Weight loss--should I worry?

My male, Leo, was on the heavier side of healthy, bordering onto overweight. He wasn't heavy enough I was worried, but I was looking into getting him one of those feeder balls to encourage him to be a bit more active.

Then we introduced the 'babies.' (they're two years old, but so tiny we always call them babies)

Leo has visibly lost some weight. He's not skinny, but his slightly saggy belly is tightening more and his waist tapers much more nicely.

He's playing more--the babies are very active kitties and he's constantly in their presence, following them and trying to play their games. He's enough bigger that he doesn't really get into it, but he's always chasing and batting at them. He's also spending less time at the food dish--we have a single food dish, shared between all four cats and he won't eat when there's another cat at the dish. He's still eating, I'm sure of that, and he's pooping and peeing normally.

Is his weight loss something to be horribly concerned with? Should I just keep an eye on it? Has the introduction of younger cats ever caused some weight loss in anyone else's cat?

That sounds exactly like my Lily. She has always been a bit "fluffy" and then started losing weight after our older cat died and we brought home two new babies. I was worried at first even though she seemed at a healthier weight but I have been keeping a close eye on her and weighing her regularly and she has not lost any more. I think she's more active now and less dominant at the food dish.

We don't own a scale so we can't weigh him without going to the vet. I worry a lot about my babies, all of them. I really hope he's not sick. He's not ACTING sick, but I'm just... I worry so much, but I hate wasting time and money to go to the vet just because I'm having a total freakout over nothing.

Originally Posted by Thoenix

He's playing more

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There you go. More activity = losing weight. Exercise works the same for animals as it does for humans, and with the added playtime he has gotten into better kitty shape.

He's playing more--the babies are very active kitties and he's constantly in their presence, following them and trying to play their games. He's enough bigger that he doesn't really get into it, but he's always chasing and batting at them. He's also spending less time at the food dish--we have a single food dish, shared between all four cats and he won't eat when there's another cat at the dish. He's still eating, I'm sure of that, and he's pooping and peeing normally.

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Just like in humans, kitties lose weight when they eat less and exercise more. I think that what you're seeing is normal, but keep an eye on him just to make sure it doesn't continue or isn't a drastic drop in weight.

Since Callie's passed away and it's just Hannah and Tumbles, both my husband and I have noticed that Hannah's lost weight. She's been running and playing more. She eats the same amount now as previously (we do controlled, measured portions) but her activity level has greatly increased because she's trying to run away from the little annoying kitty-boy who's obviously not moving out and is here to stay!