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My cat lost muscle after being sick. How can I help him get active?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Cat | Norwegian Forest Cat | Male | neutered | 13 years and 4 months old | 9.9 lbs

My cat has lost a lot of muscle mass, in a period where he was sick. He doesn't like toys, and does not become very active when I give him cat mint. How can I give him proper exercise, so that he can regain some of his lost muscle mass?

2 Answers

Most Helpful Answer

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Answered By Joy Fuhrman, DVM, MBA, CPA

Veterinarian

Published on October 25th, 2017

If all medical causes of muscle mass loss have been ruled out, I would recommend trying the following to get Tiger to be more active: 1. Puzzle feeders. 2. Laser pointers 3. High-quality, caloric dense food. 4. Tall scratching posts and perches.

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    Answered By David Darvishian

    Veterinarian

    Published on

    Hi and thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Sorry to hear about Tiger. Loss of muscle mass in an older cat is often a sign that something is wrong internally. Many diseases can cause this and it's important to identify what is going on to reverse the muscle loss. Nutritional problems, intestinal parasites, kidney disease, liver disease, high thyroid hormone levels, infections (bacterial, viral), periodontal disease, among many other things can be the reason. I would advise taking Tiger to your veterinarian and give them a very detailed history. They can perform a physical exam and then recommend a diagnostic plan to determine what is going on. Fecal/blood/urine tests and imaging studies are a good starting point. Additional blood tests may be needed if thyroid or other hormone problems are involved. Once a diagnosis is determined, a sound treatment plan can be discussed and implemented. Good luck with Tiger.

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