Mary Allen
Why is the number of obese cats just as steadily increasing as that of humans (not only) in our country? Obesity is the most common diet-related disease in cats today.
Because we mean well… But is a cat doing well when – far away from old age – it sleeps full-time due to the increasing weight because every movement is becoming more and more strenuous? Obesity is the most common diet-related disease in cats today, and the sticking point seems to be around the age of five, as most chubby little ones have more or less just passed that birthday. That is why the prognosis for a symptom-free retirement age is very bad – if the cat does not fall ill beforehand. A study found that almost a third of pet owners didn’t even notice their cat’s obesity and therefore didn’t think of doing anything about it.
Well-Intentioned Weighs Heavily
The main cause of obesity in cats is that the emotional and communicative connection between humans and their velvet paws is in the foreground. The cat acts as a substitute for human relationships, and food is used as a stimulant for attention and affection. It’s different with play-oriented cat owners: Despite a comparably close relationship with their animal, they tend to overfeed it far less.
Of course, there are a number of other reasons why a solo tiger might be fattened until it can’t breathe anymore. It takes a little longer with a duo or a small group because they are more active together than a single cat – but at some point, the natural regulatory function is overridden by the permanent oversupply of unusable energy and/or the devil of boredom strikes. And because the excess calories are converted into fat and stored, we “suddenly” have fat.
Being Overweight Makes You Sick
Obesity puts a considerable strain on the cardiovascular system and the liver, metabolism, and joints. It also increases the risk of diabetes mellitus and would promote feline idiopathic lipidosis (an abnormal fat metabolism) if you are considering a starvation diet. The good news is that obesity is very rarely the result of an endocrine disorder or another primary disease. In order to be able to rule this out, you should consult the veterinarian before you start a diet – how slimming measures should be discussed and tackled under his supervision.
The correct calculation of the energy requirement (= maintenance requirement) is not easy, since fat tissue has a much lower metabolic activity than muscle tissue. In order to achieve weight reduction, however, the diet should only cover around 60 percent of the daily energy requirement – which has nothing to do with “simply less”!
Down With The Bacon
You have to be careful with the weight loss program for the cat! The metabolism cannot cope with more than 100 grams of weight loss per week (the ideal goal). So steer clear of methods such as starvation days, halving, or drastically reducing daily rations. Apart from the fact that these measures lead straight from frustration to depression, the consequences would be risky: undersupply of nutrients and vitamins, endangering the metabolic balance, and severe liver damage. The kitty should lose weight, but under no circumstances have to starve, no matter what age, that makes them in a bad mood, unhappy, or even aggressive – and it’s just as bad for their health!
If no one is home during the day, the first step in the right direction would be a controlled ration feeder. Constant availability without supervision (no matter how “light” or “slim” the food is) is definitely not for an overweight woman – that’s why she became overweight! And not overnight, so don’t try to trim them to ideal dimensions at full throttle either.
Speaking Of Age
Only in the case of a very old cat should it be carefully considered whether a diet is still “worthwhile” insofar as we may make the remaining lifespan more difficult than easier with the strenuous diet. But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t at least try…
Jogging For The Cat
No diet in the world can do anything on its own if it isn’t combined with more exercise. Chasing the poor animal around the apartment all day won’t work anyway. Rather, try patiently several times a day to arouse their interest until the eye exercises turn into a targeted slap with the paw, and that is already half the victory, which you can slowly build up to twice a day for ten to 15 minutes. And if your cat enjoys it longer or more often, that’s a wonderful indication that the diet plan is right and the plan has worked.