Posts tagged "fat cat"

How to Ward Off Holiday Weight Gain in Pets
By Dr. Ernie Ward via Vetstreet

We're in the final stretch of that terrible trifecta of weight gain: Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's. The 39 days in between these holidays offer a multitude of meals for your family to gorge upon. The trouble is that we also share these food celebrations with our pets, resulting in the accumulation of unwanted pounds for all of us.

By the time the last bit of confetti has fallen, many of us are in desperate need of a fresh start - and a diet. So what's an animal lover to do? How can we share the holidays with our pets in a more healthful manner?

SEE ALSO: Few Cat Lovers Know Risks of Obese Felines

The good news is that, with a little planning, we can party with our pets without feeding them unhealthy and fattening foods. Here are some cardinal tips for keeping your pets in fighting shape this holiday season.

1. Obey People Food Rules
Let's get one thing clear: I know the majority of you are going to feed your pets from the table. Guess what? Me, too. Perhaps the biggest myth hoisted upon pet owners is that "people food" is bad for pets.

With very few exceptions - grapes, raisins, some nuts and chocolate come to mind - if you're eating healthy fare, chances are that you can share some of it with your pet. My no-no's: anything fried, breaded, glazed or enhanced with extra fat and goodness, as well as bread, fatty meats and decadent sweets that tend to populate party plates.

Just bear in mind that any sudden change in a pet's diet can cause gastrointestinal upset, such as vomiting and diarrhea. Fatty and rich foods can also lead to pancreatitis.

Wherein I try to get my pets to a healthy cat weight.

Previously on DeeDee and Tino's Weight Loss Blog, the vet informed me that I was feeding my fat cats too much. Like, way too much. I was advised to dole out two 5.5-ounce cans of wet food each day instead of just a single can plus the 16 ounces of kibble I was allowing my two to graze on all day.

Why 16 ounces of kibble? With an unpredictable schedule, I worried that if DeeDee and Tino didn't have access to food when I was out they'd grow hungry, hurt and distrustful. You've seen these two patheitc creatures -- haven't they been through enough in their lives?

But my vet assured me that the cats would be fine -- the extra protein from the canned cat food would sate them, and the weight would melt off. She even said it was possible Tino's diabetes could reverse itself. With that said, I started the diet ASAP.

The first week of the new diet, I stayed out late one night. I felt guilty and came home dreading what I would find. I pictured the cat equivalent of a Save the Children commercial, with Sally Struthers imploring me to spare 80 cents a day to help the poor emaciated pets inside. Or perhaps they'd cried so loudly that my neighbors had called the "Animal Precinct" on me, who'd be poised outside with elephant guns drawn (that's what kind of weapons animal control officers carry, right?).

Imagine my shock when I walked into my apartment and discovered... nothing. The cats were fast asleep. Not only were they not howling to be fed, they still had some wet food left from their morning feeding. It turns out that sleeping 22 hours a day isn't as metabolically taxing as I'd thought.

This week I learned that my cats don't actually require non-stop food in order to feel cared for; I was projecting my own fear of going three hours without food onto them. Who could have imagined that their diet would result in my Dr. Phil moment? And while I still don't entirely trust the numbers on my bathroom scale, they seem to have started to lose weight.

Wherein I try to get my pets to a healthy cat weight.

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.