Best way to get 1 1/2 pounds off my cat?

LTS3 said:

Try the chart here: http://catinfo.org/docs/FoodChartPublic9-22-12.pdf

According to this, the chicken pate is  42 kcal ME/ portion.

Click to expand...

Thank you, LTS3!

Here's some pics of Robin from the top etc. I'm trying to get a feel for how overweight he really is, based on the 1-10 pictures. I think he's a 6, maybe. He doesn't seem big until he's laying down, and then he's so very round.


Sometimes he looks heavy, sometimes thin. He does have a pooch, and when he walks, his ribs definitely are not smaller than his chest.

Maybe I should get him a treadmill lol.

I'd say probably a 6 too...maybe a 7. Really I need to see a sideways picture of him standing as well as the overhead shot. From what I can see, it's a lack of a waist that's the giveaway! (Though I'm far more used to condition scoring equines than felines :lol3: ). It shouldn't be that hard to get him to where he should be from this point. I'm sure you'll get his figure back in no time

It's so hard to keep a single, spoiled boy living with a doting mama thin these days.

Sigh. A seven? Yea, maybe so. Would a cat condo help exercise him at all? He's declawed. (Yea, I know, but as a kitten he used to claw electric cords and since the nasty house I was renting at the time only had open flame gas and electric space heaters, and he was knocking the electric ones over when I was at work--and going for the wall gas furnace's electric cord too,, and it was winter, I felt I was out of options. I do regret it, but it was literally life and death for both of us at the time.) Anyway, I noticed right away how having the inability to grab with his fertile affected his muscles, and it was pretty extreme, and I'm having trouble coming up with activities that he can participate in as a declawed kitty. [emoji]128532[/emoji]

I said maybe Both side and top view pics are needed to make a true assessment.

A cat condo might help - go for one with ramps if you get one, and make sure it's sturdy enough for large breeds (we had a 3-4 ft one when I was a kid. I'll never forget the look on my bsh's face as the top tier fell when he was on it...).

Really, its just a case of getting him moving any way you can. I know you say he doesn't seem very playful anymore, but if you get the right toy he might surprise you. I thought Shad (at the grand old age of 13) was past his playing days. Enter a huge feather stick and a Flying Frenzy (uk Da Bird), and he's suddenly a kitten again ...Asha hardly gets a look in sometimes :lol3:

On second thoughts...maybe he needs a 1 year old girlfriend to get him going again [emoji]128571[/emoji] (joking)

misterwhiskers said:

You're right. But my cat needs just a little something to break him of the all-dry routine. He never really eats more than 1/4 can at one time, even the 3 oz. cans, so for him, at least, it's a good thing.

Click to expand...

I think it's great that you're going to feed the big-little guy more wet food! I hope he continues to like the Sheba. (We went through weight issues with our previous cat... she, too, failed to lose weight on dry diet food; thank goodness we switched a lot of her food over to wet.)

Robin looks only moderately overweight to me. He also looks very sweet! His markings are a lot like our snowshoe's. (She's a big eater, too!)

As for other toys, our cats love sponge balls. And it looks like you have smooth hardwood floors: our cats love it when we slide (very fast!) things like pens, dental floss (Glide) boxes, lip balm tubes, and other old bits of packaging along the floor so they can chase them. They also love socks filled with catnip. Our previous cat, who was declawed when we adopted her, liked a lot of things things, too.

(Side picture of Robin standing).

Hi LisaHE!

Robin is half snowshoe! Thank you. He is sweet...and vocal!! And he's not a big eater, per se, it's just he has that food insecurity thing. Plus he's just. Plain. Nosy about everything his mama eats, haha.

I love the catnip in a sock trick!!! He would LOVE that!!!

Based off both sets of pics, I'd definitely rate him as a 6. Just couldn't tell properly without both views

Thanks, Columbine! I'm glad I'm nipping this weight thing in the bud, then. Doesn't he have huge hindquarters? I get some idea of how big he would have been had he survived to this age as an intact feral. Which being half ragdoll, might have been unlikely.

