Putting a Cat on a Diet

Many of us use food as a form of love. However, an overweight cat is an unhealthy cat. 

“The average domestic short-hair, medium-hair, and long-hair should weigh approximately 8 to 10 pounds,” says Dr. Ernest Ward, veterinarian at Seaside Veterinary Animal Care in North Carolina, and founder of the Association for Pet Obesity Prevention. “One of the interesting tidbits from the two National Pet Obesity Studies we did shows the average length (front of skull to base of tail) is 18 to 20 inches. This is a good way to judge if your cat is normal-sized. If he is shorter, he should weigh less; longer means he should weigh slightly more. Many people think their cat is big when he’s actually normal. Get out the tape measure to find out.”

Cats are obligate carnivores, which they require proteins to survive. While it is true that cats can maintain their health eating carbohydrates, “it’s proteins they crave,” he explains. “I always look for a cat diet that contains a minimum of 35% protein on a dry matter basis; higher is better.”

Cats Eat Veggies Too
Just because cats are carnivores doesn’t mean they can’t benefit from nutrients found in vegetables. Dr. Ward suggests feeding your cats cooked or raw carrots, broccoli, spinach, and other dark, leafy vegetables. “My cat Freddy loves it,” he says. “As an alternative, my favorite snack foods for cats are salmon and sardines. Rich in healthy omega-3 fatty acids, these cold-water fishes are a tasty treat most cats love. Be sure to reduce their regular diet if you add them so you don’t over feed your cat. A half an ounce of canned salmon contains about 20 calories and there are six of these servings per three-ounce can. One-quarter can of sardines in water contains about 35 calories.”

How Much Should Cats Eat
Most average, indoor cats require between 180 to 210 calories per day. The larger or more active a cat is, the more calories it needs to consume; the smaller or less active, the fewer calories it needs. For weight loss, some cats may eat as little as 160 to 170 calories per day. Most cats are grazers; they prefer to eat several small meals throughout the day.

“I recommend feeding your cat at least twice a day if not more frequently,” says Dr. Ward. “Some of the newer automatic food dispensers allow you to program up to six feedings per day. These are especially convenient and welcome for owners of cats that like to wake them at 2 a.m. for a ‘midnight snack.’”

Special Diets
For weight loss, unless you’re going to go to a home-cooked meat-based diet, your best bet is still found in a bag or can. “Modern commercial diet foods for cats really work,” says Dr. Ward. “Due to their carnivorous physiology, the best weight-loss results are typically found with a high-protein approach. Look for a diet with at least 35% protein content on a dry-matter basis. Be sure to pay close attention to the label. Just because a food is labeled light or low fat doesn’t mean it’s low in calories.”

Homes with Dogs and Multiple Cats
If your cat shares his home with a dog, it’s essential to make sure everyone is well fed and that one pet doesn’t eat all or most of the food. “This is a hard one,” says Linda West Eckhardt, author of The Dog Ate It: Cooking for Yourself and Your Four Legged Friends. “My dogs were getting fat from stealing the more densely nutrient filled cat food in a can, so I put the cat’s feeding station on top of the washer. The dogs can only stand on the floor and inhale, longingly, for a taste of that yummy forbidden cat food.  And the cats just stare back in utter disdain at the foolish dogs.”

This works well with homes with a cat and a dog. However, multiple cat homes often have one obese cat and one lean or even skinny cat. Dr. Ward nixes the idea of feeding cats in a trough style–where everyone eats out of the same bowl. “If you feed your cats trough-style, you’re encouraging rapid eating and food bowl aggression,” he explains. “Many times I encounter families with one obese cat and one skinny cat. It doesn’t take Catlock Holmes to solve this case; one cat is the boss of the bowl. Many cats have an ownership zone of about one to two feet around their bowl; that is, anything in that area is mine. This is one of the ways wild cats prevent fighting over a carcass in the wild. While modern cats needn’t fear stronger predators stealing their food, these behaviors persist. Take advantage of this instinct by separating your cats’ food bowls by several feet. Feed them at the same time and stand back. If one cat quickly eats his food and then pounces on the other cat’s bowl, either separate them further or feed the aggressive cat in another room, perhaps even behind closed doors. Most cats adjust to this separate and timed-feeding schedule very quickly.”

Exercise is Essential
One of the easiest ways to make sure your cats gets some exercise is to feed your cat on a kitchen counter–not on the floor. This way he has to jump up for his food. Other forms of exercise include playing with a cat dancer, a feather on a stick toy, or laser. Cats love to chase the light from laser pointers. Playtime is not only for exercise, it’s for bonding too.