My cat is overweight. How can I help him lose weight and get active?

Related Answers from Veterinarians

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  Answered By Dr. Heidi DVM, CVA, CCRT, CVTP, CVSMT, CVCH

  Veterinarian, Certified Veterinary Acupuncturist, Certified Canine Rehabilitation Practitioner

  Published on January 28th, 2018

  Cuddles is adorable! Thanks for posting pictures. I certainly understand the struggle with getting weight off cats. You didn't mention what you are currently feeding Cuddles, but the best weight loss plan I have found is changing from a dry food to a canned food. Cats are obligate carnivores and cannot utilize carbohydrates efficiently. Therefore the carbohydrates that are necessary to make a dry food dry are converted directly to fat and are not able to be metabolized efficiently for energy. Although diet food is lower in fat and calories, it is usually higher in carbohydrates, so it is very difficult to get cats to lose weight with. I am attaching a link to a website which has some great info on transitioning a cat from a dry food to a canned food (which can sometimes be a challenge). Finally, one thing that I have used to keep my cats busy (and not crying for food when they are hungry) is to feed a small amount of treats in a feeder such as this. https://docandphoebe.com/ Good luck! I hope that was helpful and gives you some ideas for Cuddles. Thanks for using PetCoach.

  

  1Pet Parents found this answer helpful

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  Answered By Dr. Davis

  Veterinarian

  Published on August 21st, 2017

  Feeding the overweight cat 100% meat wet food and no dry kibble will keep him feeling full and help him lose weight. I also like to give them plain canned pumpkin as it increases the fiber in the diet and has minimal calories. Most cats like the canned pumpkin surprisingly. Cats are carnivores and the carbohydrates in dry food often makes them fat. As far as the others go they can eat both wet and dry. I try to have the dry available only when you are monitoring who's eating or when you have Brian separated so he doesn't eat any. He should lose slowly about .5 kg a month. I'm glad you are addressing his weight as it puts a strain on his organs, joints and many overweight cats get diabetes. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to help you care for your cats.

  

  2Pet Parents found this answer helpful

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  Answered By C. Rathjens, DVM

  Veterinarian

  Published on March 18th, 2019

  I'd actually recommend focuses on calories per cup rather than the percentage fat. The percentage that is shared on the bag doesn't really mean whole lot. You want less than 300 calories per cup for it to be a weight loss food. I don't recommend grain free diets because they can be lacking in important nutrients, are linked with heart disease in dogs, and we just don't know enough to figure out exactly what the problem with them is. I would definitely recommend trying to do some canned food and give him just a bit of dry food. Think of canned food as the protein and dry food as the carbs -- if you eat carbs all day it's hard to control your weight AND you want to eat more. You can also try to get Pepe to be more active with toys like this: https://docandphoebe.com/ Finally, before you switch foods or otherwise changing things up, consider just giving him a bit less. If it was working, you may just need to adjust down a bit.

  

  1Pet Parents found this answer helpful