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Cat Forum / Health and Behavior / December 2003Diet advice needed--Webster is fat!
My 1 1/2 year old cat Webster was neutred in May at the age of 1 year and then I adopted him. He weighed just under 10lbs. Now he weighs just under 15lbs! He's a big guy but that really is too fat!! Also, unlike any other cat I've ever had, he's got a food addiction--eats anything that the other two leave in addition to his own serving, pulls cat food out of the closet in the kitchen and generally demands food a lot (too often). If you've successfully put your cat on a diet, have you got any recommendations? Thanks. Zoe > My 1 1/2 year old cat Webster was neutred in May at the age of 1 year and then > I adopted him. He weighed just under 10lbs. Now he weighs just under 15lbs! [quoted text clipped - 6 lines] > recommendations? > Thanks. One of my cats had been a starving stray before adoption in '86, & was also addicted to food. She'd eat everything in her dish, then clean out the other cat's dish, & beg for food constantly, whenever I was in the kitchen. At 13? pounds she was way too fat, in '91. I asked the vet for a recommendation of how much to feed her for a weight loss diet, for her size frame (she was a medium to medium-large cat). He suggested ? cup of Science Diet Light per day. It worked. She lost weight very slowly (important for cats; their livers can't handle quick weight loss) - 5 years later she weighed 9? pounds, & that was much better. I did give her *tiny* little treats - not enough to wreck her diet. A tiny amount of grated cheese, pieces of cantaloupe, a tiny piece of chicken, etc. She remained at 9? -10 pounds for the rest of her life on that diet - except for going down to around 8 pounds during an acute illness. BTw - I didn't feed the ? cup all in one serving - I fed her before I went to work, in the afternoon, & then in the eveing. Otherwise she wouldn've gobbled the whole half-cup in one session & been miserable for the rest of each day. She was never a jumper onto counters sort of cat (had lousy balance & wasn't all that curious, for a cat), so I fed my other cat up on the counter top, so that she (cat-on-a-diet) couldn't eat from the other cat's bowl. Before putting Webster on a diet, I'd check w/ the vet for the best amount to feed him, for his size. Cathy -- "Staccato signals of constant information..." ("The Boy in the Bubble") Paul Simon > Zoe Cathy, How did you deal with the constant begging? 1/2 cup of food a day doesn't sound like much. I have an overweight cat that I have been trying to get to lose weight for years. I've cut back on his food but he constantly begs for food. Sue > > My 1 1/2 year old cat Webster was neutred in May at the age of 1 year and > then [quoted text clipped - 43 lines] > > > > Zoe One-half cup wasn't much; otoh, it did turn out to be the correct amount, since she lost the weight v-e-r-y s-l-o-w-l-y. She still begged, but it eventually wasn't quite as bad as it had been, originally. Because of the begging & her obsession w/ food, that's why I split the ? cup into 3 portions throughout the day. Otherwise, I don't know if she would've left the kitchen. <g> And, I did give her those itsy-bitsy treats (they were truly tiny, but still, were treats beyond the prescribed diet). Cathy -- "Staccato signals of constant information..." ("The Boy in the Bubble") Paul Simon > Cathy, > How did you deal with the constant begging? 1/2 cup of food a day doesn't [quoted text clipped - 61 lines] > > > > > > Zoe 2003: > How did you deal with the constant begging? 1/2 cup of food a day > doesn't sound like much. I have an overweight cat that I have been > trying to get to lose weight for years. I've cut back on his food but > he constantly begs for food. I'm dealing with the same thing. 1/2 a cup of dry food vs. 1/2 cup of canned food is totally different. Canned food, being mostly water, two meals a day plus a *little* bit of dry food to satiate the crunch desire is how I feed my overweight cat. These days, though, I'm not sucessful in feeding a cat who will only eat dry food away from him. He keeps finding her food and eating it. I'm working on another plan.  SignatureCheryl "I am only one, but still I am one. I cannot do everything, but still I can do something. I will not refuse to do the something I can do." - Helen Keller It's complicated when you have multiple cats. Tiggy is getting extra "medicine" in her food so the other two shouldn't eat any of it. Boots wants the adult cat food and Isabelle wants everyone's food. When they eat I have to watch them like a hawk. Tig is a snack all day eater so I have to take her food up as soon as she stops eating to keep Isabelle out of it. Boots is stuck in the bathroom when the girls eat cause he'll butt right in front of them and eat their food and they let him. Isabelle scarfs all of her's down in record time and tries giving me those guilt trip looks whenever either of the other two can eat and her's is already gone. Boot's food is in a box that only he can get into. That's not going to work too much longer. He's getting bigger and Tiggy is pretty slim these days. Isabell reaches in through the "door" of the box and tries sliding the bowl over to where she can eat from it. It's nuts. W blkcatgal wrote in news:ttmdncumJ4BWFH6iRVn-jA@comcast.com on 19 Dec 2003: > How did you deal with the constant begging? 1/2 cup of food a day > doesn't sound like much. I have an overweight cat that I have been > trying to get to lose weight for years. I've cut back on his food but > he constantly begs for food. I'm dealing with the same thing. 