Weight gain!!

[Elvisrocks]

Hi,
I took my cat in on Monday for some issues not related to weight. I found out she gained two pounds since April and now weighs 15 pounds! I knew she needed to lose weight before so I was switching her to mostly wet food with like 3 tbsp of dry for clicker training and as topper to get her to eat the wet and for overnight. I needed to add more wet due to her being diagnosed with cystitis. I thought if anything she would have lost not gained!! I was giving her between 200-250 calories and that was when she was 13 pounds. Now I'm not sure where to start if she was gaining on that. I'm thinking 200? She had blood work done in April and everything was normal. Any suggestions as to what calories to start at?

 

[StanAndAlf]

Is she actually overweight? If she is a large cat, or has a tall frame, 15 pounds may be a healthy weight for her. Ask your vet, or research some feline body scale charts to determine if she actually needs to lose weight.

I think it depends a lot on the food you are feeding too. Personally I rotate between high and low fat foods, to keep a balance. To do this, I look at the guaranteed analysis on the back of the can or package, where is should list the fat percentage.

If she does need to lose weight, then yes, I would lower to 200 calories (which is what my 9 pound cat gets a day) and see how she goes. But remember if she is having health issues, it is important to resolve those first before reducing her food or focusing on weight, unless of course it is her weight causing the problems.

 

[Elvisrocks]

Is she actually overweight? If she is a large cat, or has a tall frame, 15 pounds may be a healthy weight for her. Ask your vet, or research some feline body scale charts to determine if she actually needs to lose weight.

I think it depends a lot on the food you are feeding too. Personally I rotate between high and low fat foods, to keep a balance. To do this, I look at the guaranteed analysis on the back of the can or package, where is should list the fat percentage.

If she does need to lose weight, then yes, I would lower to 200 calories (which is what my 9 pound cat gets a day) and see how she goes. But remember if she is having health issues, it is important to resolve those first before reducing her food or focusing on weight, unless of course it is her weight causing the problems.

Yes, I asked the vet. He said she should be around 12 pounds. So she needs to lose about 3 pounds. I feed clean protein chicken and weruva chicken slide and serve for her wet meals and I measure out 3 tbsp of her gi fiber response hard food. I've been trying to get about 200 calories per day. I guess I'll weigh her weekly and go from there?

 

[FeebysOwner]

No more than a 5-10% reduction in food/calories at a time. So, if she is eating 250 calories a day, cut it back to no less than 225 for a couple of weeks. A slower reduction does two things - helps her body adapt to the lesser quantity of food, and aides in her adjusting mentally to the fact she isn't getting as much to eat.

If you drop from 250 to 200 all at once you are actually cutting her intake by 20%. Think about how you would feel if you had to cut your intake by that much all at once! And, yes weigh her weekly to see how she is doing in terms of weight loss. She really shouldn't lose any more than a pound a month - ideally, a bit less than that. So, that would mean no more than about 4 ounces a week. Weight loss for a cat, just like humans, is a marathon - not a race.

 

[Elvisrocks]

No more than a 5-10% reduction in food/calories at a time. So, if she is eating 250 calories a day, cut it back to no less than 225 for a couple of weeks. A slower reduction does two things - helps her body adapt to the lesser quantity of food, and aides in her adjusting mentally to the fact she isn't getting as much to eat.

If you drop from 250 to 200 all at once you are actually cutting her intake by 20%. Think about how you would feel if you had to cut your intake by that much all at once! And, yes weigh her weekly to see how she is doing in terms of weight loss. She really shouldn't lose any more than a pound a month - ideally, a bit less than that. So, that would mean no more than about 4 ounces a week. Weight loss for a cat, just like humans, is a marathon - not a race.

Thank you, I'm going to weight her on Monday and weekly from there to see if I need to slow down or see where we are at.

 

[Twylasmom]

Reducing calories may not be enough. My cat is also on a vet recommended diet, trying to get her down from 14 pounds to 10 or 11. My vet also recommended foods with 6 carbs per 3 Oz can or less. I discovered that one premium wet food she loved was 12 carbs a can!

 

[Elvisrocks]

Reducing calories may not be enough. My cat is also on a vet recommended diet, trying to get her down from 14 pounds to 10 or 11. My vet also recommended foods with 6 carbs per 3 Oz can or less. I discovered that one premium wet food she loved was 12 carbs a can!

