A good weight loss plan?

[cyk7]

Hi all,

I am just wondering if anybody have any experience putting a cat to a weight loss plan. My cat Mui Mui is kind of overweight, and I would like her to be in a healthy weight.

I am not sure how overweight she is.. I think I can still feel her ribs.. but not sure if I would be able to count them:-( I used to feed her Purina Cat Chow.. but since Friskies dry food is more available on local supermarkets where I am living now, I switched to that brand. Her vet said that supermarkets are like Mc'Donalds for cats.. so I should buy her high quality food from pet shops instead. However, I have heard stories about people that had switched to some light formula for their cats, and their ended up liking it more, eating more, and gaining more weight than before... So what is the point of buying a fancy food that may cost 3 times more, if the cat is going to eat more and gain more weight????

 

[sammie5]

My cats are on a weight loss plan, and they only get a little bit of dry food each day for a treat (probably about 1/3 cup between the two of them). They mostly get canned food, I buy the little 3 oz tins, and they get one each in the morning and evening.

The surprising thing is, they seem to be much more satisfied with the canned food. They actually leave a bit in the bowl, instead of finishing up every morsel like they did before (they were getting on cat a day, and then free feeding kibble the rest of the day). And they stopped begging for kibble after the first day. It has only been a week, and I am sure I can see the difference already.

Mui Mui is adorable; like my cat Sam, its hard to tell what shape she is under all that fur!

 

[hissy]

Hi cyk7-

Based on the photo, I would take your cat to the vet and have him design a weight loss program for your cat. It is sometimes dangerous for a cat owner to determine their cat is overweight and then put that cat on a non-authorized weight loss plan- it can cause some severe and long-term health problems.

Please take your cat in to see a professional and listen to what he says and follow it to the letter to prevent this from happening.

 

[immortalflower]

I put my cat Isabel on a diet. I have two cats actually, Isabel who was fat and Sarah who was not. They are fairly small cats. I used to feed them hard food and wet food. I tried low cal foods and all that. Then someone told me about dry foods not being so good for cats so I read up on that. I decided to eliminate hard food completely from their diets. I was at first worried that Sarah might also lose weight, but she never did, she stayed the same. I then made sure I fed them portions and didn't have food that was sitting there to eat at will. I began feeding them two 3oz cans of food twice a day and a snack a little smaller. It took me several months to work it out to the right amount of food before Isabel began to lose weight.

Since, she has gained tones of energy and runs and jumps all over the place. With her new found energy, I have increased the food she is getting very slowly to be sure I don't over feed her again and that she doesn't continue losing weight now that she doesn't need to.

My recommendation is to work slowly with your cat for a slow weight loss, not to just rush in and chop the amount of food intake he gets.

 

[sammie5]

Of course Hissy is right; my weight loss plan and the food portions were recommended by my vet, after she did a thorough check up of both chubby cats. She even suggested the brands that I try, given the varieties I had been using.

 

[hissy]

Sadly, I know I am right. I am a recipient of too many emails from cat owners who put their obese cats on self-imposed diets without veterinaray intervention and then email me sobbing their cat died. Again it is extremely dangerous to your cat that is this obese to put her on a diet imposed by you and not your vet!

 

[sandie]

Please discuss a diet plan with a veterinarian. All cats are different and they all need to loose weight at different rates to avoid severe kidney and/or liver damage. From the picture you provided, your kitty needs to loose some weight asap.

 

[nern]

Originally posted by cyk7
Her vet said that supermarkets are like Mc'Donalds for cats.. so I should buy her high quality food from pet shops instead. However, I have heard stories about people that had switched to some light formula for their cats, and their ended up liking it more, eating more, and gaining more weight than before... So what is the point of buying a fancy food that may cost 3 times more, if the cat is going to eat more and gain more weight????

What an adorable cat!!

When I switched mine from Cat Chow to the higher quality brands...they actually lost weight on their own (slowly over time).
I have six cats and I have switched brands several times and what I have found is that they seem to be thrilled with the "new" food for awhile and may eat alot of it but then they get used to the new taste and do tend to self-adjust the amount they are consuming. My cats have always been free fed but I do measure out their food each day and if they do by some chance finish it all..I don't refill their dishes until the next day. I think you should take your vets advice and get a higher quality food but measure out the food, rather than refilling the dish whenever its empty...you can start with the guidelines on the back of the bag and adjust them accordingly. Mine also get canned food daily which (as someone else stated) really does seem to fill them up better.

