Eating and eating and eating........

Ashley seems to be a little chunky and I have been watching her eating patterns. Although I measure out her "weight management" dry cat food, she seems to eat like non-stop! She will eat...then come into the living room and lick, like normal. then maybe 15 minutes later or so...she is BACK in the kitchen eating. I have seen her at that dish as much as 4 times in one hour! She might get one can of cat food once every two weeks for a treat, but I am just baffled at her weight and how it just doesn't seem to drop. It actually seems like she is getting heavier!

Help! I don't know what to do! Any decent food that I can give her that will help her? I thought the Weight Management would be great, but apparently it isn't working!

Originally posted by carrie640
Although I measure out her "weight management" dry cat food, she seems to eat like non-stop!

Click to expand...

If you are following the amounts suggested on the dry food (and NOT free feeding -- where kitty eats as much she wants) then, maybe her metabolism is a little different from the average cat (which those recommendations are based on). .. or maybe she has a thyroid problem?

If she has been cleared by a vet for any health problems and just keeps "putting it away" then slowly reduce the amount of food. The reduction should be done VERY slowly because there is a risk of hepatic lipidosis, a sometimes fatal disease, if weight loss is too quick.

Good luck

As I don't know what a vet has said reguarding any of this, I will say to get this all cleared through a vet before taking action on what I'm about to say.

Also, does you vet know and has advised that your cat be on weight managment food.

Sounds like you are free feeding her. Not a good idea if you are trying to get her to loose weight. Feed her the recommended amount (by your vet, not by the package) spread out by 2x per day.
If she hasn't lost any weight by the end of a week doing this, then perhaps you should look into exercizing with her, getting her more active and decreasing the amount that you feed her.

I do measure her food out.....the package says 1/2 cup of it. But she won't eat and stop. She will keep going BACK to it until it is gone. Once it is gone, it is gone, but it is the fact that she just keeps going. One sitting doesn't work. The vet knows she is on Iams Weight Management, but really didn't say anything about it. *shrug*

My last kitty used to eat and eat too. She was overweight and I never was able to get her to slim down (even with the light foods, carefully measured). My vet thought it was because she just wasn't active enough. I tried to get her to run around and be more active, but couldn't keep her interest for more than a short period of time (she would play for a while and then just plop down and watch me). She was an only cat and I think she got into the habit of eating out of boredom. At that point, it was too late to introduce another cat -- she wouldn't accept any other animals (or even new people). Even though she was overweight, she lived a long life.

I now have two kitties so they can keep each other company (and active).

I don't know if your cat is an only cat, but it can be a contributing factor. Maybe a new friend would help.

Has she always been that way with ALL her foods, the eating on and off?

At times like that. I let her eat, in a quiet spot free of "more interesting" distractions. And once she walks away from the bowl, I pick the food up and put it away, so she has to wait until her next feeding. If she doesn't get her fill with in a few hours from the one bowl, come time for supper she should be good and hungry and might gobble the whole thing down.

She could be under the impression that she will have food whenever she wants it. So she feels no need to eat it during one setting, but once you remove the extra food all the time, she might be more apt to eat her full meal with in a few minutes other then over a few hours.

Or... perhaps she doesn't like the taste of the current food she's on?

That is an interesting idea! I think I will try taking her dish away and see what happens. But you know what else is strange about her is that she eats ANYTHING (cat-food wise). Angel was picky. Some things she hated..other things she loved. Cleo is the same way..but not Ashley! Oh no...she is like Mikey! She eats anything!

I honestly don't see anything wrong with a kitty that's a little plump, just as long as they arn't lathargic or truely obesse. At least if they ever get sick and can't eat for a while, they will have something to fall back on.
I do the 'free feeding' way. My oldest cat is the fattest, but it seems that it's his style. He's normally a large cat, and even without the fat he's still huge. My secound-largest is the strongest, healthiest cat you ever saw. The late G.C. was the strongest cat on earth. For some cats, more food equals more muscle. My smallest kitty has a bit of a tummy, but otherwise she's fine.
Thing is, when you have multiple cats there's a hieracrhy of eating. My strongest kitty eats first, then the smallest, and oddly enough then the biggest. Since he eats last, he dosn't eat a lot.
I think they are just fat because I give them tons of table-scraps
I've never had a picky-eater cat. G.C.'s favorite food was Cheezits and I was suprised today when Stripe stole a potato chip from me and ate it! They love pasta, all meat, corn, whipped cream (their favorite), ect. Basically, if I'm eating it, they want it.
The ONLY things they won't eat if I give it to them is anything minty!

When it comes to eating, my cats don't overeat even though they have food available 24 hours a day. They don't, however, leave and come back 4 times an hour. They tend to eat about 2ce a day, and then any scraps they can get from me

-Sarah of Borg

I politely disagree Sara. A little plump means you are adding to potential health issues. Heavy cats are known to only live half as long as their slimmer feline friends. They will require more veterinary care and suffer from joint diseases etc.. They cannot clean themselves properly.

If you feed a prescription food, your cat will gain weight, unless you are feeding your cat under the direction of your vet.

Well.. it depends on how pudgy we are talking here.

There's a little fat, and then there's OVER WEIGHT.

I personally do strive to keep my animals all at their ideal weight however.

I free feed my cats and they both eat just a little bit at a time. I use to feed them wet food (3 oz can) when I got home from work (6 p.m.)--but had to stop because one developed a food allergy--and when I went to bed they still had some food in their bowl and it would be gone by morning. They never just ate it all at the first setting and they do this with their dry.

If your measuring the amount of food she is suspose to have, I don't see why it would matter if she ate it all at once or a little at a time.

Maybe little more exercise (playtime) would help.

Missy makes a great point. Why does it matter if she eats all at once or not? A 1/2c is a 1/2c whether it's gobbled down at one sitting or savored throughout the day.