1/2 a cup of dry food vs. 1/2 cup of canned food is totally different. Canned food, being mostly water, two meals a day plus a *little* bit of dry food to satiate the crunch desire is how I feed my overweight cat. These days, though, I'm not sucessful in feeding a cat who will only eat dry food away from him. He keeps finding her food and eating it. I'm working on another plan. -- Cheryl "I am only one, but still I am one. I cannot do everything, but still I can do something. I will not refuse to do the something I can do." - Helen Keller You have to use tough love. He will beg but eventually he'll adjust to the amount of food he should have. Just like people I guess, you go on a diet and think about food c o n s t a n t l y. W Cathy, How did you deal with the constant begging? 1/2 cup of food a day doesn't sound like much. I have an overweight cat that I have been trying to get to lose weight for years. I've cut back on his food but he constantly begs for food. Sue > > My 1 1/2 year old cat Webster was neutred in May at the age of 1 year and > then > > I adopted him. He weighed just under 10lbs. Now he weighs just under [quoted text clipped - 12 lines] > > One of my cats had been a starving stray before adoption in '86, & was also > addicted to food. She'd eat everything in her dish, then clean out the > other cat's dish, & beg for food constantly, whenever I was in the kitchen. > At 13? pounds she was way too fat, in '91. I asked the vet for a > recommendation of how much to feed her for a weight loss diet, for her size > frame (she was a medium to medium-large cat). He suggested ? cup of > Science Diet Light per day. It worked. She lost weight very slowly > (important for cats; their livers can't handle quick weight loss) - 5 years > later she weighed 9? pounds, & that was much better. I did give her *tiny* > little treats - not enough to wreck her diet. A tiny amount of grated > cheese, pieces of cantaloupe, a tiny piece of chicken, etc. She remained > at 9? -10 pounds for the rest of her life on that diet - except for going > down to around 8 pounds during an acute illness. BTw - I didn't feed the? > cup all in one serving - I fed her before I went to work, in the afternoon, > & then in the eveing. Otherwise she wouldn've gobbled the whole half-cup in > one session & been miserable for the rest of each day. > > She was never a jumper onto counters sort of cat (had lousy balance & wasn't > all that curious, for a cat), so I fed my other cat up on the counter top, > so that she (cat-on-a-diet) couldn't eat from the other cat's bowl. [quoted text clipped - 9 lines] > > > > Zoe In this case, though, the cats - at least mine & the OP's - already thought about food constantly -before- the diets. Cathy -- "Staccato signals of constant information..." ("The Boy in the Bubble") Paul Simon > You have to use tough love. He will beg but eventually he'll adjust to the > amount of food he should have. Just like people I guess, you go on a diet [quoted text clipped - 67 lines] > > > > > > Zoe Isabelle begs for food even if her bowl is full. Guess food was scarce after she got dumpted last year and she's taking no chances of that happening again. In this case, though, the cats - at least mine & the OP's - already thought about food constantly -before- the diets. Cathy -- "Staccato signals of constant information..." ("The Boy in the Bubble") Paul Simon > You have to use tough love. He will beg but eventually he'll adjust to the > amount of food he should have. Just like people I guess, you go on a diet [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] > How did you deal with the constant begging? 1/2 cup of food a day doesn't > sound like much. I have an overweight cat that I have been trying to get to > lose weight for years. I've cut back on his food but he constantly begs for > food. > [quoted text clipped - 33 lines] > > little treats - not enough to wreck her diet. A tiny amount of grated > > cheese, pieces of cantaloupe, a tiny piece of chicken, etc. She remained > > at 9? -10 pounds for the rest of her life on that diet - except for going > > down to around 8 pounds during an acute illness. BTw - I didn't feed the > ? > > cup all in one serving - I fed her before I went to work, in the > afternoon, > > & then in the eveing. Otherwise she wouldn've gobbled the whole half-cup > in > > one session & been miserable for the rest of each day. > > > > She was never a jumper onto counters sort of cat (had lousy balance & > wasn't > > all that curious, for a cat), so I fed my other cat up on the counter top, > > so that she (cat-on-a-diet) couldn't eat from the other cat's bowl. > > > > Before putting Webster on a diet, I'd check w/ the vet for the best amount > > to feed him, for his size. > > [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] > > > > > > Zoe > One of my cats had been a starving stray before adoption in '86, & was also > addicted to food. She'd eat everything in her dish, then clean out the [quoted text clipped - 21 lines] > > Cathy I can relate to your situation. Tucker was, and still is, constantly hungry. I never fed him much, and he plays with his kitty-brother, but his weight won't budge, even after a year of being on Hill's r/d (reducing diet). I'm in the process of switching him over to m/d, sort of an Adkins for cats diet. He gets 3/4 cup per day , spread throughout the day, and about a teaspoon of m/d canned. You might want to ask your vet what kind of food would be best. I've had to do several things to separate food. Like Cathy, I put the other cat's food bowl on a counter. Tucker will jump up there sometimes, but he knows it's forbidden, and if I leave the room, I'll put the bowl in a drawer. Plus, in the morning, when I'm getting ready for work, I'll lock Tucker in a spare bedroom so Benny can eat uninterrupted. This has worked quite well, since I'm usually done in 20-30 minutes; enough time for each cat to finish their portions. I also feed the cats on separate floors (Tucker on second floor, Benny on first) so it's more of an effort for Tucker to get to the food vs. it being in front of him. Rene |
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