking about.

The idea of having a full bowl of dry food out for each cat in the house seems crazy to me. That's a way to let a lot of the food get old. Plus who has that many places to put dry food all over the house?

Pam
I put a bowl on each level of the house. 3 bowls. Obviously I want going to put out 7. Lol They say you can leave the food out for like 10 days days. What is the old food you are leaving out? If it's high carb of course they will go for that.

It's like offering a kid donuts or a a plate of carrots.... Most are going to pick the donuts. Lol
 
I put a bowl on each level of the house. 3 bowls. Obviously I want going to put out 7. Lol They say you can leave the food out for like 10 days days. What is the old food you are leaving out? If it's high carb of course they will go for that. It's like offering a kid donuts or a a plate of carrots.... Most are going to pick the donuts. Lol

Janet, The older dry foods I have are either Evo Turkey-Chicken, or the Vet prescribed Purina DM. Obviously those are not carb free but they are high protein and lower carb that most dry foods.
 
Janet, The older dry foods I have are either Evo Turkey-Chicken, or the Vet prescribed Purina DM. Obviously those are not carb free but they are high protein and lower carb that most dry foods.
Evo is ok at 8 %... Dm is too high in carbs for diabetic cats at around 16%
 
Janet, I asked my vet about Evo vs Purina DM and he said the Purina DM has more complex carbs which is better regardless of the percent of carb. Very hard for me to know what to do.
Pam
 
Nothing official here but once I started cutting the amount of Purina DM my boy was getting, his numbers improved. Slowly got him transitioned to Young Again Zero and have not seen the same negative impacts on his BG. Hope this helps :)
 
Nothing official here but once I started cutting the amount of Purina DM my boy was getting, his numbers improved. Slowly got him transitioned to Young Again Zero and have not seen the same negative impacts on his BG. Hope this helps :)
Yong, I think Young Again Zero would give better numbers than any other dry food. In my case I was wondering the difference between EVO and Purina DM.....just in case Ricky refuses to transition to Young Again. I know he will eat either EVO or Purina DM.
Pam
 
Both our kittie love EVO. even our non diabetic who is picky as heck! I leave evo out to free feed up until 2 hour before each shot.
 
I feed YAZC and can not free feed or he will not stop eating . He gets about a 1/4 cup throughout 24 hours period.
I've talked to the guy at YA and he disagreed with me on him over eating, I know my cat and if it's left down he will eat every last nibble. He also gets FF classic about 1 can over a 24 hour period.
 
@JanetNJ are you still free feeding YA in combination with FF? I see that CC is in remission and wasn't sure if you're still feeding FF if not giving shots.

Claire loves wet food and it's a really useful distraction during shot time! if we did the YA FCAF, I would still need a special treat for shots unless we can get her into remission.

I feed both and he is back in remission . He went into remission the first time while incorporating the YAZC with the Ff classic. He came out of remission after two years because he was eating FF grilled with unlimited YAZC , this caused him to gain weight as well as out of remission.
I would still feed the FF classic with a little YAZC
 
Sorry, should have clarified. Input was just to show how getting him off DM helped :). Hope you see improvements even with going to EVO. @Cherish Gallagher might be able to say how EVO worked with her kitty.
It is confusing for me because Ricky was already eating EVO for about a year before he was diagnosed with diabetes. Then at that point the vet told me to put him on Purina DM. Ricky liked that food and ate that and he seemed to be doing well for the first month. Then he started to go down hill with diabetic neuropathy. That's when I began to try testing at home.

Ricky will eat either EVO or Purina DM. He does not seem to like the smell of Young Again. Ricky doesn't eat wet food, so it is even more important for him to eat what dry food would help.
Pam
 
Evo is ok at 8 %.
I am not sure it 8% - I remember reading on the forum that the formula changed and it is now ~ 12% or 14% (it was some months ago- can't remember) Evo really raised Murphy's blood sugar - YAZC did not, but Murphy stopped eating it for some reason. I give him small amounts of Wysong's Epigen90 which is ~5% I think.
 