Never even thought about that. My vet didn't give me any direction just told me to cut her calories and that she needed to lose like three pounds

 

[Twylasmom]

Never even thought about that. My vet didn't give me any direction just told me to cut her calories and that she needed to lose like three pounds

I am also limiting to about 200 calories a day. That is equal to one can of Fancy Feast pate (almost all are 6 carbs or less and 85-97 calories a can) and 4 tablespoons (26 grams) of RC fiber response dry which is 90 calories. This leaves room for a few freeze dried chicken treats which I am using to train her to use an inhaler. The dry is high in carbs so I am planning to reduce that to 2 tablespoons soon and replace with a half can more of wet. Two weeks in and she has lost a few ounces. Happy to track progress with you if you are interested since we have similar goals. Twyla is 13 and has arthritis and asthma. Losing weight should help her with both of those issues.

 

[Elvisrocks]

I am also limiting to about 200 calories a day. That is equal to one can of Fancy Feast pate (almost all are 6 carbs or less and 85-97 calories a can) and 4 tablespoons (26 grams) of RC fiber response dry which is 90 calories. This leaves room for a few freeze dried chicken treats which I am using to train her to use an inhaler. The dry is high in carbs so I am planning to reduce that to 2 tablespoons soon and replace with a half can more of wet. Two weeks in and she has lost a few ounces. Happy to track progress with you if you are interested since we have similar goals. Twyla is 13 and has arthritis and asthma. Losing weight should help her with both of those issues.

Sure! I weighed her today and she is exactly the same 15.2 pounds but it will be a week tomorrow. I have gone a little over 200 calories on some days. It's so hard when they look at you like they are starving! Do you look at the as fed carb percentages? I looked up all her wet food and if that is the case they are well under 6 carbs(2.82, 1.9, and 1.29). I give her between 1- 1.5 oz clean protein wet food in the morning, 1 oz weruva slide and serve in the late afternoon, and 1-1.5oz at night and 20 grams rc fiber response dry throughout the day. She has been getting between 200-210 cal a day. How much does your fur baby have to lose? The vet told me 12 pounds would be a healthy weight for mine which is 3 pounds.

 

[Twylasmom]

Sure! I weighed her today and she is exactly the same 15.2 pounds but it will be a week tomorrow. I have gone a little over 200 calories on some days. It's so hard when they look at you like they are starving! Do you look at the as fed carb percentages? I looked up all her wet food and if that is the case they are well under 6 carbs(2.82, 1.9, and 1.29). I give her between 1- 1.5 oz clean protein wet food in the morning, 1 oz weruva slide and serve in the late afternoon, and 1-1.5oz at night and 20 grams rc fiber response dry throughout the day. She has been getting between 200-210 cal a day. How much does your fur baby have to lose? The vet told me 12 pounds would be a healthy weight for mine which is 3 pounds.

I’m trying to get Twyla down to 11 pounds. she was 14.1 at her vet visit two weeks ago and 13.8 after 2 weeks of 200-210 calories a day. She has put weight on gradually over the past two years, which I’m sure was driven in part on her periodic steroid use for asthma. That definitely increased her appetite. And I discovered she was jumping on the kitchen counter to eat my other cat’s food! So she has lost 3 oz in two weeks, which is what I would like to see in a week, but she is older and not super active. She has a lot going on that would be improved with the weight loss. How old is your cat? It should be interesting to see how they do.

 

[Elvisrocks]

I’m trying to get Twyla down to 11 pounds. she was 14.1 at her vet visit two weeks ago and 13.8 after 2 weeks of 200-210 calories a day. She has put weight on gradually over the past two years, which I’m sure was driven in part on her periodic steroid use for asthma. That definitely increased her appetite. And I discovered she was jumping on the kitchen counter to eat my other cat’s food! So she has lost 3 oz in two weeks, which is what I would like to see in a week, but she is older and not super active. She has a lot going on that would be improved with the weight loss. How old is your cat? It should be interesting to see how they do.

My cat is only three years old but has had alot of health issues lately. I don't want her weight to be causing anymore issues! Are you going to post her weight weekly then?

 

[Furballsmom]

Hi - I've read through this thread and would like to comment on a couple of things...

First, the weight gain your cat has experienced occurred after the blood work you had done in April, so those test results aren't viable for the weeks following. There could be a health-related issue going on that has happened since April that caused such a rapid weight gain. (Cats typically gain weight on dry food, whereas putting them on a wet diet often brings about a gradual decrease in weight). I'm surprised your vet didn't raise a red flag about a two-pound in three or so months gain.

Secondly, my vet (whom I typically trust) also (for the first time ever since seeing Poppy for a number of years) suddenly said he needed to lose weight. When I asked how much, the goal weight would have him completely bony, like an old dairy cow with his hips sticking out and his spine jutting up--I know this since when he was sick about a year ago, that's what occurred at the weight they were suggesting now. He's 16 years old. We're not going there and I told them so.

