Tino and DeeDee at their largest. Photo: Laura Gilbert/Paw Nation
The obesity epidemic in America is a major health threat that affects almost half of all citizens. But what many don't know is that the pet obesity epidemic is nearly as prevalent. In fact, it currently affects up to 100% of all the cats in my household.
Meet Tino and DeeDee. They're brother and sister, rescued from the mean streets of Brooklyn by good people, then adopted by me, only to be overfed into rotund walking risk factors.
DeeDee and Tino recently turned ten years old and have started to slow down and plump up.
My vet had previously recommended they lose weight. I briefly tried to put them on a diet, but gave in when they started complaining daily at 4 am. When I noticed they were actually getting bigger, I was too embarrassed to take them to the vet again. So they just kept ballooning.
Recently I bought a scale and did that old weigh-yourself-then-weigh-yourself-with-the-cat trick to gauge just how portly they'd become -- and both cats clocked in at around 20 lbs. Eek!
I shared this information with my helpful brother, who'd noticed Tino's weight gain. JP responded, "I told you. Living in Kansas for six months now, I am able to be considered an expert when it comes to fat. I know a thickburger when I see one." The bottom line? These cats have to drop some pounds, so I took the first step in any human diet and fitness regimen: Procrastination.
Then I made an appointment with the vet to get professional advice on the healthiest way to successfully get them in shape.
Join the three of us here weekly as we check in with the tubs to measure their progress. I also hope you'll share in the comments your own experiences with helping your pets lose weight.
Week 1
DeeDee: 20ish lbs.
Tino: 20ish lbs.
DeeDee: 20ish lbs.
Tino: 20ish lbs.
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Holy Cats! I can't wait to see what these guys look like when they lose a few lbs. Truly an inspiration. Perhaps my fat little dog Molly McButter will follow suit.
Let's see, grocery list for dieters.... fresh fish, skinless chicken breast, skim milk, salad fixings-catnip, and maybe a little chocolate to keep the owner happy!
see, my girls can't seem to gain weight so they're a little envious of your girls. and they don't mean in that obnoxious, mean girls kind of way where they're really showing off. they want to be bigger. or at least i want them bigger which is sort of the same thing.
ps this may be the best and most important weight loss story ever chronicled.
My vet recently told me that my dog needs to lose 15 lbs -- I was mortified! And also kind of upset when he recommended buying super expensive food to solve the problem....
Ya know, Laura, the kids never had these weight-y problems when they were with me. And back then, I took them to McDonald's on school nights.
I have two girls, Eclipse and Nova. Nova weighs in at around 16 lbs, while Eclipse is around 9. How do I get Nova to lose without Eclipse getting less? I think she chows down on both dishes at times.
I'm so excited about this weight loss kitty challenge! I posted about it on my blog at www.choosinglosing.com
Won't you come join the weight loss challenge forum. It is new!
http://weightlosschallenges.netforums.us
They have been fed the wrong food. It's not nutritionally balanced for cats so the cats keep on eating trying to get enough nutrition. Most commercial cat food has a lot of "Grain" in it. Cats don't eat grain or vegetables in nature! Why should we feed them that in our homes?
Cats are predatory carnivores... Let your cat loose in your yard and they will stalk a bird, a mouse a snake, not tomatoes and wheat!
The grain and other non meat ingredients in supermarket commercial foods contribute to kidney disease and diabetes in addition to obesity.
Try a commercial food that has no grain at all. There are many out there. Expect to pay more for it but when I switched my cat over, she ate less and was satisfied. Wellness (canned) is the brand I'm buying right now but there are many out there now.
Also, If you are feeding your cat dry food, stop. Even if you are moistening it, don't feed them that stuff. Full of carbs which they don't need and it's a bacteria factory. Very unhealthy for your cat.
Good advice I got from my vet, when my cats were up to 20 lbs. This advice helped them lose 5 lbs each after a year:
1) Wet food twice a day - I feed them at around 7 am and 7 PM. Your vet should be able to tell you how much they should get - mine get 1/2 a 5oz can in the AM and 3/4 can in the PM of lite canned food. My vet says it doesn't have to be fancy, he gives his cats Friskies. I give mine lite food so they get more volume.
2) If your cats are over 7 yrs old, they should eat the Senior food. Adult foods are sometimes also formulated for kittens, which means extra calories.
Good luck with the effort! If you can tolerate the whining, it will help your cats long-term.