Fat cat

[Sophia123]

Hello,

I am new to this forum and am wondering if anyone has any advice for me.

My cat is a 3 year old calico who just weighed in at 15lbs (her ideal weight I was told was 11lbs). She is always hungry and can out eat the dog! In fact, the biggest reason for her weight gain is that our dog is a very picky eater and if he doesn't finish his bowl our cat will! We measure all her food, she is on a diet formula food and rarely gets snacks and so I was worried the weight gain was due to a more serious problem other than her diet.

We brought her to the vet and he told us it was because she was eating dry food and snacking on the dogs food. He recommended we feed her the Medi-cal high fibre wet food that is exclusively sold through the vet. The food is very expensive and I wondered if anyone knows of a good alternative?

I don't want to go cheap because I want her to get the best food possible but I just feel that I am getting scamed and the vet would obviously recommend a food the he is selling!

Does anyone have any advice to help a fat cuddly cat?
Thanks!

[Lucky Rescue]

Have you had her thoroughly checked out to make sure nothing physical is causing the overweight problem?

If you have and she is fine, then like us, cats get fat through too much food and not enough exercise.

I find that cats are much more satisfied when they eat canned food. They also get needed water from it, since cats often do not drink enough on their own.

I can only tell you what I personally would do. I would make sure she isn't eating the dog food, and I would feed her canned food, divided into a few meals every day. If she's healthy she doesn't need prescription food.

You don't need to get top of the line canned food, but just don't get crap like 9-Lives or in-house store brands.

You can also get a cat tree, or interactive toy, like a "Kitty Tease" to get her to exercise more.

Get that porker moving!!

[EFINNE]

Agree with other poster, if health checks out it is probably because she is eating the dog food. Perhaps keeping her locked in another room till the dog has finished eating. I also have a calico cat that is 8 years old and ten pounds, she is on Hills canned Prescription diet and just hates it but I give her 1 teaspoon of "Candy" fancy feast on the side, I know its bad but they just love the gravy. She has lost weight but we don't have any other competition for food to worry about like you do. I heard Nutro and regular Hills brands are good and can be purchased to the pet store, they probably have weight loss formulas.

Good luck and hope your furbabies are well.

Efinne

[Sophia123]

Thanks for the advice, I will use up the cans of expensive food and then think about buying an alternative.

But I think you're right, the main thing is her eating the dog food. We have been feeeding the dog eat in the bathroom in the mornings now so that I can monitor who eats what and still blow-dry my hair so I can get to work on time!

I am also searching for good toys that she can play with, she gets bored of toys so quickly or the dog gets more excited about them than her and ends up destroying them!

Ahh, you gotta love em'.

[dogcatharmony]

i had the same problem with my 7 year old tabby. he ballooned to 23 pounds and although he is a big cat ( he came from a litter of big ol barn cats) this was excessive. i started feeding him wet food in the morning and then Science Diet Lite in the evening for supper. he has lost about 7 pounds now and is looking alot better. i tried the food the vet suggested and not only did he hate it the dog wouldn't even eat it!!!!!!!

[Trinitie]

Originally Posted by dogcatharmony

i tried the food the vet suggested and not only did he hate it the dog wouldn't even eat it!!!!!!!

Now that's bad tasting!

Cats can be quite lazy when they want to. Get a cheap remote control car. Not only will you have fun, but the quick movements should get that fat cat puffing!

[chico2]

I have the same problem with my Vinnie,he's 15lb and getting fat....part of the problem is my 3 cats all have their own dish.Vinnie,while eating his own is keeping an eye on the others My other two cats like to eat a bit and return later for more,but if I forget to remove their dishes,Vinnie will dive for them.I now have them eating in different rooms,so I can check who is eating and who's not.
I had a fat white sweet-heart once before(Peppi),who like overweight people ended up being diabetic and eventually had to be put down at 13yrs because of cancer.

[Karin]

My boss drives me crazy..she has a kind heart with animals, I always tease her saying one more and you qualify for shelter status. She has taken in 5 cat's & one dog into her house, one more cat is inching it's way up to her back door., & the one office kitty, Foxy. The entire group is obese or getting there. (She is a former nurse too)
I cannot stress enough to her about their weight, I am wasting my breath.
We use the same vet and has heard the lecture from her too. All food is free choice, canned & dry, cat & dog. She changes their food 3 times a day.
Our company's very old donkey & pony are also walking coffee tables!
Extra weight is not your friend...for anyone.

[chico2]

Yeah Karin,I know and I am worried about Vinnie,unlike my other two,who are a perfect weight and very picky,Vinnie will eat anything....birdseeds,peanuts,bread,mashed potatoes(not that I give him any) etc....Maybe it's from having to scrounge for food outside on his own before he was found
It's really difficult to take food away from him,he looks at you with those sweet odd eyes saying"What'd you do that for????"It's called tough love!!! :love:

[CyberKitten]

Our animals have always managed to stay sort of within their proper weight area (minor exceptions at certain times excluded) but I have a neighbour who has a 32 pound cat and they think that's great, sigh! I "preach" about it to them - inform them they can get diet cat food but as Karin said about her friend, it is not heeded.