Over weight cat with grooming problems

[ani]

hello everyone, my cat is a bigger cat. By being bigger I constantly need to groom him. However being big causes many problems leading him to struggle with cleaning himself (his bum) !
I constantly see poop stains on my bed.This happens 1-2 times a week. The sheet on top of my bed is now just a throw on so my real sheets do not get stained. It is getting gross and way overdue.
Do i need to groom him more? Buy new food? Clean down there?
Please leave me tips! I am struggling

 

[FeebysOwner]

Hi. How old is this cat, and when you say bigger, do you mean he is overweight? Leaving stains would suggest his poop is soft - is it? It could also be anal gland secretions. Loose stool and/or lack of grooming his bum could cause a build up in his anal glands which could then secrete fluids. These fluids tend to smell a bit worse than regular poop.

Do you know how to check his anal glands? If you hold up his tail and think of his bum as the face of a analog clock, the anal glands are little openings on each side of his anus in the 5 and 7 PM positions. They really should be hardly visible unless they are retaining gland secretions. If they would be, you can ask your vet to manually express them - you can also have your vet teach you how to do it, if that should be needed in the future.

You can use something like unscented, hypoallergenic cat wipes to clean his bum - even a moistened soft baby wash cloth would work. Just don't rub too hard.

 

[ani]

he is around 7 years old. And yes he is over weight. Okay! I’ll give the wipes a try! His poop is soft on some days.
What do you think I should feed him? Whats your feeding schedule?

 

[FeebysOwner]

Have you had this cat his whole life? What do you feed him now? And have you made any recent changes to his food? Sometimes, a change in food can cause loose stools. But, his poop being soft on some days and not others would seem to suggest he eats different foods on some days than others? If he goes outside, he could be eating things that cause looser stools on those days that he eats whatever he is getting into outside.

More information - as much as you can think to offer - would be helpful.

 

[ani]

we dry feed him constantly. Once and a while we may give him wet food but that’s like once a month. We give him treats daily. Yes, had him since he was days old.
If you need anything else let me know.

 

[FeebysOwner]

He is likely overweight because you feed him mostly dry food and you also give him treats. But, that doesn't explain the occasional soft stool. You need to check the anal gland issue out to make sure that is not the cause of the stains. And, clean him off in the meantime with the wipes.

But, he is getting old enough that his weight could start to take a toll on him. He should be given a thorough pre-senior exam by a vet to see what shows up and if there are other factors involved. Now is the time to head off any problems that might be starting.

 

[ani]

so what do you think i should be feeding him?

 

[ani]

He is likely overweight because you feed him mostly dry food and you also give him treats. But, that doesn't explain the occasional soft stool. You need to check the anal gland issue out to make sure that is not the cause of the stains. And, clean him off in the meantime with the wipes.

But, he is getting old enough that his weight could start to take a toll on him. He should be given a thorough pre-senior exam by a vet to see what shows up and if there are other factors involved. Now is the time to head off any problems that might be starting.

 

[FeebysOwner]

It isn't as easy as WHAT you should be feeding him. He really should be fed more canned food than dry, just to reduce the amount of calories that he is consuming through dry food. But, you can't just change up your cat's routine overnight, it is a gradual process so that he and his body get used to the changes over time.

I think you should focus now on if there is a reason for the poop stains, is there a problem with his anal glands, and how is his overall health, with a vet exam. Changes to his food/diet can come later after all of that.

Here (see below) is a chart you can use as a guide to see how overweight you think your cat might be. But, I am sure a vet will help you with how overweight he is when you have him examined. (P.S. he looks like he is a cutey - when he is not 'irritated'!)

 

[ani]

Hello everyone! As you can see my cat is over weight and close to obesity. He is getting older and I want to feed him right. Going to a vet is not an option in my living situation. I know you may think because of that I should not have this cat but i refuse to give him up. I have had him since he was days old.
As you can see I need a plan. Something isn’t working and I was never educated on the cat feeding topic. I need a schedule. I am open to any and all suggestion.
As of right now my cat eats dry food In the morning and in the afternoon, plus a few treats before bed, and of course water.
Now i need something new and something that will help him be healthier, skinnier, and live longer.
Please give me a schedule and what i should buy.
I am canadian and in ontario so some of your meals may not be available to me.
I am desperate and need anything and everything! However I am open to giving him new food because at this point anything will help. Do n

 

[ani]

i’ve been saving up but a vet is so expensive and i just can’t afford it! My cat is definitely obese. I think the issue with the stains is him not being able to reach the area, getting stuck in his hair, and the food.

 

[FeebysOwner]

OK. I get that. So, use the wipes to clean him for now. You didn't say what food he is eating, and why you think this all has to do with his food??? Or, do you mean that food in general is making him fat and therefore he can't clean?

