weight management

renovia

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luxor just came back from the vet to get chipped and clipped (nails) and they said that luxor can't gain anymore weight that he's gained too much...
i don't want to be a bad meowmy. i have asked numerous times if he's over weight because i've always thought he was heavy...now this. now i have to decide if it's better to cut down on the amount or give lower calorie food.
 

ping

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I would start with cutting the amount and see how that goes. And if that does not work then try low cal. food.

Ping has started to put on some weight since going on the TO. He just eats and eats and eats if its left out and full. Now I have gotten to where I put down 1/2 cup of dry per day. And thats it along with the wet.
 

debskats

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I'd cut back on the amount of food Luxor is getting rather than giving low cal food. I tried for years to help Bailey lose weight by feeding him low cal canned and dry food, but he just kept gaining.

The first of the year, I switched him to an all canned food diet (not low cal), a combination of Royal Canin rabbit and Nature's Variety rabbit, and feed him only a certain amount each day, and so far he's lost just over 5 pounds.

Good luck to you and Luxor. It's not easy, especially in the beginning!
 
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renovia

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i currently feed luxor a medallion and a half of raw in the morning and night with a knife tip of wellness wet. then there is sporadically throughout the day wellness dry - probably about 1/4 cup no more than that.
 

ping

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How big are the medallions?

Also is he getting enough exercise everyday?

How much does he actually. Because the amount of food he eats does not sound like a lot (though I could be wrong). And its hard to picture him at a weight that he can not get any bigger.
 
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renovia

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he weighs 8.3 lbs. and the medallions are the small ones about the size of a quarter round and an inch thick. we fend him off of eating the dregs of stoli's food 90% of the time. he get's a fair about of exercise because he and stoli are still both active 'kittens'. i bet he could get some more but it's not going to be much more than now because i would say he's on the active side.
 

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I would increase the wet and the raw if you can as both are less caloric and are going to fill him up with good stuff
 

ping

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Is he a smaller breed of cat. If he is maintaining his current weight without gaining I would say the amount you currently feed should be good. I don't see how dropping to less would be good. I don't know much about low cal food so I can not help there.

Is the dry higher in carbs? Maybe wellness core would be a brand you could switch to thats lower in carb. higher in protein.

***Disclaimer I am still learning about cats so take my advice with a grain of salt because it may not be the best advice.***
 

ping

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Originally Posted by sharky

I would increase the wet and the raw if you can as both are less caloric and are going to fill him up with good stuff
This sounds much better than my advice. This sounds like a better plan.
 
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renovia

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Originally Posted by Ping

This sounds much better than my advice. This sounds like a better plan.
luxor is a mau, i don't think that's a 'small' breed. we have core here and he's on that salmon dry right now.....i thought that was lower in carbs...but how about this: just wet and raw no dry for two weeks and then weigh him?
 

ping

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Ahh you have an Egyptian Mau next to the Siamese thats my fave breed.

Sounds like a good plan for the next two weeks. Though I would bump up the amount of wet. Ping gets 2 servings of wet a day and each serving is 1.4 oz or a 1/4 of the 5.5 can. But he also gets dry as well.
 

sharky

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I say try no dry but DONT expect anything big in two weeks ... Consult his vet on how much is allowed in two weeks of dieting///
 

ping

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Ok I am checking some online resources. All them say have a weigh in every 2 weeks. You just need to get a starting weight do you know if he has lost any, maintained or gained any.
 

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Originally Posted by sharky

I say try no dry but DONT expect anything big in two weeks ... Consult his vet on how much is allowed in two weeks of dieting///
Ditto. Most of what I read said a good limit for weight loss was 1% per week, which at 8.3lbs would be just 1.3oz (in one week). I think it's still a good idea to weigh weekly or every 2 weeks.

Momma is 7.75lbs and eats 3oz raw/day (equivalent to 3 medallions). Of course she's no longer a kitten, but she's reasonably active. Junior (10.25lbs) is still a little pudgy on 4oz/day...but I'm still watching and weighing as his gain mainly came from me letting him have about 6-7oz/day.
I agree on ditching the dry, I think that's a good way to start.
 

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Maybe you also need to feed Stoli and Luxor in separate rooms to make sure Luxor is ONLY getting his food.

Our girls eat probably the equivalent of 1/4 cup of dry a day each with a small amount of wet (a spoonful). Smudge probably eats the most, and Stumpy eats the least, and Stumpy is a good size, while Smudge is probably getting a bit podgy.

So I imagine if Luxor is getting 1/4 cup of dry plus medallions plus wet, then it's probably just a bit too much for him. It certainly doesn't sound excessive though. Maybe just cut down to 1 medallion morning and night, and less dry food, and see how that does, then eventually cut out the dry altogether, and put him back on 1 1/2 medallions morning and night?

Did the vet give any suggestions?
 
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renovia

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they didn't give any suggestions just a sheet of paper that said how many ounces is ok. we are going to wean him off the dry this week and cut back a half a medallion. do you think a month is long enough to see some loss? should we buy a scale?
is 2oz of raw the same as 2oz of wet?
 

icklemiss21

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Depending on how much you are giving him, it can be dangerous to cut back, they *need* x amount of nutrients a day which they get from food. Your vet should tell you how many calories he needs a day and help you decide which food will give the best nutrient levels at those calories.

Even if they are active, a little more exercise can make a big difference, a 20 min workout for them is like an hour at the gym for us. Take some time each day to play with him and make sure he gets that play time every day and runs etc, not just swats at a toy while sitting etc.

I does seem like a little too much food IMO, mine get under 1/2 cup of dry each per day.

Cats lose weight at different rates also, when Scully was dieting some weeks we seen a loss others we didn't, sometimes for a few weeks at a time, so don't give up if you don't see a loss in a month. Also with how little he should be losing, it may be hard for you to get a decent weight (it should be 4-5oz in a month and he won't fit on a kitchen scale to see that decently).
 

beandip

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Originally Posted by Renovia

they didn't give any suggestions just a sheet of paper that said how many ounces is ok. we are going to wean him off the dry this week and cut back a half a medallion. do you think a month is long enough to see some loss? should we buy a scale?
is 2oz of raw the same as 2oz of wet?
Yes, I would suggest a scale.


Calorie-wise (and nutrient-wise AFAIK), 2oz of raw is more like 4 oz wet. An oz of the NV (one medallion) is 65 calories, I think. The recommended amt for raw is 2-3% of body weight per day, from what I've read. My cats eat 2%-2.5% per day.
 
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renovia

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ok - well that makes sense. so how many medallions do you think for an 8.3 lb cat?
 
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