Is my vet crazy?

Hi. I'm new here and had a question for everyone.
I have a cat who I just adopted from the shelter I volunteer for. I brought him to the vet and he weighs in at 16 pounds, so my vet said to put him on a diet. She told me to give him 1/3 of a cup of food all day! What? That can't be right, so I asked her again & she said both my cats should eat that amount (my other cat's 9lbs). He's not what I would call fat. He doesn't bulge out on the sides and he doesn't have a really saggy belly (sags a little) but he's tall. His medical records say that he weighed 12 pounds when he got into the shelter and at the shelter he spent most of his time in his "condo" (aka cage). Is my vet crazy for saying he should be on a 1/3 cup of food all day?

Thanks

GET a new vet.... Unless you were feeding a densly caloric food that amount is way to little... what should the kitty weigh>>???

Depending on the food (varies a lot!) I can see 1/2 c maybe but 1/3 is pushing it.

If he's overweight, I would not feed him *any* dry food anyway, but that's not what you asked about.

What food did the vet propose that you feed? Lite SD?

I feed light Science Diet in a 3:1 ratio with Science Diet Light Hairball. (Same thing the shelter feeds and what my other cat was already on) Neither cat will touch wet food, they actually try to "bury" it.

Seems like that amount would be too little. I would definitely consult other vets and look on the back of the food bags. I know IAMS will sometimes have advice (online and on the bag). I would consult multiple sources.

The back of the food bags say a 15lb cat should get 3/4 cup of light for weight loss, 7/8 cup for maintenance. I've managed to get him down to 1/4 cup twice a day, but he seems to be hungry all the time. He actually tried to clawed his way into the 20 lb bag of cat food one night that I kept in a spare room. I caught him just before he got through the last layer of the bag.

Yes 1/3 of a cup seems like too little amount of food. My vet had told me to feed my 12-13 lb males 1/2 cup of dry a day. (that was when all I fed was dry, I now feel a combo of dry & wet)

Originally Posted by laureen227

there's a comparison online you can use to determine whether your cat is underweight, overweight or just right. here's the link: http://us.iams.com/iams/en_US/jsp/IA...&articleID=333

Click to expand...

I guess he's overweight but he doesn't have the "Flank folds hang down with moderate amount of fat—jiggle noted when walking" thing. I used to have a 15lb cat who was obese according to that chart, but he was definately obese. There's a huge difference between Midnight & my old cat.

Yes I agree to change vets. Unless you have a small cat, 16 lbs is NOT fat; especially since you said he's on the tall side anyway.

And 1/3 cup of food ALL day is not enough. If you want a cat to lose weight you cut back a LITTLE bit and increase the exercise. Also you can add string beans or cottage cheese to help lose a little weight.

I had one cat that would kill you for lettuce - always said if he needed a diet I'd know what to feed him to lose weight

Hmm - when Jaffa was on mainly dry food I don't think he had much more than 1/3 cup a day. Maybe half a cup, but definitely not more than that. I didn't measure it out with cups but I weighed it out and he would have about 20g in the morning, about 10g at night and about 100g wet food at teatime. I've just been to look at my cup measures (not a commonly used measure over here) and if he'd been on all dry I don't think he would have had much more than 1/3cup. He maintained his weight on what he was eating and has never been overweight. 16lbs sounds quite a lot to me, although not if the cat is large and/or large boned. Jaffa is a large cat in that he's tall and long, but he is quite small boned. He weighs about 12lbs and I wouldn't want him weighing more. So I don't think your vet is way out with the suggestion of 1/3 cup.

At the end of the day though it's trial and error to find out the right amt to maintain weight but not gain. Only you can tell for sure whether your cat is overweight but if the vet says he is I would take note as it's easier to get them to lose weight when it's only a small amount than wait until they're obese. When you feel around his ribs is there more than a thin layer of fat?