Overweight Cats (Inherited)

[SeaOfGrass]

Originally Posted by catsmom21

One of the most important things to do, when helping an obese cat reduce is get rid of the kibble.

Kibble is empty calories, high carbohydrates (which cats don't need and cannot process) and dehydrating. And no cat ever got healthy on a "weight management" kibble, because those are generally even higher in carbs than other kibble.

Having said that to address the OP: Obese cats of unknown health status really should have a check up and lab work first to make sure they don't already have diabetes or other diseases that obesity can cause.

Also, as someone else mentioned, it is extremely important that the cat lose weight very slowly.No more than an ounce a week, or less. I recommend purchasing a baby scale and weighing weekly or every two weeks.

Feed small meals frequently. Add a little water to the meals. Feed canned pate products that are low in carbs. Fancy Feast classic is one. Depending on the weight of each cat, I would recommend you start with 6 ounces a day, per cat, split between four meals.

The division in time does not need to be even. They can still get their overnight fast (to help with motility and pyloric emptying) and the four meals can be fed during the day, at scheduling that is convenient to your day. Last meal at bedtime. Play some interactive Games with them first. Get them running and jumping and climbing.

First meal at breakfast, but don't feed as soon as you get up. Let them wait a little. Encourage a Game before you feed them.

Even if they don't seem much interested in playing yet, as they lose and start to feel better (both from the weight loss and getting rid of the kibble) they will start to be more intersted in playing.

Weight the cats on the day you start. Weigh them again in one week. If no weight loss, don't make any changes yet, wait a week and weigh again. If no loss again cut back a very small amount from the 6 ounce total. And proceed this way.

If there is weight loss already, and it is one ounce or less, continue with the 6 ounces and monitor. If the cat has lost more than an ounce, on 6 ounces a day, it's happening too fast, so increase the amount of food by an ounce.

Adding a little water helps slow the cat down from gobbling the food, and helps them feel fuller, and keeps them well hydrated.

The benefits of feeding more meals a day, is to keep the cat from getting too hungry, and to keep the cat from having sugar lows (which are caused by carbs in the diet) and to allow more flexibility, as you cut down on their quantity. Reducing each meal by a little bit, when you are feeding 4 meals a day, is easier on the cat, then making two meals a day smaller.

I recommend keeping a journal record. Weigh at the same time, in the same place, every week. Make not when you weigh, if the cat has recently peed or not. pee is heavy and can affect the accurate weight tracking.

Here's how to check carbs: Cat Food Nutrition Calculator | Elizabeth C Scheyder

The number one way to help a cat reduce: Get rid of the kibble.

Yes, I was going to say the same thing. We inherited our (late) cat from my MIL. She was always complaining that her cat was always begging for food, even scratching at her ankles for it. After she (my MIL) passed away, we took in her cat. In dealing with the vet, we found out that he was 25 lbs (!!!) and had diabetes. I had to give him daily insulin shots from then on.

I started researching about how to get him to lose weight, and I'm pretty sure I found out about cats needing basically just a protein diet, no kibble, here on CD. Who knows, it might even have been you, catsmom. Anyway, I put him on "wet" food only, and we got him down to 12 lbs. He never went hungry with the wet food. Anyway, this advice about the food was by far the best advice I ever received regarding the health of our cat.

Originally Posted by ContraPagan

Catinfo.org

Best site on the web for feline diet info. There is a whole section on weight reduction.

Step 1 - Get rid of the kibble. It is in no way species-appropriate, and actually contributes to obesity in felines..

And I believe this was the exact site, and doctor, that I was referred to.

We got our cat when he was about 7 or 8, and he lived to age 15, which I think was pretty good given that he had diabetes.

I can't agree more that this is the best advice for this problem.

[catsmom21]

Originally Posted by earslikeacat

I'm very highly suggest slowly switching to a grain free diet. It pays off in many ways: cats are satisfied with less food, less waste in the litter box, less smelly waste and I believe, a better behaved cat. The price point will be higher but will pay off in less vet visits and better health overall.
Fancy feast is loaded with chemicals ad carbs which are unnecessary and degrading to their health.
I love Merrick and Natural Balance packets that have veggies and gravy along with the protein source. He does get kibble: Whole Foods 365 Grain Free Salmon and Pea.

But these are all still very high in carbohydrates. (Merrick is owned by Purina, by the way, and NB is owned by some giant corporation as well) At least the packets are wet, so they have that going for them. And it's the most important part.

And the kibble...well, everyone already knows what I think about kibble. Any kibble. Grain free or not, it's high carb dehydrating junk food. And peas are high carb, inaccessible protein source, filler, to increase the protein content on the label, and highly irritant to cats' intestines

That's the main issue with commercial processed pet foods. There isn't any one product that meets all requirements. Fancy Feast classic has some artificial things in it, but it's wet, and low carb. It's been very effective for a number of cats who were morbidly obese.

Once the weight is lost, if a better quality diet is desired, certainly one can branch out.

Anyway, you didn't ask but I'd advise you to get rid of the kibble and add at least one low carb pate product to your cat's wet rotation diet.