My Cat’s Weight/shape

JulietteTruong

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hi all,

When I adopted Juliette a few years ago, she was 2 years old and 10.5/11 lbs. Now she’s 5.5 years old and 13.2 lbs. The vet does want her to lose a little weight, and we’ve been working on it.

I’m just curious, based on pictures what are y’all’s impression? Does she seem very overweight? She’s also naturally a bigger-framed girl judging by her length and paws.

 

Norachan

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Aww, she's cute!

She doesn't look particularly over weight to me. Some cats are just curvier than others. A good way to judge is by how prominent the bones down her spine and her ribs are. You want to be able to feel them, but not have them sticking out.

One of my boys is a bit chunky too. As long as he is still able to clean himself I don't worry about his weight. If he has trouble reaching his butt because his tummy gets in the way we have to cut down on the food for a while.

;)
 

lavishsqualor

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I love, love, L O V E her and think she's perfect just as she is! Even so, the words "Zaftig" and "Rubenesque" do spring to mind. In that third photo Juliette reminds me of one of those spectacular Rubens paintings of a somewhat ample woman lying on a chaise, arm extended over head.

In all honesty Juliette probably could stand to lose a pound or two. My vet is always saying that cats shouldn't weigh over twelve pounds. Health should always come first, even though I've fallen in love with Juliette's full bodied sassyness!
 

Mamanyt1953

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She could lose a little weight, but I have my own "furry little soccer ball" too, and I love her curves! My vet would be happy if she lost 2 pounds, but says that she is not dangerously overweight. This is the main issue, as she grows older, that extra weight will cause wear and tear on the joints, so you may have to look into joint-health supplements at some point.

She is ADORABLE!
 

goingpostal

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Well she's gained three pounds in three years so I can see why your vet is concerned, it's a whole lot harder getting weight off a cat than on. She definitely looks chunky and it only takes about 2 pounds above healthy weight for a cat to be considered at risk for obesity related issues. When you are looking from above, there should be an indent, a waist, not a round shape. There should be a noticeable tuck from the side, not a big hanging belly. Check out some weight charts. Wet food will help, if you are feeding dry it's extremely difficult to lose on but check calorie levels on food and feed to the weight she should be.

Everyone thinks their fat cat is "just big boned" or a big breed, there's a difference between a large cat and a fat one though. Something like 60% of cats are overweight, it's just acceptable in society for some reason but it's very unhealthy and cruel to the animals.
 

stephanietx

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She is beautiful, but I agree that she needs to loose a few pounds. All my girls are around 10 pounds and my vet always asks me how I keep them so trim and lean. I think they are just used to seeing larger kitties. It's challenging to get the weight off, but it can be done. The best advice I can give you is to switch to a mostly wet food diet with scheduled feeding times, don't offer treats, but use one or 2 pieces of crunchies, and divert begging for food behavior with interactive toys.
 

MissClouseau

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She's a total cutie but yeah she's overweight. I was told by all vets because too many cats are overweight a lot of people see normal-weighted cats as underweight and overweight cats as normal/slightly overweight.

Also don't forget (because some sources don't mention it!) female cats are supposed to weigh less than their male counterparts.
 
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JulietteTruong

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Hi all,

Thanks for all the awesome replies! Your words of advice, tips, and recommendations are all much appreciated.

Juliette has actually been on a diet for over a year now. I’ve gotten her weight down from 15 lbs to 13.2 lbs since starting her weight loss journey. We’re aiming for her ideal weight of 11 lbs.

Based on her age and activity level, in order to continue losing weight at a safe pace she needs to consume anywhere between 187 to 211 kcal daily.

I feed her twice a day, morning and night. Lately I’ve been giving her mostly wet food, one 3 oz can per meal, which comes to roughly 100 kcal each. Occasionally I give her 1/4 cup of kibbles as her meal instead of the wet food. Other than that, I don’t give her any treats.

I’m determined to get her back to her ideal weight! It has not been easy and I’ve learned my lesson! :climbcat:

 

di and bob

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She looks just like all of mine! Mine gained weight when I made them indoor cats. I started giving them Purina Pro Weight Management and wet food twice a day. They eat one small can between the three of them. They don't eat much, so it must be the lack of exercise. To dull teh appetite, give low calorie treats like shaved deli turkey, it helps!
 

