Figuring food and water intake, with 3 cats?

[Shorty]

We have 3 cats, 1 of which, Shorty, is newly diagnosed diabetic.

These 3 have, for the last several years, shared the same food, water, and litter boxes.

Does anyone have any suggestions on beginning to segregate their food, water, and litter boxes from each other? While we are awake and home from work, it isn't a big deal on the food and water. The litter boxes are in slightly more discrete locations for kitty's privacy. But when we are both at work, and come home, we won't know who drank the water, who ate the food.

Any suggestions?

 

[BJM]

If you feed them all the same low carb food, you don't need to segregate the food. When I had Spitzer, I switched everyone to Friskies pates.

The Secondary Monitoring Tools in my signature will still give you some clues, just not which cat is doing it, although if you are watching them, you'll see who is doing what. Pick up an inexpensive baby scale to weigh them weekly - its a good general check anyway for all of them.

 

[Debbie Do]

I stopped free-feeding when Bubba was diagnosed. Everyone eats at 7 and 7. Bubba eats on the island (to keep the others - who would love to eat the Bubba's food - at bay) and the others eat from multiple bowls in the dining room. Since doing this, the food lasts longer, and we've noticed a little weight drop in some of the pudgy kitties.

 

[Ruby&Baco]

I did the same thing, gave them food but not nedt to eachother, and I kept a feeding schedule so 7am and 7pm is good, that's what I also did.
Litterbox use is something that isn't going to work if you have more cats in the house. But I just watched if the pee became less then it was.. First the litterbox was almost a swimming pool, so much did Baco pee, but after 2 weeks or so it became less than it was.
Same with the water intake, you can't know for sure what the intake is but you can see how much it was and how much is now being used.

 

[Sharon14]

I have multiple cats. I have switched most of them over to the wet food, but still have a few kibble addicted holdouts. They get fed in the bedroom with the door shut so Colin has no chance to get to the food. I do this whenever I feed Colin-3-4x/day. It didn't take them too long to figure it out and now when I open a can of food the addicts run to the bedroom and wait for their food.

 

[Ferndoc]

I also switched all three to sugar kitty friendly food. As far as pee, mine have different peeing habits so I imperfectly monitor it that way.