Diet question

Hi everyone! I have a cat that needs to go on a diet and another one that doesn't. They eat in the same place so how do I go about feeding them? I know that I need to feed them in separate places, but how do I keep food out for one that needs to put on weight without the other eating it. I also need to take my cat to a vet for an evaluation before starting the diet, correct? Thanks for any advice!

Hi. Unless the 2nd cat has specific health problems, I'd say there's no need to leave the food out for him. Feed them 2-3 times a day in separate rooms. That way you can give your 'big boned' kitty some diet food while the other one gets something with more calories. Just not being able to graze at the food bowl all day can make a big difference in the cat's weight. Your 2nd cat should have no trouble fattening up like this (as long as he's healthy otherwise), and you really don't want him to get into bad eating habits and end up fat himself.

In my case, I find that it's better to keep my overweight cats out in the main part of my apartment while they eat and lock the other in the bathroom while he eats. That way, I can pull up my biggest cat's food as soon as she walks away and prevent her from wandering back for seconds a few minutes later. In your case, you could leave the 2nd cat locked up (with food) for a longer time at first to help with the weight gain.

Grogs, thank you for the reply.

The "big boned" cat eats prescription food because she developed crystals in her urine when she was younger. I don't want to take her off of it because she likes it and I don't want her to develop crystals again. Do I need to take her to the vet before starting her diet?

You definitely don't want to change the food without consulting your vet. I've also got a cat on the urinary tract health food (Hill's CD formula) and my vet tells me that it's fairly fattening. Definitely worth asking your vet if there's a lower calorie food that would be safe for her. I'd give him/her a call and see what they recommend. They can also give you recommendations on how much / how often you should feed her to help slim her down.

Consult and research the possibility of feeding can food to help lose weight and to help prevent crystals.

Hills C/D is what she eats. I'll give them a call tomorrow. Thank you for all your help!

Thanks Chris, I will definitely do some research before changing their diet and ask the vet for his advice.

C/D has lots of grain and this can cause issues in some to many cats...

I am with Chris10 on the research and talk to vet...

On occation we think the animals is fat or thin and turns out they are just right

If you feed them both canned foods with no grains the problem should disappear and you can feed them together.

Originally Posted by optionken

If you feed them both canned foods with no grains the problem should disappear and you can feed them together.

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this is a YMMV ... some have found the opposite to happen ... but it is a thought I would suggest bringing up to the vet

Originally Posted by sharky

this is a YMMV ... some have found the opposite to happen ... but it is a thought I would suggest bringing up to the vet

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If there is anyone out there that has switched from a grained dry food to a grain free canned food please post and let us know if your cat was overweight to begin with and how much weight was gained after the switch in how much time. I would appreciate it

My "big-boned" Siamese boy, Bijou was switched to a measured amount of grain-free Orijen (1/3 cup/day) and 1/2 can (5.5 oz can) of Merrick's wet twice per day (both cats shared these amounts since Mika prefers dry food and Bijou wet). Bijou initially lost a pound or 2 but is still around 18+ lbs. He is a tad overweight but he is also very muscular and Mika is perfectly healthy and tiny so in your case I would suggest talking with your vet about the best diet for your cat and to find out if he/she is really overweight or just a big cat. My brother was just saying last night that it is hard to believe Bijou and Mika were full brother and sister - he's so big and she's so small.

I finally got my kitty to the Dr. He suggested that I find out how many cups per day that I'm feeding her then take away 10% of that. Does that sound correct? Like, if I fed her 5 cups per day, I would feed her 4.5 cups. I then divide that by 2, so she would get 2.25 cups twice a day. I don't know if that is correct. She doesn't eat that much in one sitting.

Does anyone know?

Originally Posted by LovesMyCats

I finally got my kitty to the Dr. He suggested that I find out how many cups per day that I'm feeding her then take away 10% of that. Does that sound correct? Like, if I fed her 5 cups per day, I would feed her 4.5 cups. I then divide that by 2, so she would get 2.25 cups twice a day. I don't know if that is correct. She doesn't eat that much in one sitting.

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what size is your cup?? I ask because a std 8 oz cup 5 cats eat2-3.5 cups a day

10% is a very reasonable start