what to try next? 15 lb cat should weigh 12

[ginnyinWI]

I have tried for so long to get those pounds off Zelda, my Maine Coon mix. She LOVES dry food and I give her maybe a coffee measure full a day, plus canned food--maybe 2/3 to 3/4 of a 5.5 oz can. And maybe three kitty treats.

But sometimes she sneaks into the foster kittens' room and gets more dry food. I'm working on a better way to block off that room from her, and still allow the kittens access.

What will work? should I give in and give her more dry food and less wet--but everything I read says that the carbs in dry food puts weight on cats like nothing else. I had another cat a few years ago who lost weight by giving up dry food and only getting canned wet food. I may have to go to zero dry food for this one to get any results.

What do you think?

She is almost ten years old.

[hlthe2b]

1. Talk to your veterinarian (or have them inquire regarding) new Science Diet weight loss foods for ca

http://www.hillspet.com/products/sd-feline-adult-light-cat-food-dry.html
they have both canned and dry formulation and the feedback has been very good, in terms of actually inducing weight loss while satiating their appetite. No, I don't work for Hills.

But, you will have to feed it exclusively without other treats.

Normally, I wouldn't suggest Science Diet/Hills nor any other food, but I've seen some data that the company has provided--take that for what it is worth.. and my neighbor has managed to get two of her very fat cats down to merely slightly overweight in less than a year. Not inexpensive from what I'm told, but beats paying for insulin if your cats become diabetic, which is a very significant risk. Once the weight starts coming off, you might find the cats feel like playing more too--a very added benefit.

[ginnyinWI]

4. thanks. I will look into it. n/t

[Lydia Leftcoast]

2. Could the dry food be too high in carbs?

Cats are carnivores, so they need little or no carbohydrates. Even veggies might be too much for some cats.

[ginnyinWI]

3. It is Natural Balance Original Ultra Reduced Calorie Formula

It has about 100 fewer calories per cup, 352 v.s. 440 for the regular version. But yes all dry food is higher in carbs than wet food. 35% protein, 10% fat so the rest is carbs.

Mainly though, she is eating canned Friskies cat food which is not that high in carbs. That is my dilemma--to reduce her food even more, or to switch to something else. She has a little dry food, then nags me and cries for more. Will leave the wet food sitting in the dish until she is really hungry.

[Granny M]

5. Zelda has my sympathy.

Weight management is a bitch for us older gals. She has a very pretty face. (Did I just say that dreaded phrase??)

Seriously, I wish you good luck with your efforts. It's so hard, because we can't reason with them - and they just love their food. Wish I had some ideas to offer.

[shenmue]

6. Get her a gym membership?

Kiddin'. Good luck, though.

[TygrBright]

7. Switch to a grain-free dry food.

Also, exercise. Take the time to get her excited about chasing something around, jumping, etc. 3-4 times a day (before meals is good!) for 5 minutes or so at a time.

And several very small meals are better than 1-2 large ones.

Those are the only tips I can think of.

helpfully,
Bright

[narnian60]

8. I am an anti-dry food zealot now.

After I cut the cord with dry food, my asthmatic cat quit coughing, my cat with allergies quit sneezing, and my other cats stopped drinking water constantly, and their bowel movements were less stinky. This is after owning many cats over the last 40 years. Wet food is less fattening, also.

[ginnyinWI]

9. I think that's what I need to do, too.

Cut the cord and offer no dry food. But there will be fireworks! She's like an addict. I have read lots of articles on different sites saying that dry food is no better than junk food. Raw food is best but that sounds like a huge amount of work. I do give them chicken thigh meat sometimes. Even though I am a vegetarian!

[narnian60]

10. Mine were eaters of both,

so it was easier to just stop the dry. You may have to wean them off it a little at a time.

[ginnyinWI]

11. we are down to very little...

Well we were, before May. Like 2T. per day for Zelda, and the other one doesn't care if she gets any dry food or not.

Then we went on vacation and had a pet sitter come every other day and put down both wet and dry food. Zelda gained some weight over the two weeks, and so did the other one. She lost some again since then but her taste for dry food was revived.

We are back to 2 T. per day so I'll see about cutting that down and then out.