Starving Cats????

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DDALEX - 03 Sep 2004 15:13 GMT

I have 2 cats. One is a male 3 1/2 year old, the other a one year old
female. The older cat is 13.2 lbs and the younger 10.5. The vet said
their weight is fine, but I shouldn't let them get any heavier. By
looking at them, I think they're a little on the "pudgy" side compared
to other cats.

I put out 2/3 a cup of IAMS dry food in the morning, so they each get
about 1/3 cup each, which is a tiny bit under the feeding suggestion
on the bag. But they also split a can of Fancy Feast at night (the
ONLY kind of wet food my older cat will eat.)

But the problem is that when I put down their plates of wet food, the
devour it in SECONDS!!! Like their starving or something. Usually,
there's a small bit of dry food in the bowls when I go to bed and by
morning it's gone.

Am I feeding them enough? They seem like their famished when I get
home from work and give them the Fancy Feast. But I don't want to
ruin their health by letting them get any bigger.

Any thoughts?

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Mary - 03 Sep 2004 16:21 GMT

> I have 2 cats. One is a male 3 1/2 year old, the other a one year old
> female. The older cat is 13.2 lbs and the younger 10.5. The vet said
[quoted text clipped - 17 lines]
>
> Any thoughts?

Canned--even FF--is better for them than dry. Ever really
want a steak (or chicken, or a grilled cheese, or a big salad) when
all you have is crackers in the house? You tend to keep eating,
looking for satisfaction, when a bit of any of the things you really
want would satisfy you.

When I began feeding my cats canned (just one 3-oz can per day a
piece, at the most) I watched their coats become thicker and
shinier and them become happier cats. My fat cat began to
lose weight, and they really enjoyed the new ritual of
gathering in the kitchen to pay homage to the food goddess
twice a day. :) The look on their faces when they hear the
can opening is hilarious. It approaches reverence. <G>

Put out a little dry and feed them half a can of FF in the morning
and half at night. If you can get them on something a little better
for them (any of the premium brands at Petsmart, or one of the
mailorder kinds such as Wellness) it would be even better.

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Gail - 03 Sep 2004 16:26 GMT

I would switch to a high quality light dry food (I like Max Cat light) and
add a high quality canned food to be split between them twice daily. The
cats are stll young, especially the one year old, and require more food than
an older cat.
Gail

>I have 2 cats. One is a male 3 1/2 year old, the other a one year old
> female. The older cat is 13.2 lbs and the younger 10.5. The vet said
[quoted text clipped - 17 lines]
>
> Any thoughts?

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Gail - 03 Sep 2004 16:28 GMT

PS I tend to favor more high quality canned food than dry food. You can try
mixing the Fancy Feast with a better canned food and see if you can
gradually switch them over (the older one).

>I would switch to a high quality light dry food (I like Max Cat light) and
>add a high quality canned food to be split between them twice daily. The
[quoted text clipped - 22 lines]
>>
>> Any thoughts?

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Cowa Bungie - 03 Sep 2004 21:37 GMT

ddalex123@netzero.com (DDALEX) wrote in message

> Am I feeding them enough? They seem like their famished when I get
> home from work and give them the Fancy Feast. But I don't want to
> ruin their health by letting them get any bigger.
>
> Any thoughts?

Oh, am I going to get H-A-T-E mail for saying this, but I figure that
I wouldn't want any doctor telling *me* how much my 144 lb., 5'6"
body, should eat each day. So I'm of the opinion that neither does
Dorrie, my 14 year-old.

Does she gorge herself sometimes? You betcha. Is she overweight?
Just as much as her mom (ME!). Does she puke when she overindulges?
Just the way her mom gets IBS sometimes.

My point is that if someone were to ask me if I cared to reach my
"appointed age" the healthy, strict, supervised, frowning way, or
reach my appointed age the healthy, lax, unsupervised, smiling way, I
would say the latter.

Animals share in our modern stresses, but they can't smoke (thank God)
or drink a good healthy glass of Burgundy. If a little extra Fancy
Feast makes their little hearts glad, I say-- Go for it.

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