GaryT

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My Oliver was 13.5 pounds at his peak. He never was less than 12 pounds. He was just a big boy. The vet at the "bad clinic" I used to take him to at first also said he needed to lose weight. I moved to better vet and I never heard this again. He was arthritic and had asthma in his late years but he lived to almost 16 years. He always had a "paunch" that hung down from his abdomen but he had that from day one as a kitten. He was NOT over-weight!

Theodore was last weighed months ago (kitten still growing) and he was 7 pounds. I imagine he is about 8-9 pounds now. I feed him the same as I did Oliver.

 

PushPurrCatPaws

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...
Juliette has actually been on a diet for over a year now. I’ve gotten her weight down from 15 lbs to 13.2 lbs since starting her weight loss journey. We’re aiming for her ideal weight of 11 lbs.

Based on her age and activity level, in order to continue losing weight at a safe pace she needs to consume anywhere between 187 to 211 kcal daily.

I feed her twice a day, morning and night. Lately I’ve been giving her mostly wet food, one 3 oz can per meal, which comes to roughly 100 kcal each. Occasionally I give her 1/4 cup of kibbles as her meal instead of the wet food. Other than that, I don’t give her any treats.

I’m determined to get her back to her ideal weight! It has not been easy and I’ve learned my lesson!
:climbcat:


Juliette is so beautiful, and
it's wonderful that you are on top of her diet! You have it well-in-hand, your approach looks like it's working. A lot of cats do well in the 10-12 lb range, and are more energetic, too. It's easier on them as they age (and healthier!) if they don't carry extra weight.
A goal of 11-12 lbs would be great for Juliette. :cheerleader:

My cat is 4 yrs, small-boned with a really fast metabolism and pretty energetic. She fluctuates a bit between 9.8 to 10.3 lbs (those were her weights a year ago and about a week ago).
 

GaryT

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Beautiful babies!

Sadly - I agree. She needs to lose a touch of weight.

I have two chubsters at home on diets and two that got the skinny gene. This is a chart similar to the one I had before that might help you too. I do hope it helps.

It's hard to tell with Theo unless I am bathing him. He is SO fluffy!
 

Mamanyt1953

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When they stop looking like bowling pins and start looking like bowling balls when they are sitting upright is when I cut The Ladies back.
I refer to Hekitty as my "furry little soccer ball." We're working on her, too. Of course, the fact that she can open every door in the house AND the latch to the lid of the cat food bin doesn't help. And she won't eat canned. At all. For any reason.
 

Jcatbird

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She’s a beautiful girl! I love Juliette! Is she still playful? I have a couple of cats I have to watch. They tend to snitch food from the others. When they were ferals they were very lean but they were constantly on the run. They actually got more food then so I think expending the calories is key. I change up their toys and try to keep them interested in play. One of my greatest toy purchases was a bit unusual but very popular with all the kitties. A childs’ kiddie pool. Balls tend to roll and spin very well and the cats don’t lose them under the sofa so play time is much longer. It’s also fun to watch the kitty activities.
My Bonjure is really bottom heavy. He has a lot of junk in his trunk! Lol He’s a fluff ball and you don’t realize he is bottom heavy unless you pick him up. He really isn’t one of my overeaters but .... how do we get weight loss in the back end only? :dunno:
 

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Most cats are in the 10 to 12 pound range.... but greg and arnold would have to loose 1/2 of their body weight to get to 10 to 12 pounds.

I dont think greg is overweight. He is just a little tank, literally rectangular, same width from head to butt and amazingly thick and solid. He doesnt even eat that much.

Arnold is larger than greg, both taller and longer with a broader head and larger paws. I would like him to loose 2 pounds. He did drop from 24 to 23 pounds recently, possibly from spending so much (supervised) time outdoors. I do watch their consumption and they mainly eat very low calorie veruwa paw lickin chicken. Their double fur coats give them a very wide look. The vets have never said the boys were overweight.....mainly just marveled at arnolds size......but i want 2 pounds off him.

20190308_104011-1.jpg


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Purr-fect

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hi all,

When I adopted Juliette a few years ago, she was 2 years old and 10.5/11 lbs. Now she’s 5.5 years old and 13.2 lbs. The vet does want her to lose a little weight, and we’ve been working on it.

I’m just curious, based on pictures what are y’all’s impression? Does she seem very overweight? She’s also naturally a bigger-framed girl judging by her length and paws.

I dont think she is very over weight, but I do think she needs to loose some weight. It will be hard on her joints as she ages. Helping her lose a little now will benefit her latter.
 
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