Severely overweight cat.....need advice?

Question

I am very scared for my cat...he is severely obese....when you pick him up it feels like he has a lead bar in his stomach he's so heavy.....he even walks funny at times, as almost if he's in pain on one of his legs. He wants food constantly....I don't know if he was starved as a kitten or what (we got him at a shelter when he was 3 and he was thin) but he eats almost anything now. We've been trying this regiment....1/4 cup dry in the morning, 1/8 cup dry around 2 pm, half a mini can of Friskies wet food around 5 pm, and then 1/8 cup dry just before bed to hold him over until morning....it doesn't seem to be working....do you think getting a baby kitten might help him lose weight? Maybe they would play together and he'd get more exercise....we had another cat about 2 months ago and he was starting to lose weight then, but we had to get rid of the new cat because of bad behavior problems with the new adult cat we introduced. Do you think this would work?

Answer 1

It just might. If nothing else, a younger cat would encourage him to play. In fact, I'm pretty sure it would: You mention that he started to lose weight before, when you had another cat.

Another thing you can do is get a toy that you can put food in, and let him play with that and nibble his kibbles as they pop out. My vet mentioned this, and considering how rambunctious my male, at least, is, I can see how that would work.

Good luck!

Answer 2

Be sure to have a vet check him out. They can suggest a target weight and can rule out any health problems outside of the obesity.

But when they try to sell you the prescription diet food, say no thanks.

Increased activity WILL help but isn't enough by itself. See if you can get your cat to play a bit more, or make him work for his food. Keep him moving.

But cut out the dry food entirely. It's not good.

My Poppy lost 5 pounds since last October. That doesn't sound huge, but it is. If you take my advice, you can have similar or even better results!

From my blog:
In a nutshell, most cats are fat because they've been fed too much (free-feeding or indulging them) and because they're fed dry food which is NOT appropriate food for them due to the grain/carb/sugar content. Cats are obligate carnivores who need to eat a high meat-based protein diet, which is also high in fats and low in carbs.

Many vets, who are sadly ignorant on the topic of proper cat nutrition, will recommend prescription diet foods (usually dry). Cats are expected to lose weight on a starvation diet of 1/4 or 1/3 cup of food per day. Everyone is miserable in these situations.

The solution is to switch the fat cat (and any others in the household as well) to a good quality canned food. Because these foods are species appropriate, the cat will lose weight at a safe, slow pace (no more than 1 pound per month). Switching foods needs to occur slowly, and if you're trying to get a kibble junkie to eat canned food, that will happen naturally.

That's it. Easy as pie. Not only will fat cats lose weight, but it and any others in the home will reap many benefits of eating a speciies appropriate diet.

See the links below for detailed information on this topic.

EDIT: Um, I don't know where Jenny got the idea that obesity in cats is no big deal....or perhaps I've misunderstood what she's saying, but it IS a big problem for cats. It's the surest way to diabetis-town, which for some owners is a death sentence for their cats.

Answer 3

The problem is in what you are feeding. Please see the links at the bottom of this post

Nutrition since there are so many bad things out there is very important to your cat’s health
Contrary to what you may have heard; dry foods are not a great thing to feed a cat.
Please read the label on what you are feeding? What are the ingredients? Do you know what they mean? Is the first ingrdiant a muscle meat like chicken or meal or other things?
http://www.catinfo.org/#Learn_How_To_Read_a_Pet_Food_Ingredient_Label
Dry foods are the number 1 cause of diabetes in cats as well as being a huge contributing factor to kidney disease, obesity, crystals, u.t.i’s and a host of other problems. Food allergies are very common when feeding dry foods. Rashes, scabs behind the tail and on the chin are all symptoms
The problems associated with Dry food is that they are loaded with carbohydrates which many cats (carnivores) cannot process them. Also, Most of the moisture a cat needs is suppose to be in the food but in
Dry, 95% of it is zapped out of dry foods in the processing. Another thing, most use horrible ingredients and don't use a muscle meat as the primary ingredient and use vegetable based protein versus animal. Not good for an animal that has to eat meat to survive.
You want to pick a canned food w/o gravy (gravy=carbs) that uses a muscle meat as the first ingredient and doesn't have corn at least in the first 3 ingredients if at all. Fancy feast is a middle grade food with 9lives, friskies whiskas lower grade canned and wellness and merrick upper grade human quality foods. Also, dry food is not proven to be better for teeth. Does a hard pretzel clean your teeth or do pieces of it get stuck? http://www.felinefuture.com/nutrition/bpo_ch4a.php

Please read about cat nutrition.
http://www.newdestiny.us/nutritionbasics.html
http://www.catinfo.org/feline_obesity.htm
http://maxshouse.com/feline_nutrition.htm#Dry_Food_vs_Canned_Food.__Which_is_reall

Answer 4

You should gradually reduce the food you are giving him. If he is overweight then you are feeding too much...

My cat got fat when he was lonely and innactive. When I got a puppy he was always playing with him. Plus he has to jump over baby gates to get to different parts of the house.

But you can't count on increased activity no matter what he might just be lazy. You need to feed him just enough to maintain a healthy weight at his current activity leve.

Answer 5

The first step is always to rule out a physical cause. The vet is aware of kitty's obesity, but have they done blood tests/radiographs to test for tumors or malfunctioning organs? If one of these is the cause, then fixing it will not only fix kitty's obesity but his overall health as well.

Bear in mind that cats tolerate extra weight much better than dogs or humans. The health risks of obesity are high in humans, moderate in dogs, and mild in cats. It's just not as serious a health issue for them.

That being said, I think your idea of bringing in a companion is SPLENDID! I have seen first hand the effect that a rambunctious kitten can have on an overweight adult cat. It actually increases their quality of life, since they get so much joy out of having someone to play with, cuddle with, teach and relate to.

One more thought on the food kitty's getting: is it a reduced calorie food? You mention Friskies, which isn't the highest quality cat food out there. Lower quality foods have a lot of extraneous ingredients which make it taste good to the cat, making you think it's good for them when in fact it's adding empty calories and causing them to crave it more often. A really good quality reduced calorie food will, in theory, satisfy kitty's hunger with less food, allowing the weight to drop off naturally. Ask your vet for a recommendation. I have personally had great success with Purina Pro Plan, available at pet supply stores.

Answer 6

Walk daily 30 mins in the morning

Answer 7

if you re having trouble getting started make a small move such as starting an eating log or buying walking shoes you re three times more likely to follow through if you start with small gestures such as these

Answer 8

when out at a restaurant ask the server to hold the bread snack mix or chips and salsa that might come before the meal if you re hungry youll be tempted

Answer 9

If you have a seperate room keep small useful exercise equipment Use those equipment while reading and listening songs

Answer 10

try drinking skim milk at breakfast instead of juice overweight people who drank skim milk for breakfast ate fewer calories