Lets face it: cats have a hard time losing weight. Their bodies hold on to fat as a survival technique, and it’s hard to get those bodies to believe that they are beloved pets who will never miss a meal. Here are some tips for getting your cat to let go of some of that easy-come, hard-to-go extra weight.
- Take it slow: We want cats to lose weight slowly; if they lose it too quickly, they can end up with fatty liver disease. Ideally, we shoot for weight loss of between 0.5-1% of body weight every week to every other week. This means it may take six months to a year for your pet to slim down. That’s okay! With cats, any progress is good progress.
- Meal feed: When cats are allowed to graze, some of them will only eat what they need, but most of them will “snack” all day. When we’re trying to lose weight, it’s best to feed them one meal in the morning, and one meal in the evening.
- Keep them apart: If you have multiple cats and one or more of them is on a diet, it usually is necessary to either feed them in separate rooms or to “police” mealtimes start to end. When cats are allowed to eat unsupervised, they tend of be food thieves and steal out of each other’s bowls.
- Prescription foods: It’s not quite the SoCal diet, but prescription diets are a great help when cats are trying to lose weight. They allow us to restrict calories without restricting nutrients, while at the same time feed higher amounts of fiber that help the cats feel like they’re eating more—which makes the diet more comfortable for both the cat and their owner! If a cat is more than 10% overweight, a prescription diet is going to significantly increase the success of their weight loss plan.
We recommend weighing your cat once weekly and keeping a log of his or her progress. If your cat is not losing weight, is losing more than 1% of body weight weekly, or if you have any concerns, please contact your vet.