faddy fat house cat

[puddicat]

have a cat who is overweight doesnt go out really, at least very rarely, due to the trauma of being dumped in the woods near my house,she has a hanging belly now, she is 7years old as most cats quite fussy about what she eats likes some wet food and a small amount of dry, can anyone reccomend some food that might make her lose weight due to the lack of exercise!

[wiggal]

What dry food is she on?
Saw today Iams cat food light? Could that be an option or is she already on light food?

[ruthiebabie]

HI - you really need to speak with your vet who can prescribe a diet based on her exact weight and how much she needs to lose.

My cat has just started kitty weightwatchers at our local vet - the service is free but they weigh her and go through tips to get her a bit more active i.e. putting her at the bottom of the stairs and then feeding her at the top so she has to run up.

Queen cats (i.e. females that have been spayed without having a litter are notorious for carrying extra weight) especially if they are house cats. My cats baggy belly is testament to that. Along with her pattern of sleep, eat, sleep, 2 minute burst of exercise, sleep, eat etc

You have to be very careful about weight loss in cats (more so than dogs) as if they get too little nutrients or the wrong type it can cause them more health problems.

[puddicat]

thanks wiggal and ruthie gave sound advice, will have to take to the vet the fat wench, as she looks at me with those big goo eyes and says i love you mum lol, thanks alot

[sue11]

Further to the answers given above, one of my cats is overweight too. My vet told me not too worry too much as she is not massively overweight, his opinion is that let her be a bit overweight and be happy, rather than limit her food all the time and for her to be miserable. I have taken his advice and so far she is healthy (she is now over 14 years of age) and of course she is extremely happy on all the titbits she gets from her loving owner!!

[ruthiebabie]

You are right Sue - if they are only a little overweight the vets just keep an eye on them - my cat weighs 5.6 kilos and should weigh about 4 so obviously she has enough to warrant going on a diet.

She has also suffered from bowel and bladder problems which the vet says can only be helped by her losing some weight so thats why we are sticking with it.

Its not easy as theres lots of shouting at meal times and crying (her not us) as she wants full fat lardy cat food really but if it means we give her a better quality of life in the longer term then we are trying to stick with it.

[riapnash]

Hi There, I have 2 cats who are slightly overweight with prominent bellies - both are aged 9 and are rescues. The one cat does not go out a lot and seems very content being that way and will eat nothing but dry cat biscuits. My view here is that the weight is not a major issue; they are both very agile, happy as they are and I am not going to start feeding them a diet from the vets which will cost a fortune and that they probably wont eat anyway!