Happens Easily But Easily Sorted. (Obesity in cats)

Member Name: katygriff

Product:	Obesity in cats
Date:	30/03/08 (96 review reads)
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I have the pleasure of owning two gorgeous cats who I love very much indeed. One of our cats Harry we had when he was just three months old and he was an only cat for a while. We noticed a few months ago that he seemed to be getting a bit podgy and as responsible cat owners we looked into the situation as we were fully aware that all pets can get obese and sometimes so quickly you hardly notice it happening.

When doing research it becomes apparent that cat obesity is very common but this can leave them exposed to all sorts of problems such as arthritis. According to one website I was looking at they reckon that the number of overweight cats outdoes normal weight cats which is crazy.

Cats are known to be very agile and like to play and to prowl everywhere, but they are equally known as being quite lazy and sleeping a lot during the day and every day. Now my cat was on his own and in the house all day so was sitting there asleep while we were at work even though he has lots of independent cat toys he could play with.

Harry didn't get very fat but we took him to the vets who gave us a little bit of advice and said he was absolutely fine but she was glad we had noticed him getting podgy and were proactive enough to do something about it.

The advice she gave us was to make sure he didn't eat too much of the dry food as apparently it is extremely calorific. The wet food is fine for them and gives them a lot of water so we should not be concerned if he eats all of it but doesn't drink too much water. We had been leaving him quite a big container of dry food a day so this has now been cut down quite a lot.

Me and my fiancé had chats about getting another cat to keep him company during the day and the vet said this was also a good idea for his weight loss programme. Since we have had little Tink, Harry seems to be a lot happier and as they play with each other it gives him several daily doses of good exercise which he wasn't really getting before which is good.

In my opinion though obesity in cats is something to keep an eye on as it could have happened to our Harry if we had not noticed the slightly change in him. If it is such a big problem as it seems to be then it is scary how many people do neglect it when it happens to their cat.

In my opinion ( and the vets ) these are the best ways to get a healthy and happy and not obese cat:

- Food. Make sure you are not feeding them too much and stick to low calorie foods if you can. Dry food is a no no for lots of them and wet food is absolutely fine. Also cat milk and treats should be left for occasions, not giving them some every day no matter how much you want to.

- Play. Make sure you play with your cat so they get some exercise. This is especially important if you have a house cat as they will probably spend 90% of their time fast asleep in a sun spot. My cats love the feather toys best and you can play with them for ages with lots of exercise for them and minimal for you.

- Stop the treats. I know its hard but it has to be done. Especially cat milk which is extremely calorific.

Obese cats are a worry so if you notice yours going this way please take initiative and do something about it. I have recently seen a neighbours cat get very fat and tried to tell the owner but they have ignored me and now the vet has said that the cat wont last too much longer now due to the weight so I could go mad at this neighbour for doing it to the cat!!!

Harry is now a very healthy little normal weight cat so I am so happy and it was very quickly sorted.

Thanks for reading.

xxx

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