My cat is steadily gaining weight. :(

I want to keep my cat Pi as healthy as possible. I feed him a varied high protein, grain free almost exclusively wet food diet. I recently started varying the protein we feed him after some advice I received in this forum 

He certainly doesn't look overweight in those pics. Remember that he's the equivalent of a teenager right now - he's not fully mature, and will still have a little growing/filling out to do. Asha's about the same age (we think), and she eats almost as much as our chunky 13 year old bsh who's twice her size! I make sure she stays active (not difficult :lol3: ) and pretty much demand - feed her (she gets a mix of high quality grain free wet and freeze dried raw). I go by how she looks and feels. Asha came to me in a very sorry state - drastically underweight and dehydrated and with infected bites, severe bruising etc. The vet saw her for her pre spay check up, and said she look spot on for her size in terms of weight (she weighed in at 3.6kg). I'm sure she's grown since then, but she's definitely not fat/overweight.

I guess what I'm trying to say is don't panic too much. Cats fed a species appropriate diet are far better at self regulating than cats on higher carb foods. Go by how Pi looks and feels. By all means, keep an eye on his weight if you want, but remember to look at the whole cat, not just the number on the scale.

Fantastic advice from Columbine !!

I'd also like to add, that on an all wet diet, it's harder for a cat to gain weight excessively (as opposed to a dry diet). I agree that Pi just seems to be growing and growing! He's probably burning off all the food while he's filling out and growing up.

Thank you for the advice guys. He looked kind of weird when we first brought him home. He was  out of proportion. He looks more in proportion now, so maybe it is just him still growing. I was just worried because of what the vet said. Now that I know he's still growing at his age, I feel better

Here is a cat body chart you can use to help you determine whether he's "perfect" or not.  Of course he's perfect, but I  mean his weight

http://www.pet-health-care-gazette.com/2010/05/16/cat-body-condition-score-chart/

It's always good to be concerned over weight and it's easy to give in to the "hungry cries" they often give. If I fed my Nora every time she begged for food, she'd be huge! She's on an all wet, high protein, grain free diet, and she's constantly "hungry". We stopped giving in to her, because she was gaining weight. She only gets her canned meals, and maybe a few treats, but that's it. We think her "being hungry" is an attention getting behaviour, so now we distract her with toys and playtime when she whines at the pantry door

You're kitty is gorgeous, and definitely doesn't look overweight in those photos!

Pi looks good to me, too, definitely not overweight! I couldn't agree more with @Columbine's comment that Pi is the equivalent of a teenager: our cats kept filling out, in a healthy way, until they were about two. And they, like Pi, grew into their frames.

They're about two years, four months now and they can still eat a lot because they're so active. I don't count calories, either: it's pretty easy to tell when the cats are a little heavier or a little lighter and need their rations adjusted a bit.