Is my kitten overweight?

[Tarfish]

Hi! I was unsure whether to post this here or under nutrition but I thought here might be the best bet.

My family and I adopted two kittens from a rescue and they are now close to 9 months old. The younger one, Helga, is very small but her weight seems to be normal (no portruding ribs or bones, she is bright and alert and active just a petite girl) but my cat, Gill, seems to be quite fat. He seemingly has a "double chin" at times and his belly hangs and when I weighed him the other day he was 10.6lbs. He has not been to the vet since his neuter when he was around 4-5lbs.

I am worried that this is overweight or obese for a kitten his age and, as an overweight person myself, I do not want my baby to suffer because of his weight. My parents think he is cute with his belly hanging but I dread health problems down the road.

Does anyone know if 10.6 lbs for an 8 month old neutered male kitten is unhealthy? He is a normal domestic shorthair.

 

[EmersonandEvie]

Neutering slows down a cat's metabolism and can cause a pooch ("spay sway") in some cats. The pooch is a flap of fat that is there to protect the cat's tummy and internal organs in the event of a fight.

Kittens can also go through wonky bodily phases, like human children. He will probably get chunky, then slim back down. Rinse and repeat until he is about a year. Since he is only 8 months, my opinion would be to not restrict any sort of food since he is still growing. Whenever you take him back for a checkup, talk to your vet about your concerns. It is very, very rare that a kitten is overfed, simply because they burn off hat they eat so quickly.

When we got Dexter fixed, I swear he slammed on about 2lbs overnight. He has been...portly ever since. I was worried he had fluid buildup or something, it was that fast. I even paid $200 for an x-ray...for the vet to tell me that he is just fat...

 

[Tarfish]

Neutering slows down a cat's metabolism and can cause a pooch ("spay sway") in some cats. The pooch is a flap of fat that is there to protect the cat's tummy and internal organs in the event of a fight.

Kittens can also go through wonky bodily phases, like human children. He will probably get chunky, then slim back down. Rinse and repeat until he is about a year. Since he is only 8 months, my opinion would be to not restrict any sort of food since he is still growing. Whenever you take him back for a checkup, talk to your vet about your concerns. It is very, very rare that a kitten is overfed, simply because they burn off hat they eat so quickly.

When we got Dexter fixed, I swear he slammed on about 2lbs overnight. He has been...portly ever since. I was worried he had fluid buildup or something, it was that fast. I even paid $200 for an x-ray...for the vet to tell me that he is just fat...

Thank you very much for your reply! He is due for a checkup in a few months and I will ask then.

 

[EmersonandEvie]

As long as he has no significant behavioral changes and he is playing/eating/using the litterbox normally, he sounds good to me! Maybe you could run him with the laser or with another toy.

Some cats are also just...large. Dexter is a chonk at 12-ish lbs (we will work on weight loss next year...). Emerson is 14lbs of lean muscle. He doesn't look it. The vet always does a double take when he gets weighed!

 

[Mamanyt1953]

I agree...you'll see various changes over the next few months, but until he reaches his full physical growth, you don't want to restrict his food. Time enough to worry about his weight after he is done growing. And depending on his genetic makeup, that could stretch for a full two years! Maine Coon cats, for instance, mature slowly.

 

[Tarfish]

I agree...you'll see various changes over the next few months, but until he reaches his full physical growth, you don't want to restrict his food. Time enough to worry about his weight after he is done growing. And depending on his genetic makeup, that could stretch for a full two years! Maine Coon cats, for instance, mature slowly.

Wow! Maine coons must be very big! I think part of my worry comes from the fact that my family free feeds the cats and treats are given out often so it's hard for me to know how much food he is eating.

 

[Tarfish]

As long as he has no significant behavioral changes and he is playing/eating/using the litterbox normally, he sounds good to me! Maybe you could run him with the laser or with another toy.

Some cats are also just...large. Dexter is a chonk at 12-ish lbs (we will work on weight loss next year...). Emerson is 14lbs of lean muscle. He doesn't look it. The vet always does a double take when he gets weighed!

We have a very fluffy, big-boned cat named Hagrid who is about 13lbs! He's massive compared to the others. But it does make sense cats have genetic predisposed body types similar to humans!

Gilly LOVES his feather sticks and track ball but I've never tried a laser! I'll give it a go tonight!

 

[LTS3]

Wow! Maine coons must be very big! I think part of my worry comes from the fact that my family free feeds the cats and treats are given out often so it's hard for me to know how much food he is eating.

Free feeding can cause obesity later in life. Can you just have one person, maybe two, feed the cat and make it clear to everyone else that extra food is a no-no? Work out a feeding schedule and stick to it. Children may not quite understand why and would probably sneak the cat extra food when you're not looking.

Lock up the treats or just don't buy them. Treats aren't a necessary part of the diet. You can give a little boiled chicken for a treat if you feel the need to.

I assume you feed dry food? Dry food is so calorie dense that it'll cause obesity in many adult cats. A bowl of dry food is like several junky fast food burgers and fries... for a single meal Canned foods are much lower in calories. Don't worry too much about your growing kitten eating way too many calories now but when he reaches a year old, you'll want to slowly cut back the calories to roughly 20 to 25 calories per pound of ideal body weight daily. Start including some canned food to your kitten's diet now so he knows that it is food. Try different brands and varieties to see what he likes.

 

[Tarfish]

Free feeding can cause obesity later in life. Can you just have one person, maybe two, feed the cat and make it clear to everyone else that extra food is a no-no? Work out a feeding schedule and stick to it. Children may not quite understand why and would probably sneak the cat extra food when you're not looking.

Lock up the treats or just don't buy them. Treats aren't a necessary part of the diet. You can give a little boiled chicken for a treat if you feel the need to.

I assume you feed dry food? Dry food is so calorie dense that it'll cause obesity in many adult cats. A bowl of dry food is like several junky fast food burgers and fries... for a single meal Canned foods are much lower in calories. Don't worry too much about your growing kitten eating way too many calories now but when he reaches a year old, you'll want to slowly cut back the calories to roughly 20 to 25 calories per pound of ideal body weight daily. Start including some canned food to your kitten's diet now so he knows that it is food. Try different brands and varieties to see what he likes.

Ah, I see. That explains why we had an obese cat when I was younger. I'm the youngest in my family and my parents don't like the idea of sticking to a feeding schedule since they like just pouring food into the bowl and leaving but I will put them on a feeding schedule now! Thank you very much for the information! I will do some research and maybe head over to the nutrition forum for some recommendations of what food to start with!

 

[Margret]

Wow! Maine coons must be very big!

They are! And gorgeous. And very furry.

Margret