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I have three indoor only cats. They are 8, 5 and 3. I took the 8 year old to the vet a couple months ago and she had gained another pound since last year's visit. She seems to have gained one pound per year for the last three years. I try to keep all of my animals from being overweight. So I figured I would switch their regular dry indoor cat food to indoor weight control food. They normally get a 1/4 cup of dry and 1/4 of a 3 oz. can of food 2x per day. I feed them breakfast and dinner. Dry food is not left out continuously.
So two things have happened. Previously, they would never finish all the food at meal time. There would always be some kibbles left in each bowl. They would eat all the wet food. We would then combine the left over kibble into one bowl and the three of them would pick on it periodically for the next hour or so.
Since the weight control switch, they finish everything immediately. Additionally, my 5 year old (male) seems to be constantly starving. He is hanging out in the kitchen constantly and meowing at us when we come into the room. He is popping up on the dinner table to beg for meat etc. These are things he has never done before.
Do you think this is because of the food switch, or something else? I should add that I did take him for his yearly vet visit not long after I took the 8 year old and he had lost almost a pound since his last yearly visit. This was only about a week after the food switch, so it couldn't have had that much influence that quickly. The vet did not seemed concerned about the weigh loss. He is still just over 10 pounds. I'm just wondering if there could be an underlying medical reason for this. I tried Googling and things like diabetes, ployphagia etc. came up. But would that type of thing happen basically overnight?
Should give them more food since it's weight control? But doesn't that defeat the purpose? I was wondering if anyone else had done a food switch and have this happen. I will certainly take him to vet to be checked if people think I should be concerned. This has been going on for about a month.
One additional note. He is also eating things he never cared for before. In the past I have attempted to giving him small pieces of grilled meat and he was not interested. Now he's a lunatic begging for it.
Also, it is VERY important that he lose weight very slowly. I highly recommend buying a digital postal scale to monitor his weight weekly. It is more accurate than using a human scale. I've had one for years and it's become valuable.
Also, it is VERY important that he lose weight very slowly. I highly recommend buying a digital postal scale to monitor his weight weekly. It is more accurate than using a human scale. I've had one for years and it's become valuable.
Thanks for your response. No, I did not have blood work done as he was not having this issue yet and it was just a routine visit for his rabies shot etc. He's not the cat that needs to lose weight. It's the 8 year old that I made the switch for, he's the 5 year old and his weight is fine.
I'm trying to determine if I need to get him examined or if this might just be a phase. I would hate to spend thousands on and put him through a bunch of tests unnecessarily.
Thanks for your response. No, I did not have blood work done as he was not having this issue yet and it was just a routine visit for his rabies shot etc. He's not the cat that needs to lose weight. It's the 8 year old that I made the switch for, he's the 5 year old and his weight is fine.
I'm trying to determine if I need to get him examined or if this might just be a phase. I would hate to spend thousands on and put him through a bunch of tests unnecessarily.
I am not a vet, but since this came up rather quickly, I'd try an experiment first for a few days. Try feeding only wet food and see how is appetite is. If it returns to normal, you know it's the dry food. If he's still acting hungry, there may be another health issue.
"Weight control" dry food is just a gimmick, it has nothing to do with helping a cat lose weight. Have a look at the ingredients. Full of corn I'll bet. Cellulose? Carbs and sawdust are not good for cats. Cats eating that kind of stuff will never feel satisfied and will not remain in good health.
Cats are obligate carnivores, they need a meat based diet high in moisture, to thrive.
Feed an all canned diet, on a schedule. Control portions. Increase exercise. Look for low carb canned foods.
Weigh the cats weekly or every two weeks to monitor loss. Cats should not lose more than a couple of ounces a week, very dangerous for a cat to lose weight too fast.
I should have known better than to ask a question here. Nobody is even remotely attempting to answer what I asked. All I'm getting is feed an all wet diet NOW.
It's kind of like asking if there is a smoking section at Fenway Park. You get no answer to the question, just preaching about how everyone should quit smoking.
Additionally, if you read what I originally posted, the cat in question is NOT overweight.
The weight control dry food is probably low-fat. Fat is filling; whatever they have replaced it with is apparently not. Is it possible to feed the one cat his old diet in another room, since he doesn't need to lose weight? I know it's inconvenient, but sometimes you have to do things like that. (We have to feed our one shy cat in the bathroom, the others in the kitchen...otherwise they shove him out of the way and eat all his food).
FWIW...our cats get a mix of dry and wet food too. One is a little plump, one is skinny, one is in the middle. All on the same food.
You're right I didn't answer your question about the male cat who has lost a pound in one year. Not a month, you said, one year. No one can answer that here. you have to take your cat to the vet and have diagnostic work done such as blood work to determine if there is a health problem.
However I reiterate, the "weight control" dry food you are feeding is absolutely one of the worst things you can feed a cat. Cats need protein and fat in their diet, protein and fat that comes from MEAT. They do not need high carb low fat corn and sawdust cereal.
Of course you are going to be told to feed your cats an all canned diet. Those of us who have spent time learning about feline nutrition would like to see all cats fed more appropriately.
Thank you. I think I will just go back to the old plan and just give the one with the weight issue a smaller portion.
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