one fat one skinny

What do you do when you have one fat cat and one skinny one?? They feed together. I currently have them on IAMS hairball formula weight control (skinny George needs hairball treatment). I know this question must get asked a lot so maybe there are lots of solutions?? Help I'm not very experienced - they're only about a year old. Thanks

Carrie

Have you had both cats to the vet to be checked? I would take them in and ask that a bloodpanel be drawn on the skinny cat just to rule out what it *might* be. Once that is in the clear, and the kitty is healthy then it could be metabolism, or it could be that kitty is not getting as much food as you think. I would feed the cats in seperate bowls if you aren't already, and sprinkle either some cod liver oil or nutra-yeast over the skinny one's food. Just a little at a time until the cat has acquired a taste for it. Purnina One's website has a pictorial chart about how to tell if you cat is healthy by weight I would go there and compare your cat with those. I would also have the vet check for mouth ulcers or throat infections to see if maybe that is why kitty is not eating properly. I have 13 cats of varying sizes and weights, don't really know why some cats are skinny and some aren't. But the same can be said for people.....no???

Just wanted to add too that Iams is a very caloric dense food and even their weight control formula is very dense. If your kitty is a bit on the heavy side then maybe Iams isn't the best food for him but I would go with what Hissy suggested first.

I have a book about cat nutrition which says that cats can get fat if they aren't getting all the nutrients they need. It also says that overweight cats usually have dry food in their diets. Of course, eating too much and exercising too little can also help, just like people.

We have 10 cats, all of various sizes and shapes. Two are littermates, brothers, we adopted together from a shelter. One, Elliot, has maintained his weight nicely, while his brother, Barry, is a walrus. All 10 cats are on Authority Adult Dry food. We've spoke with our vet about the disparity and have been told it's simply a difference in metabolism. As long as bloodwork has been done to rule out hypothyroid or other medical problems, chalk it up to them simply being different metabollically. Of course if the weight becomes a health problem, then you may have to do individual controlled feedings as opposed to leaving food out for them all day long.

When I had this problem, I kept the food on the washing machine. All of the cats except the hefty kitty could jump up to eat. I fed my little fat cat her low calorie food on the floor. I figured that once she was thin enough to jump on the washer, she would be okay!