i have 7 cats .. 1 diabetic the other 6 are not .. i have always free fed dry and given wet food for breakfast and dinner now i just free feed the Civvies YA 24/7 .. i have 2 huge plastic food storage containers i use for the YA .. each container holds about 4 cups .. with the sugar cat i had to cut him off the regular dry i was feeding cold turkey and switched him to all wet food .. with the others i did a gradual transition, once they were all transitioned to just the YA, i allowed the sugar cat to have some .. now the first 3-4 days they ate the YA like they did the other dry food but by the 5th day they were eating less of it including my one female who would on occasion eat until she puked then go back for seconds now with YA she doesnt do that at all .. i bought an 8 lb bag the first time that lasted me 12 days between 7 cats .. the second time around i bought a 8lb bag and a 4 lb that so far i have used less then half of the 4lb bag in just 5 days .. the sugar cat gets wet food 3 times a day breakfast and dinner and just before i got to bed plus he has 24/7 access to the YA .. he isnt on insulin as of yet, still waiting for that to arrive from Canada but so far i have noticed his numbers have been coming down, when he was just on wet he was 500's once i added the access to the YA his numbers have been creeping down, yesterday he tested at 300 just before his 6pm feeding of wet.
 
I am not sure it 8% - I remember reading on the forum that the formula changed and it is now ~ 12% or 14% (it was some months ago- can't remember) Evo really raised Murphy's blood sugar - YAZC did not, but Murphy stopped eating it for some reason. I give him small amounts of Wysong's Epigen90 which is ~5% I think.
Ok I haven't seen the new numbers for it. Good to know
 
I am not sure it 8% - I remember reading on the forum that the formula changed and it is now ~ 12% or 14% (it was some months ago- can't remember) Evo really raised Murphy's blood sugar - YAZC did not, but Murphy stopped eating it for some reason. I give him small amounts of Wysong's Epigen90 which is ~5% I think.
On the bag of Evo it states it has a Maxium of 12% Carbs. The bag of Purina DM states it has a Maxium of 18%. What I wish I could know is the veracity of is my vet's statement that Purina DM has complex carbs where as others don't which is why Purina DM is preferable according to him. What do other vets say?

Pam
 
JanetNJ, I'm glad to hear about this and am ordering a bag to try. Is it available in stores any where, or only online?
Pam
at the top of the page is a store locator option .. if you click on it that will show you the nearest location where you can buy it in a store petco and petsmart sells Dr Elseys cat litters but i havent seen any of the wet or dry food sold there but for my area there is a speciality pet store that the website states carries the food so i will be going to check it out today
 
at the top of the page is a store locator option .. if you click on it that will show you the nearest location where you can buy it in a store petco and petsmart sells Dr Elseys cat litters but i havent seen any of the wet or dry food sold there but for my area there is a speciality pet store that the website states carries the food so i will be going to check it out today
Storm, When I try the "store locator", the pull down box that asks "category" only seems to list litter and urine related products. It doesn't seem they are offering searches on where the food is sold. I guess it would require making calls.
Pam
 
Pretty sure the food is currently only available online right now, just like Young Again. Maybe if they gain in popularity they'll start being available in stores like their litter :)
 
I've never heard a negative word about Young Again. Maybe the first company that actually cares, doesn't use old shoes and sawdust (cellulose filler). As for free feeding; our first diabetic Nigel was going straight downhill until our vet had the courage (can anyone say litigation lawsuit?) to tell us feed him whatever he wants whenever he wants. Result? Perfect numbers and perfect curves. We also had nine cats so pulling every bowl AND finding a place to hide them was a nightmare.
Now with Noah he only eats wet so leaving food out 24/7 is not a big deal. Every cat is different, metabolism, hunger cycles, food dislikes. Don't be afraid to bend the rules. Bend, not break.
 
could be because since its relatively new product the website map hasnt been updated yet to show which stores carry the food? and yes .. maybe calling either the CS number on the website or your local stores you can find out if its carried locally for you.
 
I have been in contact with dr elseys and they have been very upfront and fast with info.
I asked for nutritional data late at night and had it early in the morning
I will post it again on this thread later when have computer.
Because it is so newly launched even distributors don't have it yet.
I order from a pretty decent size distributor and they do not have it yet. I am trying to get it thru dr elsey and the girl who has been in contact with me is doing her best.
I think the carb on the chicken dry is 4.69 but I will post her reply with all of them later tonight.
 
Here ya go:)

The carb amount in cleanprotein kibble is actually lower than DM and the protein is higher. I have displayed them below. The Salmon is not on the market yet we should have it within the next couple of weeks but the carb amount for the Salmon kibble is 9.06%. Thank you.