He's a big boy for sure, and some of that is definitely his frame :nod: I'm used to big cats too (I've always had British Shorthairs around). Teeny 7lb Asha has come as something of a shock :lol3:

Asha sounds adorable!! That is pretty small for a British shorthair!!

:lol3: She's a little rescue I got in March. Shadow is my current bsh (brother to the late Cali - my avatar pic). Growing up I had a pair of bsh brothers too, but all our other cats just showed up and moved in

Asha and Shadow - just look as the size difference!

I like to put food in "inconvenient" places where the cats never go except to get food, and just scatter food in the bottom of a pie plate to make it unappetizing.  I'm a dedicated free-feeder and so far this works to bring down my butterball's weight.

misterwhiskers said:

Hi LisaHE!

Robin is half snowshoe! Thank you. He is sweet...and vocal!! And he's not a big eater, per se, it's just he has that food insecurity thing. Plus he's just. Plain. Nosy about everything his mama eats, haha.

I love the catnip in a sock trick!!! He would LOVE that!!!

Click to expand...

That's interesting that you say Robin's got a food insecurity thing: our cats do/did, too. They came to us underfed and very scrawny kittens, and Edwina, the snowshoe still eats too fast, something that I think is leftover from when they were underfed. (We suspect Edwina was the runt, much smaller than her sister.)

Anyway, yes, catnip in a sock is great: it's a perfect toy for a declawed cat because he won't be able to tear the sock up! (For a declawed cat, stockings/nylons/tights work beautifully, too. That's how I first made these, for a declawed stray I took in years ago... she loved those toys!)

Robin looks and sounds like a very sweet cat. I hope you're able to help him get his weight under control! I think more wet food is definitely a great way to start. (Maybe he'll even change his mind and like Friskies now for you? )

Update-- My scale isn't accurate (says he's 16 pounds lol), but can I get some neutral opinions on whether Robin looks thinner?

I've had him on a fairly steady 2/3 cup of dry a day, sometimes less. Overall 1/3 if it is grainfree the rest is Purina One hairball. He is proving very stubborn.

I do think he feels lighter, not by a lot but at least half a pound, and his belly seems to hang less.

On the downside, for the first time since I've had him, I swear I smell spray by the front door, where he sits and cries trying to get out, all since the Golden Retriever moved in downstairs. Sweet dog, but he does have the freedom to come up the stairs. Robin acts interested in a new friend, but the smell worries me. His pee output is quite good judging by the litterbox. It's also possible it's the dog spraying the door, though the smell seems concentrated right by the door.

Would a cat sleep where he sprays? He really does like to sleep smashed against that door.

Could the new food be to blame?

Robin's looking good Keep it up!

I think it's far more likely to be the dog marking outside than Robin marking inside. If you want to be sure, get some puppy training pads and stick them up on and near the door inside - that will tell you pretty quickly who the culprit is. It's not impossible that Robin's spraying though. If he is, it's almost certainly because the dog's presence is bothering him. Some Feliway diffusers might be a good idea to help him chill a little.

Columbine said:

Robin's looking good Keep it up!

I think it's far more likely to be the dog marking outside than Robin marking inside. If you want to be sure, get some puppy training pads and stick them up on and near the door inside - that will tell you pretty quickly who the culprit is. It's not impossible that Robin's spraying though. If he is, it's almost certainly because the dog's presence is bothering him. Some Feliway diffusers might be a good idea to help him chill a little.

Click to expand...

Great idea on the puppy pads! Thank you so much! I wouldn't have thought of that. Meanwhile, time for me to invest in Natures Miracle again!

By the way, Columbine, did I ever compliment you on your picture of Asha and Shadow? That's amazing. I've had tiny females--Tootsie never went past 6.5 pounds and spent most of life around 5--but wow, Shadow is huge! Both your cats are gorgeous!

:nod:

Thank you They think so too :lol3:

I keep thinking Asha's heading towards weight issues now...its just so hard to tell with her as she has a big spay pouch and a really fluffy tummy. Bit of a turnaround from the bag of bones she was in March!