Slimming down an overweight cat

My male cat, Wingnut, is significantly overweight. Heâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]s a large yellow tabby, but 17.8 lbs is a bit much. My vet says he should be around 15, maybe 16 lbs at the most. Funny thing is, he doesnâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]t really look that much overweight, but he is.

So, I am feeding him less and using low-cal cat food. He is not happy. He wants to go outside more (to catch bugs to eat). Tonight he and my female, Moonbat, got into a scrap in the back yard because she had caught a bug and Wingnut, being hungry, wanted it.

I shook the cat food bag and that broke it up. Fed them both a small meal. All is well now, but Iâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]m worried how this is affecting his behavior (heâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]s never been aggressive to Moonbat like that before).

Suggestions? Take it slower?

Thinking of trying Purina OM food, if I can find it (vet recommended it).

I went through the same thing with Hemmy. We found that if we divided his allotted amount of food into two feedings he lost more weight and was happier (sort of). Hemmy NEVER got over wanting more food. He still carries on if anyone goes near where we store his food. He's a bit melodramatic. They will adjust over time. You should set up regular feeding times and decrease his food over time.

Since Maia was 6 months old, she was one of those kitties with an over zealous appetite! My vet told me she was over weight at 10 months and advised me to put her on a diet. We live in a one bedroom apartment and this has a lot to do with it, she doesn't get to fully run and exercise. Shes almost 3 now and I can't leave out a bowl of dry food, she will chow it down and within hours ask for more. I give her small portions several times a day. For example, when I first wake up, I give her half of what she would get for breakfast, then before I leave for the day, I give her the other half. Then when I come home (9-12 hours later) I give her half of dinner portion, then if I stick to the plan, other half before bed. There is a constant distracting her from the food begging. Playing with her, calling her for love and attention, always trying to make sure she doesn't take it as rejection when she doesn't get food when she begs.

I forgot to mention something in my last post. One thing we do with Hemmy to keep him quite and occupied is we give him a treat ball. He rolls it around and little bits of food fall out. We give it to him in the morning and we just take a portion of his breakfast and put it in the ball. He thinks he's getting something extra but it's actually the same amount of food. Outsmarting cats is tricky so I'm pretty proud of that one!