 

[cyk7]

Thanks you all for your replies... Last year, my Mui Mui was weighting 13 pounds... Her vet didn't say anything about being overweight or any need to put her on diet... just said that she was healthy..... Now she weights around 15 pounds... I took her to a new vet (we moved from North Carolina to Hong Kong), and he didn't say a thing until I asked him if Mui Mui was fat.. He just smilled and said that she was fat, and that I should switched to a high quality food, so she would lose weight slowly... but didn't specify any particular brand, or any particular plan.... Maybe Mui Mui is not that fat after all.. as I said, I can still feel her ribs (I think).. She has a round tummy though.. she love to lie down with all her feet up, just like a person, which makes her look even fatter... But for sure, she is overweight.. she is not cleaning herself as well as before... I have to clean her genital area with a wet tissue from time to time.. poor thing :-(.... I think she is bored... In NC, she used to go out, watch birds, chase reptiles and mice... Now we are in an apartment.. she cannot go out.. no birds, no reptiles.... Just lie down all day looking at the ceiling.......

Anyway, I used to let her eat whatever she wants... I found out that she used to eat a little bit more than one cup per day, so now I am trying to feed her no more than one cup of dry food per day. I tried once to give her canned food, but she didn't like it.... The problem also is that she likes to have little nibble several times a day.. no main meals... So I think that my option should be changing to some light formula dry food... Is there anything in particular that I should read on the label? low calory? low fat?

 

[hissy]

Have you had her checked for diabetes and thyroid condition? I would ask the vet to do a blood test on her, and again, I would not put her on a diet you think is okay. I would find a vet who will put her on a diet that is approved by him. I do not know how to stress this important issue, and your cat is obese, which is not healthy. I am sorry to be blunt and hope you do not think me rude because I am not trying to be, but she is.

 

[gurlpower]

Hi Kat and welcome again!

Please keep us posted of the progress of Mui Mui (meaning little sister, right?)

She is gorgeous. i am concern of her well-being.

Take care, Kat, and hugs and kisses for Mui Mui!

Smiles and cheers!

 

[hissy]

Please view this link:

Fluffy Fat or ?

 

[sandie]

A very good chart to tell if your cat may be over weight is here. Quite a few vets use this in the office to show clients.

http://cathelp-online.com/bscore.html

 

[cyk7]

Hello.. thanks again for everybody concern to this matter.

I took a look at Sandie's chart, and guess what??? I think my Mui Mui is really not that fat!

... I took her a pic, so everything can see that.. I think she is something between overweight and heavy... She really has a crazy fur, so you will have to mentally cut 1 - 1 1/2 inches from each side.

I really remember that her vet from Durham, NC, said that her weight was ok.. she was surprised when she saw that Mui Mui weighted 13 pounds, but said that was ok... It is hard to say from the picture, but Mui Mui is really a big cat with a lot of fur.... And that is how I used to describe her then: "big"... Now she is "fat" 3 year old cat, and that is why I brought that concern to her vet on her annual check a month ago... And her new vet said that I should change to a high quality food (supermarket's cat food is junk food for cat?), get her to do some exercise, so she would lose slowly around 2-3 pounds in I don't remember what period of time, and that would be enough... I didn't pay much attention to the issue after hearing what he said, and didn't ask more questions.. I just summarized that conversation with the following keywords: overweight, exercise, high quality food, everything fine

... My concern now is how efficient would a high quality food be for weight maintenance, because of the story about cats eating more, and gaining more weight, etc....

I really feel bad though, because I know that Mui Mui is bored, and that is why she spends so much time sleeping...And she is not really a crazy eater.. she just ate around 1 - 1 1/4 cup of dry cat food a day.. and I just give her some tarta control treat sometime when she is good. I recently bought a fish tank for her entertaining, so she has some pet to watch, but she didn't like it

(she used to like my gold fish in NC... I also used to have a Betta fish in a small round vase also, and she liked to loot at it, and drink its water) I know that the key issue here is getting her active... she doesn't play with balls anymore.. doesn't pay attention to laser pens... nothing keep her attention for long time. It is much easier to get a dog to do exercise.. just take it for a walk, and that's all... but what can I do with a lazy cat???? ...... I remember that when I was a little girl, we used to have a white cat... my brother was really mean, and liked to scare it... so he would run after the cat with something that scares it.. like a umbrella... The cat would run like hell.... of course, besides the stress, the cat was in very good shape... But I don't think it would be a good idea for me to chase Mui Mui with the vacumm cleaner