Concerning weight for my cat?

destinyz12

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I know it's hard to tell from pictures, but can anyone give me an idea if my cat (the orange one in the pictures) is really overweight or not? He weighs 15 lbs and is quite a bit taller/longer than my gray one below who weighs 10 lbs but he seems kinda chubby.
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MissClouseau

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The average healthy weight for a male tabby is given to be 10-11 lbs. Numbers aren't the most reliable source though. Vets check their body condition score visually and by hands. You are supposed to feel their ribs under a layer of skin. Kind of like touching our own hands.

Here's a guide for visual score.

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To me it looks like your cat isn't obese, but above ideal weight a bit.
 

molly92

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Beautiful cat! The marble pattern might be making him look a bit deceptively rounder than he is. It's hard to tell in pictures, except that he's obviously not extremely overweight. A vet will be able to tell you better whether he's at a good weight or should preferably lose a pound. It depends on the cat too. If there are underlying conditions, there might be a health reason to keep him at a certain weight/help him lose a bit.

It's especially hard to tell with cats sometimes because a primordial pouch (skin and fat hanging below the abdomen) is pretty normal even in a cat at a healthy weight.
 
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destinyz12

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Thanks. He definitely has quite the pouch. I also don't know if it's because he makes himself dead weight when I pick him up but he feels even heavier than 15 lbs. I'm going to have to try and weigh him again. (I step on the scale with him and subtract my weight) my 10 lb cat feels light as a feather in comparison! I suspect his extra weight is from the fact that he eats some of his sister's food portion since I have to feed them together and she's a grazer and only eats a little at a time. But it's also impossible to separate their food bowls so I wouldn't even know how to get him to stop eating her food unless I get those special microchip bowls . If anyone has any other options I'd love to hear them
 

molly92

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Thanks. He definitely has quite the pouch. I also don't know if it's because he makes himself dead weight when I pick him up but he feels even heavier than 15 lbs. I'm going to have to try and weigh him again. (I step on the scale with him and subtract my weight) my 10 lb cat feels light as a feather in comparison! I suspect his extra weight is from the fact that he eats some of his sister's food portion since I have to feed them together and she's a grazer and only eats a little at a time. But it's also impossible to separate their food bowls so I wouldn't even know how to get him to stop eating her food unless I get those special microchip bowls . If anyone has any other options I'd love to hear them
For what it's worth, that microchip feeder was completely worth the investment for me when I had two cats, one who needed to lose weight and one who needed to gain. It was completely worth the money to not have to worry about constantly chasing one cat away.
 

Willowy

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He looks ok, maybe a 6 on the chart. Well-fed, but not exactly chubby :D. I'd try to keep him from gaining any more though. A microchip/collar tag feeder would probably be a good investment
 

FeebysOwner

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He definitely has quite the pouch.
The pouch you are referring to is called a primordial pouch and is pretty typical of most adult cats whether they are overweight or not. It is unfortunate that none of the charts reflect that this can be seen on a cat of even ideal size.
 
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Furballsmom

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Hi! He looks good but I agree, he doesn't need to gain any more :)
Does he get exercise? Can you play with him more, maybe take him for walks?

If you haven't already seen this;

Here's a body condition chart-scroll right or left and click on the chart to bring it into focus;
 
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destinyz12

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I would say he is moderately active- he likes to run around with the other cat but he doesn't really have much interest in playing with toys much anymore. He's almost 4 years old so he's still young but he is pretty skittish so taking him for walks wouldn't work out too well and he spends a lot of time under beds because sudden noises/movements scare him. He does like string-type toys so maybe I'll get him a new one to see if he will chase it around and be more active
 
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