How do you help your cat loose weight?

Question

My cat is 6 yrs old and weighs about 14 pounds. She is a tabby. We tried feeding her different food and doesn't work plus our dogs ate it. Anything like excercise or games to play with her?

Answer 1

You are off on a good start. You /never/ want to limit the amount of food your cat gets, because cats are occasional eaters, and would prefer to eat about 6 small meals per day as opposed to three big ones. One thing you can do, if you are only filling her food bowl at certain times of the day, is to leave food out for her 24/7. If she has more opportunities to eat, her metabolism will actually speed up to accomodate this. Also, try switching to something similar to Iams Multi Cat. Even if you don't have multiple cats, this helps build lean muscle, and reduce body fat. Another thing you coulf try is getting her a catnip toy. These are fairly inexpensive, and every cat loves them so you don't have to worry about her not liking a toy you get. She will go crazy with the catnip, and you can play with her with it too (like throwing it across the room for her to chase after). That way she can get plenty of exercise while enjoying herself. Good luck!

Answer 2

Weight loss begins with two things: reducing calories consumed and increasing energy burned.

The most common reason cats become overweight is eating too much food. Speak to a veterinarian and ask them to calculate how much food (calories) your cat should eat during a single day. Now only feed your cat that amount of food (this is the hard part) no matter how much squawking and whining she does. Feeding the amount divided into 4 meals thoughout the day might help.

Special weight loss diets generally have less calories than regular foods. They may help your cat feel fuller after eating but a cat who can eat as much light food as she wants will not lose weight. The key is allowing the cat to only eat as much food as her metabolism requires any excess will be stored as body fat.

You need to do what is right for your cat, she is depending on you. If she is used to free choice food it is going to a unhappy change for her but it is what is best for her, not what is going to make her happiest. With time she will become accustomed to eating only the amount she needs and she will be healthier for it.

To keep the food away from the dog you can try a couple tings. If your dog is bigger than the cat you can cut a small cat size hole in a large box to allow the cat in to eat while the dog won't be able to come in. A baby gate to restrict the dog's access to a certain room could help. Placing the food on top of the dryer will work if your cat can still jump that high.

Answer 3

Of course exercise will work...but I've never seen a cat that would do anything except exactly what they wanted. If they are interested in toys and pouncing and chasing you could do that more. Less food would work just as well. Dogs usually like all types of cat food..is there anyway you could feed the cat where the dog couldn't get to it? on top of the washer or dryer, maybe in a room with a baby gate so the dog doesn't eat it? Catnip always livened up my cat if you are going the exercise route.

Answer 4

My cat needs to lose weight too and it is so hard! Cats are just lazy sometimes! Obviously feed her less-try a half cup a day of light food like Science diet light. Cut down on treats (I give my cat maybe 3 a week) and take away any other food source if there is one. I've found that my cat will eat the dog food if I'm not looking! As for games/toys...try little crumpled balls of paper, toy mice (those ones with real fur, they look real, and are about $1), tie a string around a crumpled ball of paper (like a little teaser), a laser pen, or a hair binder or milk jug ring (but watch so your cat doesn't swallow those!). Hope those help you out!

Answer 5

Add canned food to her diet. It's filling, and contains mostly water, so not a whole lot of calories.

If she didn't like one type of dry food, try another, our clients have had a lot of luck with Hills Prescription Diet r/d.

There's lots of cat toys out there, they aren't expensive. Pick up a few different ones, and see which she likes. Keep in mind that at 6 years old, she may not be as "into" playing as she did when she was younger.

Lastly, keep the dog away from the cat food - it isn't good for the dog.

Answer 6

say910 has absolutely excellent advice. I only have a few little things to add about helping your kitty become more active.

I have one very lean kitty and one who is obese-prone. That means it is more challenging to keep her at her ideal weight. If I were to "free-feed" her and allow her to be sedentary, she would become obese quickly. To get her moving I do several things.

First, I make her work for her dry food. The majority of her diet is canned (Hill's Science Diet Adult), but she gets about 12 pieces of Hill's t/d each day. I make her chase the pieces down the hall and down the stairs. It's good exercise for her and fun for me! She is hilarious!

Next, I try to play with her as often as possible. She LOVES pouncing on toy mice that I toss down the hall. She is also a laser pointer addict. She goes nuts over wand toys with feathers or faux-fur trailers on the end. We have this game where she sits on the top of her cat tree and I use a mouse-toy to "sneak up" on her from below. She tries to predict which side it comes from and tries to grab at it. I make sure her nails are clipped before trying this game. hehe!

Another idea is to get your kitty a buddy! Two kitties are no more difficult to care for than one kitty and double the fun!

Weight loss is really all on the shoulders of the owner. It is a commitment, but it is worth it for the long-term health of your cat. Obesity can lead to diabetes, hepatic lipidosis (liver disease), heart problems, respiratory problems, lameness, etc.

Good luck!

Answer 7

Bone up on cat nutrition. I'm posting several links below; some of them are specifically about obesity.

My Poppy weighed 25 pounds. I don't know how much she's lost so far, but it's working.

Answer 8

this may sond weird but you should take him for a walk... you should also get a cat clibing toy for her to work on her strangth. have her bounce around by tying a piece of ulminum foil to the end of the string. cats like shiny things.dont feed him as much... every day take a little bit off his diet... taking to much away can cause illness.

Answer 9

changing the food to older adult cat food will help but portion control and serving will help most of all...morning and evening feeding time and control the amount

Answer 10

I have a fat cat named pazz I give pazz science diet and i try to play with him more out side