Weight loss diet

Lamborghini is on FF classic pates to keep him from getting to the point of needing insulin. Has been working wonderfully for 2-1/2 years or so, now.

Recent changes with the other cats in the house have meant that food was no longer left out, basically unlimited to whoever came back and wanted to finish it. In response, Lamborghini began wolfing down his food so he could then steal from the other, younger cat's bowls.

He started getting fatter, from creeping up from 13-13.5 pounds (which is okay, he's big) to over 14.5 pounds almost a month ago. We began limiting his food, well theoretically, hubby who mostly feeds them has had problems with can counts. Weighed him again today, he's now 15 pounds. (so that's not quite 4 weeks later.)
Found out hubby has been giving him up to a can a meal, four times a day. Oh no....

Since he's currently 15 pounds, and should be down around 13 pounds, is limiting him to strictly 3 cans a day now reasonable? He's not very active, he's about 14 years old, been through thyroid disease (first hyper, then treatment, now hypo, but properly medicated), has basically no teeth left (FORL) and recently impacted anal glands, was borderline diabetic until we changed his diet. So he eats, sleeps in the windowsill, eats, sleeps on the couch when someone is sitting there so he gets petted, eats, tosses all the litter out of the box, eats, sleeps under the table, eats....

For a 13 pound cat, it would need about 260 calories a day, right?
FF classic pates, mostly the fish flavors for Lambors, run around 90-94 calories each.
So, 3 cans a day would be 270-280 calories a day, yes?
Is that too much of a calorie cut for him all at once? He has been getting up to 3-1/2 to sometimes 4 cans a day, and he's getting beach-ball shaped.

 

Yes, that sounds right to me! I think they say you don't want to drop weight faster than 1% of body weight a week. And calories intake can vary a bit of course, winter time they tend to eat more. But yes it definitely sounds like he needs to be cutting back.

 

Yes 260 calories a day is right. One thing they say you shouldn't feed fish everyday

 

Hi Gracie,

You need to reduce weight gradually to avoid any potential issues with hepatic lipidosis. Dr. Pierson covers how to help a cat lose weight safely:

https://catinfo.org/feline-obesity-an-epidemic-of-fat-cats/


Mogs
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