Alright, let’s talk about figuring out the monthly cat food situation. For the longest time, I was just winging it, grabbing a bag or a bunch of cans whenever I remembered or things looked low. Didn’t really track the cost or how much my cat, Jasper, was actually eating. It felt kind of random.
Getting Down to Brass Tacks
So, I decided to actually figure it out. No more guessing games. The first thing I did was just watch and measure. Sounds simple, but I hadn’t been consistent before.
- Dry Food: I grabbed a standard measuring cup, not just the scoop that came with the food bin. For a solid week, every time I filled his bowl, I measured exactly how much I put in. I also checked how much was left over before the next feeding to see what he really ate, not just what I offered.
- Wet Food: Jasper gets wet food too, mostly in the evenings. He usually gets those little 3 oz cans. So, I tracked how many cans he actually finished each day. Sometimes he’d leave a bit, sometimes he’d lick the bowl clean.
Doing the Math (Simple Stuff)
After about a week of this, I had some real numbers. It wasn’t perfectly the same every day, of course. Some days he was hungrier, some days less so. But I got a decent average.
I figured out Jasper was eating roughly, let’s say, just over half a cup of dry food per day, and pretty much one full 3 oz can of wet food.
Then I just did the basic math:
- Daily dry food amount x 30 days = Monthly dry food needed.
- Daily wet food amount x 30 days = Monthly wet food needed (in cans).
Important step: I then looked at the packaging. My usual dry food comes in a 6-pound bag. I had to figure out roughly how many cups are in a pound of that specific food (it varies!). Found it on the bag or a quick search usually tells you. Let’s say it’s about 4 cups per pound. So a 6lb bag has around 24 cups.
My calculation showed I needed about 20 cups of dry food per month (e.g., 2/3 cup/day 30 days). So, one 6lb bag (24 cups) was just about right, maybe a little leftover.
For the wet food, needing one 3 oz can per day meant I needed 30 cans per month. Simple enough. Those usually come in cases of 24, so I know I need one case plus about 6 extra cans each month.
The Takeaway
So yeah, that’s how I did it. Took a little effort for a week or so to actually measure and track. But now? I have a much better handle on it. I know roughly I need one big bag of dry food and about 30 cans of wet food each month for Jasper.
It’s not exact down to the last kibble, mind you. Sometimes he eats more, sometimes less. Sometimes I buy a different sized bag on sale. But it gives me a solid baseline for shopping and budgeting. No more wild guesses or running out unexpectedly. Just a practical way to know what my furry dude needs each month.