Canned:

Turkey-0.59%

Whitefish-1.15%

Beef-0.36%

Chicken-0.49%

Salmon-0.59%

Dry kibble:

Chicken-4.69%
 
Wanted to update this thread.

Yesterday our bag of YAZ arrived. I filled two pie dishes with about 3 cups each per the FCAF guide. One is upstairs and one is down. Cats both ate immediately. This morning Claire's AMPS was the lowest it has EVER been. 230. I fed her a bit of friskies (6% carbs) but she wasn't very hungry and administered 1 unit of NPH. +4 was 99, +6 was 59. The lowest number I've ever had for her before now was around 200, so this is amazing. 59 made me a bit scared, so I fed her some higher carb wet and watched her closely. She had no hypo symptoms and this should have been around the time of nadir. 2 hours later she was at 130. I'll get more tests later but I'm going to only do 1/2 unit if she's over 200.

There are three main challenges with FCAF. First is keeping my dogs away from the upstairs bowl which is on a desk. Secondly, this food smells bold so I feel like my whole house smells like cat food. Third, and biggest draw back is she is eating small amounts throughout the day. This food must be very filling, because both cats barely wanted their wet food this morning and they have always been big eaters. I don't know when AMPS or PMPS is unless I plan a wet food snack, and I can't really tell if she's eaten or not. There's so much food in the bowl and it takes so little to satisfy them that it's impossible to know unless I look for her eating constantly.

I'm switching to very low carb wet (0-2%) food to give small meals twice a day just so I know she's eating and have something to gauge AMPS/PMPS times. Tiki cat seems to be a favorite around here.

I'll update her spreadsheet soon. Thanks for all the support!
 
Wanted to update this thread.

There are three main challenges with FCAF. First is keeping my dogs away from the upstairs bowl which is on a desk. Secondly, this food smells bold so I feel like my whole house smells like cat food. Third, and biggest draw back is she is eating small amounts throughout the day. This food must be very filling, because both cats barely wanted their wet food this morning and they have always been big eaters. I don't know when AMPS or PMPS is unless I plan a wet food snack, and I can't really tell if she's eaten or not. There's so much food in the bowl and it takes so little to satisfy them that it's impossible to know unless I look for her eating constantly.

challenge one - baby gate that swings open in doorway of room with desk or at top/bottom of stairs if desk is in a hallway ...example: i have one in my kitchen/bathroom doorway to keep my black lab and cocker spaniel from getting to litter boxes and food dishes that are located in the bathroom, my bedroom and the walk in closet.
challenge two - a few plastic containers with a lid, any size .. poke small holes randomly all over the sides and top .. add a capful or two of those washer pellets, unstoppables .. put the containers in random areas of the house or in specific rooms, can be hidden under or behind furniture. replace with new pellets based on how long package states scent will last.
challenge three - set a specific time in am and pm to get the AMPS and PMPS ... example: my cat is on lantus so his shots should be 12 hours apart, i do AMPS at 6am as i leave for work less then 30 minutes after wards and his PMPS is 6pm as that is the average time i get home from work i also do random tests during the day when possible or before bed
 
challenge one - baby gate that swings open in doorway of room with desk or at top/bottom of stairs if desk is in a hallway ...example: i have one in my kitchen/bathroom doorway to keep my black lab and cocker spaniel from getting to litter boxes and food dishes that are located in the bathroom, my bedroom and the walk in closet.
challenge two - a few plastic containers with a lid, any size .. poke small holes randomly all over the sides and top .. add a capful or two of those washer pellets, unstoppables .. put the containers in random areas of the house or in specific rooms, can be hidden under or behind furniture. replace with new pellets based on how long package states scent will last.
challenge three - set a specific time in am and pm to get the AMPS and PMPS ... example: my cat is on lantus so his shots should be 12 hours apart, i do AMPS at 6am as i leave for work less then 30 minutes after wards and his PMPS is 6pm as that is the average time i get home from work i also do random tests during the day when possible or before bed
Thanks for the suggestions.

We don't use fragrance in our house, so no febreze or unstoppables for us. I think I'll get another air purifier for upstairs to help.

We have a baby gate at the top and bottom of the stairs for our toddler. I thought I'd need something else to keep the dogs from the desk when we are all upstairs, but so far no need. Fingers crossed this trend continues!

I won't give her insulin if I haven't seen her eat, so I'm giving very low carb wet before shots just to make sure she has something in her stomach.
 
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