Slimming Down A Cat

[Artistwolf]

So I was looking on my nearest SPCA's website and saw a really nice-looking cat, and was reading his information and saw that he was 16 pounds. I looked at his photo and decided that he was probably fat instead of just huge XD So not saying I'll definitely get this cat—haven't even met him yet—but if I did, or I got a different cat around his weight, what's the protocol for slimming down a cat? Would I just go ahead and feed him the amount for, say, a ten pound cat (if that looked like his ideal weight), or would I do it more gradually? And how would I figure out what his ideal weight is? Just curious, really Thanks!

 

[abyeb]

The most important thing when putting a cat on a diet is to do so with the help of your vet. Reduce the calories too quickly, and your cat is at risk for developing hepatic lipidosis, a potentially life-threatening disease.

It would be best to feed him wet food, because of the higher water content it's less calorically dense, so it will keep him feeling fuller for longer, as well as keeping him hydrated. Select a high-protein food (with meat as the first ingredient- meat is generally preferred to fish as the main protein for cats because fish can contain mercury), that's grain-free and free from, or low in, starchy vegetables like potatoes and carrots. Cats are obligate carnivores, so these are just fillers for them.

 

[MissMolly08]

I am currently on a weight loss journey with my cat. She's 9 years old and started at 16.4lbs. She was free fed dry food all her life and I actually came across this site when looking for ways to slim her down. I read about how much better wet food is for her and how timed meals are better than free feeding so that was my first move... adding wet food to her diet and moving to set mealtimes. No calorie counting or weighing at first. Once she was used to the set meal times and I had a good rotation of wet foods, then I started weekly weigh-ins and calorie counting. I did a bunch of research and calculated how many calories I had been feeding her, then reduced it by 15% (I had read anywhere from 10-20% reduction or rules like "feed for 2lbs less than current weight" so I kind of picked a middle ground). I watched her weight and while she was losing, it was verrryyy sloowllly (cats SHOULD lose pretty slow to prevent fatty liver disease but I've read that 1-2% of body weight per week is ideal and she was only losing like 0.5%). I reduced calories a little more and monitored loss again and she is doing great now. Losing slow and steady at 2-3oz/week and was 15.6 at last weigh in!

 

[Artistwolf]

Thank guys!! That's exactly what I needed to know. And yes, I was planning on feeding exclusively wet, probably should have said so lol. Thanks again!

 

[pushylady]

Good luck and be patient! It took us ages to get Pushy down to an acceptable weight, but we got there and he's healthier for it.

 

[Artistwolf]

Thank you!