Seeking Advice On Helping One Of Two Cats Lose Weight

[AnderJoy]

Hi all, I could use your collective wisdom here. I have two cats, one really active and lean, and the other one is a chubby She doesn't like active games much, won't play by herself or with her sister much. She could really use losing 2-3 pounds.

The chubby one enjoys playing with laser, but even then prefers to watch or stalk it. She loves watching birds and spends most of the day by the window.

Both my husband and I work, so we can't feed them three times a day. Now they have free feeding bowls - Orijen cat and kitten. I also give them a small piece of defrosted raw beef in the morning.

Any advice? How to get her to be more active?

 

[verna davies]

When I worked I used to feed wet food before I went to work and again when I got home, just the twice a day. Would that work for you?
Also, throw a piece of dried food across the room for them to chase and eat. Just a small handful from the daily allowance and you would be surprised how much exercise they will get. I sympathise with you, it's quite difficult to get a cat to lose weight. Good luck.

 

[lalagimp]

You could try a microchip feeder, but I will tell you they are not fool proof. Everyone on the internet loves them, even my vet, and when I tell them what my Tommy does, they go

The cats that have access to the feeder get to either wear a tag on their collar that lets it open for them, or the feeder reads your cat's microchip and they have near their shoulder. example: SurePet

So Tom does this:
When the allowed cat is eating, he sneaks up behind them, shoulders them, and then holds the feeder open with his head and starts eating as the other cat leaves.

If you can get the chubby cat on a controlled amount of food that is delivered around your schedule, the other cat can eat what they want out of the feeder.

The other feeder we have in the house that works on the schedule we choose is the Feed and Go. Our hefty guys eat on a 5 per day schedule.

 

[duckpond]

The chiped feeder is a good idea.

I have one cat who gains weight quite a bit if i free feed Orijen. The other three do not, but i think this one cat gains weight with any extra carbs in his diet. I do still feed Orijen some, but only as a snack or a meal. I quit free feeding Orijen, and went to Dr. Elseys it is very low carb, less than 5 %. all my other cats love it as well and my almost chubby boy lost his bit of pudge, the thinner cats are doing well and have not lost weight.

Orijen also has a Fit & Trim food out now, i have not tried it, but it might be an option?

You can also try meals with dry food. i did this for a bit before i found Dr. Elseys. Each cat has their own plate, and before work i would give each cat about 1/3 of what they should get for the day. if anyone didnt finish it i would toss it, so that chubs wouldnt finish it. then i would do the same thing as soon as i got home from work, and again last thing at night before bed, just like feeding wet food. It works, but is a bit more time consuming than free feeding. I am glad that Dr. Elsey's dry worked for me. I still feed two wet meals per day, but Dr. elseys is out all the time for when they dont like the wet, or need a bit to munch on. i have two that will only eat tiny amounts many many times per day, and they are my two thinnest cats...lol

 

[milky07]

You can aslo get thoes food puzzel where they havto hunt the ball or mouse like thing they havto play with it to get the kibbel out you could aslo try that

 

[MissMolly08]

My cat is on an all wet diet and only gets fed twice a day. 3 meals is not required.

 

[patti511]

Hi all, I could use your collective wisdom here. I have two cats, one really active and lean, and the other one is a chubby She doesn't like active games much, won't play by herself or with her sister much. She could really use losing 2-3 pounds.

The chubby one enjoys playing with laser, but even then prefers to watch or stalk it. She loves watching birds and spends most of the day by the window.

Both my husband and I work, so we can't feed them three times a day. Now they have free feeding bowls - Orijen cat and kitten. I also give them a small piece of defrosted raw beef in the morning.

Any advice? How to get her to be more active?

Hi..I would eliminate the dry free feeding altogether. Especially since it's kitten food and higher in calories. I have four cats. I feed them all 1/2 can of Tiki chicken in the morning, and 1/2 can of Instinct LID rabbit in the evening. It is expensive to feed this food, but my cats are sleek, shiny and healthy. There is no carrageenan or guar gum in these brands. I figure what I spend on food now I will later save on vet bills.