Cats eating dog food?

Question
You may not be able to help me with this one, but...

I have two cats and two dogs.  I figured out how to get the dogs to stop eating cat food (by placing their food on a table) but my cats are eating dog food all the time now and I don't know why.  It seems like they prefer it over their own.  My dogs need to eat as well as my cats, but how do I make sure they eat their own food?!  I'm very frustrated, please help me, as I've heard that cats can get heart complications and such from eating a lot of dog food.

Answer
Yes, what you've heard is true.  Cats need taurine, an amino-acid, to keep their hearts and eye sight healthy.  Dog food doesn't have any taurine.  If cats eat more dog food than cat food, they are at risk for irreversible hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (the heart hardens) and blindness.

I have dogs as well as cats, and the only thing that works for mine is to feed the dogs a controlled amount twice daily.  The dogs finish their meals within 15 minutes.  If anything is leftover at the end of that time, it's put away, and their bowls are left empty until the next meal.

And this actually is the preferred method of feeding for dogs according to nutritionists.  Dogs who are free-fed almost always end up obese over time.  Feeding them a controlled portion twice a day helps prevent that.

If it seems the cats really dislike their own food, I wouldn't be adverse to trying another brand.