Six year old cat weighs 41 lbs.. taken from owner

[SoCalDem]

http://msnbc.msn.com/id/4654653/
Fat cat squeezed into German animal home

Fri 2 April, 2004 18:25

BERLIN (Reuters) - A German cat weighing six times the normal weight is so fat that it cannot take more than four steps without getting exhausted, officials at a Berlin animal shelter have said after receiving the six-year-old feline.

Mikesch, a black and white house cat weighing in at 18.5 kg (nearly 41 lbs), was taken away from his elderly owner on Thursday. The man, who was himself taken to a nursing home, had been feeding the cat two kg (4.4 lbs) of mince each day.

"You can call it cruelty to animals," said shelter veterinarian Karin Bartell on Friday, as the cat stared straight ahead with a bored look.

"It's a problem for joints and the heart. The cat can't clean itself because he is too fat. He walks three or four steps and is completely exhausted because the heart no longer works properly and the cat can't breathe normally anymore." Mikesch has been put on a strict diet to reduce his size. Cats usually weigh between three and six kg and should eat no more than about 300 grams (10 ounces) of food each day, vets say.

..

[Quetzal]

1. Whoa!!!

"Mikesch, a black-and-white house cat weighing in at nearly 41 pounds, was taken from his elderly owner on Thursday. The man, who was himself taken to a nursing home, had been feeding the cat about 4 pounds of ground meat each day."

That is A LOT of meat.

[SoCalDem]

3. It's odd too, because most cats will NOT overeat..

We have a bowl of food down at all times, and they "graze".. Eat a few bites every so often..

Dogs are usually the gluttons.. Our labs were canine vacuum cleaners..They never even tasted their food...just inhaled it

[Qanisqineq]

2. I shall now apologize to my 13 lb cat

for calling him fat and making fun of his big belly.

[Systematic Chaos]

4. I have three "pleasingly plump" cats

They aren't seriously obese, just well cared for. The two males are about 14 and 16 pounds and the female is about 9 pounds. Between the three of them they might stand to lose a total of 4 or 5 pounds. But, they keep themselves busy chasing each other all over the house and running around doing what cats do, so I think it's okay.

But a 41 pound cat? That poor, poor thing.... :(

[chaska]

5. Look everybody, it's Carl Rove. nm

[JaySherman]

6. Not fat enough. eom

[Guaranteed]

7. One of my cats has got to be getting up close to 20 lbs., now

He's only a year and half. He had a tapeworm that I wasn't aware of, for a looooong time as he was growing up, and I wonder how much that might have affected his metabolism. And on top of that, he was a stray as a kitten, and is probably inbred...vet said he's the type that if you took X-ray's, you might find that he has three kidneys LOL. Of course, the vet was being serious.

Anyway, he's a beautiful cat, a seal-point Siamese with baby-blue eyes. Very handsome feller. He's just a fat bastard with some genetic defects. Don't know what to do about it, either, as I have three other cats who have to be fed, and of course they don't all eat at once so I can't take the food away. None of them are gaining weight, though. :shrug:

[DeposeTheBoyKing]

8. It can be a difficult problem

My Monty is 20 lbs. (but is looking 1-2 lbs. heavier lately) and Simba is about 14 lbs. I don't have time to feed them separately or stand over them and monitor their eating habits. I don't even fill their bowls; I just put some in in the morning, and that's all they get until we get home at night. Then they get more (again, not filling the bowls), and that's all they get until the next morning (except for occasional Pounce Tartar Control treats). I make sure they always have plenty of fresh water. They have the run of the house when we're home and are constantly going up and down stairs and chasing each other, and I also have a string I tease them with for about 10-15 minutes a day, so they ARE getting exercise. I've tried diet foods, but Simba has a sensitive stomach, so I have them on Iams hairball diet for now, and it seems to be helping him a lot (knock on wood).

I feel bad for this poor kitty in Germany and hope the vets can get him slimmed down some so he can be more mobile. I hope he hasn't developed serious cardiac or pulmonary problems or arthritis, but he very likely has (and perhaps diabetes, as well).

[solinvictus]

9. Otto

My cat Otto can be like a goldfish; he'll eat until he pops. He's gotten better now, but I have to watch his meals.

[curse10]

10. I had a gold fish named Otto!

and he ate a lot! We left for vacation and let the neighbor boy take care of him, we came back two weeks later and he was over 6 inches long- since he kept eating the boy thought he was still hungry!

[pstokely]

11. ever seen dogs this fat

http://www.burkesbackyard.com.au/2002/archives/2002/pets,_pet_care,_backyard_&_native_animals/obese_dog

[Catshrink]

12. Heeeeerrrreeeee's Sammy:

My beautiful 25# + little love bug....

[Mobius]

13. my little? Gilbert is 8 months old and about 15 lbs

He's not fat, either. Hes farging huge! His tail is as wide as his ass at the base. I adopted him as a stray, and I think I saw his daddy once. At first I thought daddy was a 40lb racoon! I am starting to become frighted of how big Gilbert will get! LOL Im serious, hes not fat, just a huge frame. He eats Science Diet Feline Growth formula, which I have nicknamed Bovine Growth Formula. Its like holding a human child.

[fortyfeetunder]

14. I've seen them this fat - it's animal cruelty

The monster in law had this stray cat that she lured into the house. At one time the poor thing weighted in close to 30 lb. And she had him trained to respond to her warming up his food in the microwave...

Once the poor cat started losing weight, monster in law discovered it was diabetic -- and kept on feeding it and giving it insulin. I prayed for that cat's death...and mercifully, it came, while the monster in law was still trying to make it eat.