am i feeding my cat too much ?

muddygrl

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I got Teddy from the shelter in August. He weighed 11 pounds at his first vet appointment right after I got him. The vet said his weight was right where it should be and perfect. He didn't seem too thin but to me he looked slender.  

I feed him about a can of wet food a day and 1/2 a scoop of Authority brand dry food. That's all he gets but he's gained a little over 2 pounds and is now 13. 4 pounds. I weighed him at home this time so I don't know if the scales could be part of it.

I looked up the calories and based on 30 calories per pound he needs 390 to maintain at 13 pounds. Authority brand says it is 398 per cup and he only gets half a cup so 199 calories. I am not sure how many calories are in his wet food because it doesn't say (aldi turkey cat food) but based on an article I read I was figuring 125 calories for that. So he "should" be getting about 324 calories per day. That sounds about right or just under.

So I am curious if he's gained weight because maybe he's eating BETTER than he was in the shelter or if I've been feeding him too much. He sleeps a lot, he'll play with the laser dot for a little bit in the evening. He doesn't look fat to me but he's not thing. Knowing his personality and the fact he was in the shelter for 2 months before I got him, his digestion is sensitive to stress, I wonder if he just gained here at our house because he's eating better. Should I feed him less or just keep the same amount?

 
 

denice

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Most adult cats will maintain their weight on around 20 calories per pound rather than 30.  If this is an adult cat with a normal activity level I think you are overfeeding him.  You can usually find the calories for wet food on the wet food's web site.  For most wet foods, not all but most, one of the 5.5 ounce cans spread across two meals a day is sufficient for the average adult kitty.  Some foods are lower calorie and so need to be either supplemented with a very small amount of kibble or kitty needs a little more than 1 can a day.
 

nora1

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I agree, sounds like it's a but much. Also keep in mind that even though the calories may be correct, the calories he's getting may be full of carbs depending on the food/brand. It's a "good calories vs bad calories". For example, if humans ate the same calories for only candy vs the same calories of meat and veggies - the only candy diet would contribute to weight gain as they're not useful calories. 

I would check the websites for the canned food for calories, and go from there. You should aim for 20 calories per pound (of ideal weight, not current weight).
 
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muddygrl

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I've been trying to search and come up with nothing on the nutrition content for the canned cat food. it's Aldi brand Fine Feline canned cat food and they don't have content on their site. I can't find the manufactor website. I found a site that will calculate the content based on the guaranteed analysis so I used that and it appears that it should be about 137.5 calories per can.  The can of cat food is also actually 5.5 ounces. So based on figures, I AM feeding too much. I am going to slowly cut back on the dry food food. I think she's been eating more of that than he used to and that's probably why.
 
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