Ideas for keep dog out of cat's food?!?

[Debbie]

I feed my cat in a wire crate. My great dane’s crate happened to be available as he has graduated to free run of the house, but surely a smaller (ie cheaper) one would do just as well. I put a double end snap on the door and snap to the crate and it leaves enough room for kitty, but not enough for even my 15 lb dog.

Because I have such a big crate, I’ve got the litter box in there as well as a kitty bed. Kitty goes and hangs out in his “condo” whenever the mood strikes and then I lock him in overnight when I don’t want to hear him tearing around the house. It works like a treat and he’s very content with the set up… He does think he’s a dog. Lol.

[Guin]

GEEZ PEOPLE. The QUESTION was, how does she keep the dogs from eating the cat food, NOT open season on feeding methods. :rolleyes:

OP, I feed my cat on the kitchen counter so the dogs don’t make off with whatever food he has. Is the counter not high enough so that your dog can swipe things from it? Another suggestion would be a baby gate that has the vertical rails, so the cat can get through to a feeding space but the dog can’t.
Good luck! My cat would never be able to eat if he wasn’t able to be above the wolves!

[Chall]

Since you have seen the wooden kitty feeding station, can you make it yourself?
P.S. Kitty will not be judging your handiwork on looks, all she cares about is eating unmolested.
P.P.S. I am fan of more than one exit, and far enough apart that dog can’t cover both exists at once. My kitty is always checking out escape routes, especially when I am holding her and petting here. You can see her eyes as she checks out escapes… “Okay to the chair, over the coach and outta the room, yeah that’s the ticket”

[lesson_junkie]

Gosh, I just tell my dogs No.

If I hear anybody cheating, (unmistakable) I say “Leave it”.

The dogs all have basic obedience skills, enough for them to be civilized, anyhow.

Only one of my six dogs is a committed cat food addict, and even she will stay out of the cat food when she is put on notice. All of them want to scarf down all they can get, of course, but only the one is willing to push the limits.

The cats have food put down twice a day. It’s left available for several hours.
After everybody’s had all they want, I pick it up.

With 10 cats and 6 dogs, I have to say what I mean, and mean what I say.

I can keep them out of the cat food, but I can’t seem to do anything about all the shedding!

[MunchingonHay]

My cat gets his can food ASAP, and in as soon as he figures out that I am awake the cries start coming. Feed me Feed Me! FEED ME!!!

He gets his can and I walk the dog.

Then at dinner time they both get fed at the same time. Of course the cat munches for the rest of the night (he gets dry in the PM) I feed the cat on a chair, just a plan ol’e chair and the dog gets fed on the floor. Dog learned early on that cat food is NOT for dogs. It took one CTJ moment and he figured it out, then all I had to do was growl at him and he leaves it alone. He has not gone near the cat’s food in over a year.

[HillaryH]

Thanks for all the great suggestions & thanks to Romany for finding the item . . . from the reviews I’d def have to get a latch for the top b/c it would take Houdini (my mutt) about 2 seconds to figure out how to flip the top!

[QUOTE=Romany;6209941]
Found it, I think :eek:

http://www.plowhearth.com/Tiered-Wood-Cat-Feeding-Station-With-Two-Stainless-Bowls_p403153.html

We stopped our greedy bouncy dog from getting at the cat food on the kitchen counter by jamming a kiddie-gate in the kitchen doorway, but raising it enough from the floor that the dog could neither wiggle under nor squeeze over the gate, which worked relatively well.[/QUOTE]

I wish I could teach the cat to eat all in one seating but he’s 12 years old & not a good eater to begin with & I serioulsy doubt I could change his habits at this point. The bionic mutt is newish to us (& used to running the streets of Trenton) & though our previous dogs could not/did not conter surf; I just can’t trust this rascal yet. For those of you who were worried, I give the kitty wet food & dry food measure out two times a day but he likes to snack & has been able to his entire life.

I had been feeding the kitty on the fridge but it’s a huge jump from our counters to our fridge & with the kitty getting older, frankly it worries me that he will miss. I will try the “levitating” baby gate set-up suggested by Romany - - though it may be difficult to get it high enough that he can’t jump but low enough that he can’t shimmy under.

I will try to report back with photo evidence if I can outsmart my little scamp!!

[Romany]

[QUOTE=HillaryH;6211348]
Thanks for all the great suggestions & thanks to Romany for finding the item . . . from the reviews I’d def have to get a latch for the top b/c it would take Houdini (my mutt) about 2 seconds to figure out how to flip the top!

I wish I could teach the cat to eat all in one seating but he’s 12 years old & not a good eater to begin with & I serioulsy doubt I could change his habits at this point. The bionic mutt is newish to us (& used to running the streets of Trenton) & though our previous dogs could not/did not conter surf; I just can’t trust this rascal yet. For those of you who were worried, I give the kitty wet food & dry food measure out two times a day but he likes to snack & has been able to his entire life.

I had been feeding the kitty on the fridge but it’s a huge jump from our counters to our fridge & with the kitty getting older, frankly it worries me that he will miss. I will try the “levitating” baby gate set-up suggested by Romany - - though it may be difficult to get it high enough that he can’t jump but low enough that he can’t shimmy under.

I will try to report back with photo evidence if I can outsmart my little scamp!![/QUOTE]

Someone else suggested the kiddie gate with bars, so the cat can slip through but not the bouncy dog.

So - how about a combination of all of the above: on the bottom, a standard mesh kiddie gate, then jammed above that, one with the bars.

OK, so your house will look like a red-neck Fort Knox but, bonus, you’re cat will be happy, and the dog should hopefully be stumped…for a while!

[juniormom]

What about a Rubbermaid box with a hole cut in the top of it so the cat can get in? Put it on your counter. For that matter, you may be able to just put a large Rubbermaid tub on the counter with no lid… Maybe that would be enough to keep your dog out. If necessary, add the gate to the room too. Good luck!

[BasqueMom]

mine have their dry food on the hall bathroom vanity counter as far back from the edge as possible. So far so good.

Our border collie learned quickly cat food was a no-no. But the Aussie is another story. Should there be a counter surfing division in dog shows, he
would be a world champion.

[betsyk]

My brother made a beautiful “kitty Parthenon” which is about the size of an apple crate, with slats on the sides and a top that hinges and latches. It has lasted for years. We also have a cat door to the basement where the litter boxes are; maybe that’s a better option and takes care of two problems at once.