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Obesity in Cats

Obesity is the most common nutritional disorder of dogs and cats. And because obesity is often associated with serious health conditions, it's important that you work with your veterinarian to determine the best way to help your pet reach an ideal weight.

Obesity occurs when more calories are consumed than the body uses. Some factors which influence your pet's weight are physical activity, diet and genetics. Physical Activity: Cats who are often idle, bored or inactive expend less energy and require fewer calories than active pets. Activity levels tend to decrease with age.

So what is happening that predisposes our domestic felines to a life of sedentary obesity? The answer is multifactorial but to simplify, just remember this... any individual mammal (dog, cat, horse, human, etc.) will gain body weight if it consumes more calories than it burns as fuel for energy. That's pretty simple, but true. In Nature, food acquisition has never been a sure thing for any creature... not for canines, felines or humans. So food acquisition has always been accompanied by physical exertion to capture (or cultivate) and consume the food. It is only in recent times that the unnatural situation of food excess, readily acquired and consumed with little accompanying physical exertion, has become a way of life.

We learned how to refrigerate, dry, preserve and store foods in large quantities that assured us we would not have to endure long and unsuccessful hunting forays nor suffer through famines. We have created the very same food acquisition assurances for our domestic dogs and cats. They, as we, no longer have to hunt to survive. Indeed, we no longer even have to live outdoors.

It's interesting that our pets have mirrored our own tendency to have trouble with weight control. The major difference, though, is that we humans have complete control over what our pets eat and how much they eat. Unless your cat is sneaking into the fridge and making ham and cheese sandwiches late at night when no one is around, the only way they get to eat is when YOU place the food in front of them.

Any cat that is overweight should have a physical exam performed, exact weight measured and blood and urine tests run. It is vital that normal thyroid hormone levels are present and that the cat has no physical or metabolic dysfunction. If the cat is physically normal, other than the abnormal body weight from fat deposition, then a gradual and careful weight loss program can be instituted.

The most common form of malnutrition within pets is the overconsumption of calories leading to obesity. Ideally, cats should be fed to maintain their optimal bodyweight. Long-term studies have shown that both obesity and excessive thinness shorten life expectancy.

'Obese' cats are those that are at least 20 per cent heavier than the optimal weight due to excessive fat accumulation. A cat is 'overweight' if it is one to 19 per cent heavier than the optimal weight.

Obesity in cats is very common and can predispose the cat to diabetes, Hepatic Lipidosis and arthritis. Overweight and actually obese cats outnumber cats of normal weigh and are being seen more and more commonly by veterinarians for various disorders.

There are 40 percent of cats in USA considered to be obese! Only 5 to 10 percent of all cats can be classified as only slightly overweight.

In recent years Feline Diabetes Mellitus (diabetes) has become almost a daily diagnosis in animal hospitals all across America. Our cats are at risk for a number of obesity related disorders. Documented research indicates obese cats are far more prone than cats of normal body weight to Diabetes, arthritis and a very serious disorder called Hepatic Lipidosis.

And the 40 percent obesity figure seems to be growing.

In fact, nearly 40 percent of cats are overweight, but only 26 percent of cat owners think their feline needs help battling the bulge. Many cat owners probably don't think their cats need to lose weight because a couple of pounds aren't a big deal. But, a few pounds can make a big difference in your cat's health. For example, as little as three extra pounds on a 10-lb. cat is equivalent to an extra 40 pounds on an average-sized woman. Just like humans, overweight cats are at a higher risk of developing health problems, such as diabetes, arthritis and mobility issues, or trouble moving around the house.

Let's look at what the causes of obesity are and what we can do to correct OUR mistakes:

Feed two to six small portions daily and control the amounts fed so that over a period of time the cat does not gain weight. Many pet owners must downsize what they think is a "normal" portion. A meal for a 175-pound human might weigh 16 to 24 ounces. A seven-pound cat weighs 1/25 of the 175-pound human. So a cat's meal should proportionally be about 1/25 of a human meal. That comes out to between 0.6 and 1.0 ounce of food per meal for a seven-pound cat... about the same weight as a mouse.

Cat owners must stop thinking in terms of "cups of food" and start thinking in terms of ounces of food.

Overweight cats are:

• four-and-a-half times more likely to develop diabetes mellitus;

• seven times more likely to require veterinary care for lameness, caused by joint diseases such as arthritis or muscle injuries;

• three times more likely to be presented to veterinarians for non-allergic skin conditions, probably because the cats cannot reach all parts of their bodies to groom themselves properly;

• twice as likely to die in middle age.

Most likely to be obese are neutered, apartment-dwelling, mixed-breed cats eating prescription cat food. (Some prescription diets can be high in calories, and if they are served in the same way as regular cat food, the cats will gain weight.)

Your veterinarian is the only one who should determine the ideal weight for your cat, and he/she can recommend the proper diet and exercise routine once a problem has been diagnosed. However, keeping your cat in good condition to begin with is most important.