A cat will get fat on a "reduced calorie" diet if it is allowed to eat
it all day. There is a simple and easy to deal with solution to your
problem, and your cat will be much healthier for it. Stop free feeding,
feed your cat on a schedule (every 12 hours is optimal), eliminate dry
food altogether and feed your cat a strictly canned food diet. As a rule
canned food is usually less calories per cup than dry, so a cat can eat
less calories but still get enough food to feel full. I have been doing
this with 25 cats for years and it has worked very well.

A good high quality canned food that has a variety of flavors, an
acceptable phosphorus level and is lower in calories than most is
Wellness. If you go to http://www.oldmotherhubbard.com there is a store
locator that will help you find where to purchase it. It is more
expensive, but for one cat that should be no big deal and it is a better
quality food than the cheap stuff so your cat won't need to eat as much.
You'll definitely notice a difference in his coat in just a few short
weeks. Noticing weight loss will take longer, and it is important that a
cat loses weight slowly. Cutting back food too drastically can cause
some cats to develop hepatic lipidosis.

You will probably end up feeding about 1/2 or 1/3 can twice a day,
although that amount may be slightly more in the beginning depending on
how big he is. How much does he weigh? How much should he weigh? I
should also note here that if you feed part of a can that has been
refrigerated you should warm it up in the microwave so it is room
temperature or slightly warmer. Eating very cold food is not pleasant to
most cats and will often cause them to vomit it back up.

It also will be helpful to get your cat to exercise. A laser pointer is
a great option to increase your cat's activity level. From your original
post it doesn't sound like this cat gets much in the way of attention
and my guess is that he overeats because he is bored. It wouldn't hurt
to put a birdfeeder outside one of your windows, maybe get a cat video
to play for him, and get toys you can use to play with him, such as a
wand with feathers on it. HTH.

Megan

                                   

that would depend on the cat(s) ... my two will eat as much as you put in
front of them at one sitting and then cry for more soon after!! At least it
seems that way ... they could certainly eat an entire can each at once if
given the opportunity!

Allow me to thank you all for your advice.  Feel free to
add more if something comes to mind.

I'll wind up talking it all into consideration and mapping
out a plan.  I'm hoping my plan will not be a time consuming
one.  The reason I described how I happened to have a cat
in the first place was to emphasize that my time is limited
and that although I've come to like and respect the cat
who came to live with me, I can't set aside a great deal of
time to devote to him.

The debate on dry versus wet food is interesting.  It
appears my predicament is the result of establishing habits
that now aren't helpful.   I'm not looking forward to changing
the dining style of a cat well set in his ways.

So we'll see how it goes.

Once again, for those who didn't catch it, my cat *has* been
on a low fat, low calorie dry food for years.  Apparently there
are still substantial calories in it, though, since he has become
quite heavy.  I had believed (hoped) an animal who is
free to choose would properly regulate his own intake.
Apparently not.  He spends considerable time outside so
one would also think he'd exercise himself adequately.
But at his present weight he probably has slowed down.

Outside of weight control he's been supremely healthy
and no trouble to live with.

Luk