My point being that you need to be your cats' advocate and trust your own judgement because sometimes a vet states something based on an overriding general concern (feline obesity), or maybe there are new investors in the business or a new co-owner who also thinks Greenies are good for dental health, --that might or might not be appropriate for your cat.

Best of luck !

 

[FeebysOwner]

Furballsmom is right, especially about the sudden weight gain! Have you compared your cat to a body condition chart? If not, see if this one would help you - sometimes what is on the scale isn't the only thing you need to assess your cat's weight/shape. Also take note of the additional tips at the bottom of the chart.

 

[Twylasmom]

My cat is only three years old but has had alot of health issues lately. I don't want her weight to be causing anymore issues! Are you going to post her weight weekly then?

Yes, I will!

 

[Elvisrocks]

Furballsmom is right, especially about the sudden weight gain! Have you compared your cat to a body condition chart? If not, see if this one would help you - sometimes what is on the scale isn't the only thing you need to assess your cat's weight/shape. Also take note of the additional tips at the bottom of the chart.
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I would say she was probably a 7 on the chart. She was a little overweight in April. I may have pushed the wet food.on her because I was so concerned about her cystitis and getting fluids into her so it's possible that's why she gained. I'm going to be keeping track now of her weight so if she keeps gaining even with me monitoring her calories then I would contact the vet again for other possible reasons. She is still able.to.clean herself but I do notice it's getting harder for her to reach her butt so I want to stop the weight before it really becomes an issue.

 

[Furballsmom]

I may have pushed the wet food.on her because I was so concerned about her cystitis and getting fluids into her so it's possible that's why she gained.

Hi! Just to reiterate from my post above, usually dry food is what causes weight gain because it's so carb heavy, or health issue such as thyroid problems net al. Typically a wet food diet will cause gradual weight loss. Be careful of decreasing the calories too much as you can create other problems.

Can you get her to be more active?

Hang in there

 

[Elvisrocks]

Hi! Just to reiterate from my post above, usually dry food is what causes weight gain because it's so carb heavy, or health issue such as thyroid problems net al. Typically a wet food diet will cause gradual weight loss. Be careful of decreasing the calories too much as you can create other problems.

Can you get her to be more active?

Hang in there

Yes I have been trying to play twice a day. Sometimes she will run and jump other times just follow it with her head and bat at it.

 

[Twylasmom]

Twyla went From 13.8 lbs last Sunday to 13.6 this week, so about a 3 ounce loss (.2 on the digital scale is just over 3 oz) for the week. That is right on track for a steady loss. This week I cut her dry food to 25% of her calorie intake and increased the wet food accordingly. This reduced her overall carb intake and kept the calories at 200-210 per day. She has also been decidedly more active and has adjusted well to the new feeding schedule. She gets treats twice a day as part of the total.

I had to weigh twice. The first reading was 13.2 and there is no way she lost that much in a week! I use my scale and weigh myself and then both of us together as she will not stay still long enough on the baby scale. My weight is stubbornly the same.

 

[Elvisrocks]

Twyla went From 13.8 lbs last Sunday to 13.6 this week, so about a 3 ounce loss (.2 on the digital scale is just over 3 oz) for the week. That is right on track for a steady loss. This week I cut her dry food to 25% of her calorie intake and increased the wet food accordingly. This reduced her overall carb intake and kept the calories at 200-210 per day. She has also been decidedly more active and has adjusted well to the new feeding schedule. She gets treats twice a day as part of the total.

I had to weigh twice. The first reading was 13.2 and there is no way she lost that much in a week! I use my scale and weigh myself and then both of us together as she will not stay still long enough on the baby scale. My weight is stubbornly the same.

Good going! I'm going to weigh Presley tomorrow. I was gone for a couple days so who knows if my husband gave her extra food. I wrote down what I have been giving her but who knows if he followed it! I will post tomorrow after I weigh her. I do the same weigh myself and then pick her up. She protests the whole time. I told the vet the same thing that makes cat has the same problem as her mom, overweight!! Ha, I'm currently doing Atkins!

 

[Elvisrocks]

Good going! I'm going to weigh Presley tomorrow. I was gone for a couple days so who knows if my husband gave her extra food. I wrote down what I have been giving her but who knows if he followed it! I will post tomorrow after I weigh her. I do the same weigh myself and then pick her up. She protests the whole time. I told the vet the same thing that makes cat has the same problem as her mom, overweight!! Ha, I'm currently doing Atkins!

Well I actually weighed her today and she was 15.2 and today she is 15 so that's a loss of .2oz . I have heard slow is good so I'm assuming that's good. I was feeding her between 200-220 calories. I started at 200 but then was reading more and thought 200 might be too low for a 15 pound cat so I'm feeding her for a 12 pound cat which is what the vet said would be healthy weight.