Oh dear my cat has got fat....

[Footdrama]

So we’ve had our rescue cat since January, where we went for an older cat needing a home from the cats protection.

We think she is 10/11 or so. Anyway, her previous owner had her along with a couple of other cats but she was re-homed on her own.

It’s strange as she is majorly unimpressed if another cat dares step foot in her (ours) garden and she has really blossomed and appears very contented. The problem is she is greedy and has put on weight.

The vets have checked her thyroid when we got her and all ok there. But they did advise she should be put on a better quality food. The trouble is she won’t touch anything other than Felix which her previous owner and the cats protection were feeding her.

As she is a tad older most of her time is spent sleeping, sunning herself in the conservatory with a quick occasional stroll around the garden. So not very active. Most evenings she’ll have a mad five minutes with her toys but apart from this, it’s lap time.

Any suggestions on trying to get her weight down a bit? I think she prefers being an only cat and would have been fatter a lot sooner had she not been competing with her previous companions. I’ve tried to reduce her food over smaller portions more often but she is very persistent. However I don’t want her health to suffer. Is this normal for an older cat to gain weight?

Thanks in advance for any suggestions....

Well it's certainly not unusual, but that doesn't mean it's ok. So you don't feed any dry food at all?

I put biscuits down for her but she is not overly fussed.

The easiest weight loss route I've seen is where owners were feeding dry and then stop. If she's already barely eating any dry then I've got no advice at all I'm afraid. It's difficult isn't it.

Although I suppose if you only give her food she isn't keen on, the stuff the vet suggests, then she will obviously eat less of it. You just need to be able to resist the pleas ...

She isn't being fed by any neighbours is she? Could be worth checking and asking them not to.
We also adopted ours in January and given the chance he would eat more than we give him!

I’ve managed to get mine to reduce their weight by feeding dry low calorie and weighing out the portions for each of them, morning and night. Once they realised the food would be put down at a certain time and then taken up they all turn up to eat. As there are 3 of them I have to supervise to ensure no stealing, but it appears to be working. They moaned at first but you have to ensure that you don’t give in,

1 pouch a day & 60g of Applaws should be suffice. Gradually introduce the dry over a week or two.

What a glorious furry beast!

She's gorgeous. You need to get over the guilt, she will not starve herself. Get decent food - Applaws, Canagan, Encore, Lily's. Feed exactly what it says on the packet and not one crumb more. I wouldn't feed dry only but most foods suggest amount with a pouch if wet per day. She will not be impressed, but ignore, they honestly don't starve themselves