If it is just because of too much food - not what the food is - then start measuring how much he eats in a day, and see how much that is. Then, reduce that amount by maybe 10%. So, if he is currently eating 2 cups of dry food a day, you could reduce that amount by 1/8 cup a day to start with. It does somewhat depend on how you feed him - do you just dump cups full of food into a bowl, and then refill when it is gone?

 

[FeebysOwner]

Hi. Me again - goes back to what you are feeding him, and your routine for feeding him. How much you are putting down and when you refill his food, are good starting points. All of that information will help to build a new schedule for him. This is a long process to change a cat's food and feeding schedule in order to help him and his body adjust to the upcoming changes.

 

[ani]

so - my grandfather used to feed my cat a lot. When i say a lot i mean 3-4 times a day, dry food only. He got bigger as you know and now officially obese. My grandfather got sick recently and I’m trying to change his eating habits. We already lessen the amount of time we feed him. I think it’s only food because there isn’t anything else really. He is obese which makes it difficult for him to clean himself.
I fill his bowl in the morning and then do a quarter scoop again at 6pm.

 

[ani]

thank you.

 

[LTS3]

We have Canadian members here who can suggest brands of food. I know rubysmama is one.

What brand of dry food is your cat currently eating and how much daily?

Dry food is super calorie dense per cup. Supposed weight loss foods aren't that much better. If you can switch your cat to only canned food, that would help with weight loss. Even feeding more canned and less dry would help. Schedule-wise, spread the calories out over the course of the day. So a few small meals instead of just one or two big ones.

Most cats need roughly 20 to 25 calories per pound of body weight daily. Weigh loss needs to be done very slowly over weeks if not months. You typically start by feeding enough calories for the current weight and then very slowly decrease the calories until the cat sheds the extra weight.

Mickey, my 27 lbs foster and his journey back to a healthy weight

Mickey is my newest foster kitty. He is 7 1/2 years old and weights 27 lbs. This is the first of hopefully many posts chronicling Mickey's journey back to a healthy weight. He is with me solely for the purpose of losing weight. He is actually in pretty good shape other than his weight. His rear...

thecatsite.com

Feline Obesity: An Epidemic of Fat Cats

A veterinarian discusses using canned cat food and not dry food as a prevention and treatment of obesity in cats, and what is a healthy diets for cats.

catinfo.org

 

[FeebysOwner]

So, that is a good start. When you say you fill his bowl in the morning, do you know how much food that is - 1 cup, 2 cups, or? And, what is a quarter of a scoop at 6PM mean? There is a methodology in cutting back the amount of food, and it sounds like you already started it. So, if you find you are giving him 2 cups in the morning, and a quarter of a scoop means another 1/4 cup at night. Then, reduce the morning amount by 1/4 of a cup, and let the 1/4 of a cup at night stay the same. Do this for a week or two before you reduce the amount any more. He needs to get used to a gradual reduction in his food, or he will be miserable.

 

[ani]

yes so 1 cup in the morning, and just a little at night. I will definitely try this. Once we run out of dry food i will be buying new dry and some wet.

 

[kendradoodle]

Hi Ani!
How much dry food are you feeding? My cat was very overweight, and this is the schedule I used:

1. 1/4 cup dry (I used Purina Pro Plan Weight Management) in the morning and at night
2. ~1oz wet food (Pro Plan Weight Management) at night. The vet working with me said that sometimes introducing a little more water to their diet can help facilitate weight loss. Not too much though! Just a tablespoon or so to go along with dinner. Giving the little extra at night kept them from waking me up before breakfast.
3. Very minimal or no treats!
4. Try to play with him, keeping them active is important just like it is for humans.

My kitty is now at a healthy weight thanks to this regimen. It'll take a long time, but you want to make sure kitty loses weight in a healthy way.

Warning: your kitty will most likely be very upset about getting fed less, but ignore the meows! A weight management food typically has more fiber so they feel fuller. Every cat is different, so you may need to adjust depending on the weight kitty is losing (or not losing!). If ever needed, there are telehealth vets you can contact.

 

[suzeanna]

He's so cute!!

Honestly, basically any wet food will be better than dry food ("the cheapest wet food is better than the most expensive dry food"). There are lots of forum members who have examples (Fancy Feast, Purina, etc.) -- I suggest looking through the Cat Nutrition forums for recent threads related to wet food. Wet food is much less calorie dense, more nutritious and filling, and is great for hydration. You should figure out how many calories your cat is currently eating or should eat at their current weight, then slowly scale that back by ~10 calories per week if they aren't losing weight. You will likely need to use a scale to *actually* measure the grams of food they are eating. It is not a lot of math, you just need to know the calories per gram in the food they are eating.