If I leave out 3-4 days worth of food for my cat, he eats it in a day. This makes it hard for me to go on a 3-4 day trip without him eating two weeks worth of food. Are there any products I can buy that will distribute the right amount of food to the cat every day? The only ones I've found are controlled by the cat or just make it harder to eat the food.

http://www.nextag.com/automatic-pet-feed…

There are a number of products that will dispense food in the portions you want and at the times that you want. They are great for setting up for going on trips as well as for keeping your cat from turning into a porker.

pets question and answers,www.5d2d.com

I used one as a diet program for my "Jabba the Hutt" sized cat. Only got a vet recommended amount of food at 7 am and at 7 pm.

It was funny watching him try and beat the machine up to try and get more food. He could never get into it, but if he hit it just right he could get one small piece of kibble. All that work for one little piece of food that would never be enough to replace the calories he burned to get it.

I'd have stopped him, but it was good exercise.

It sounds like you may need to hire a pet sitter to come each day to feed your furry friend. I have been pet sitting for a while and it is a wonderful job. It isn't healthy for your cat to eat this much in one sitting, but it is still normal for him to do so. They don't know they should stop eating the way most humans do. Good luck and let us know what you decide.

EDIT: Excellent response from Alex. Just FYI, if you did decide to go the pet sitter route, you can easily find a responsible loving one by calling your local vet. :) Take care.

There are feeders you can put on a timer, but it's ideal to have a petsitter come in every day and monitor his health, keep his litter box clean, and feed him. It's certainly worked out well for my family and our cats.

Good luck.