Ugh. Put cat on a diet and now she's "supplementing with extras"

[TibetanTerrah]

Last year DM took the cat to the vet for a minor injury. Vet said the cat was overweight at 5kg, apparently she should be 4-4.5kg. We had both been guilty of being generous with the dreamies so stopped them completely and started weighing her food.

Her weight doesn't really seem to have dropped very much, I think she's around 4.8kg but I just weigh myself then weigh her in my arms, she hasn't been weighed at the vet. She screams for food sometimes in the day but DM says to ration it, and food is only available twice a day.

For 10 years shes always been a softy, and not a hunter at all. The last few weeks she seems to be making a point of catching things, bringing them in or if I'm outside just bringing them near me, looking me square in the eye and eating them.

I want to increase her food but DM doesn't. I'm 99% sure she's genuinely hungry when she cries for food, and 100% sure she kills these poor creatures while looking me in the eye to make a point!

I also dont think she's overweight regardless of what the vet said last year. She goes in at the waist and is very long. Wwyd?

Our greedy-guts was told by the vet that he was overweight. We cut his food back. Instead of going to all the effort of catching his own food, he now pops over to NDNbut1 and eats their cat's food instead.

Why not increase her food slightly and avoid treats? She knows what her body needs and she's killing animals to fuel herself. Try it for a bit, see if she stops killing

If it's possible, can you reduce portions and feed more often? My lad is a bit of a fat git but has 4 meals a day, about a quarter to a third of a pouch each time, plus 1 bowl of biscuits for extra snacking purposes. He hasn't lost any weight but it is now stable.

A photo of your cat is always appreciated 😁

Cats don't normally over eat, they're not greedy by nature.. But if you maybe just cut out the dreamies & start feeding her a better quality cat food? Most cat foods only have 4 % meat in them & the rest is cereal & shite...
Just an example but natures menu is good (about 85 % meat) & will fill your cat up better too.
Sorry, but I'm howling laughing at her just sorting her own food out. Cats are such dicks.
😂

I'm on a bus right now but found a couple of pics

she does stop eating and leave food in her bowl and isn't greedy, but DM is out all day at work and I'm not there all the time (have my own place but we live fairly close to each other) to feed her more little and often.

@Carrieonmywaywardsun I'm of a similar opinion, she obviously "needs" more than we give her. Convincing DM is another story though. She doesn't have any treats at all.

Awww... she's a li'l love 🥰

Cats don't normally over eat, they're not greedy by nature..

Could you pop round and explain that to this fat greedy bugger that I've got 😂

Haha after I posted that I thought of mine who manages to get the lid off her treat tin... I have to hide it in a cupboard she can't open..😂

But by nature... they're not supposed to be greedy. Ah man I'll get my coat. 😆

This sounds so like our cat, she was over 5kg so we have been very strict about food since November. She has visibly lost a lot of weight. A month ago she gave us a shock by bringing us a little friend! First time in her 6 years! After that she started bringing a daily mouse.

I think it's partly seasonal, our other cat died a couple of years ago but there would be spells of no creatures and then lots in the spring/summer.

Also thought that when feeding her less she is a lot more active, which must be healthier for her, even when finding more food of her own!

Leroy can't open his treat tin, but knows exactly where it is and who to gaze at adoringly in the hope of getting some. It's DH. He's an absolute sucker!

Cats do over eat, my vet said it's a myth that cats stop eating when they're full.

My cat is over weight, he is currently on a diet and I've started buying the petit pouches so he still gets fed the same amount of times but less portion size. He dropped 0.2 and the vet was very happy with me! He said it is a long process with weight loss in cats, it's hard and completely different to dog weight loss.

My dcat used to bring mice in as protest, not before his diet, this was when he was being extremely fussy with his food. He'd like a certain brand and then 3 days later wouldn't and would catch mice instead. I'm not sure why he's stopped hunting and instead follows me round for food all day, every time I get up and go in the kitchen he runs in the kitchen 😂 but I'm not giving in, he gets less food, no treats and that's that. Cats can get diabetic if they're overweight, it's not good for them.

Our old cat (singleton so no competition for food though liked to go round to NDN cat for lunch ) used to catch fieldmice , left as a treat for us by the toaster , uneaten.
Or sparrows but she ate them leaving a leg as a visual I'm starved for us

We think she liked the feathers'n'bones as roughage

The currrent pair like to bring in earhworms and leave them on the hall carpet <nice>

She ate a sparrow in front of me yesterday. I tried to save it but she wouldn't let me within 6 feet of her and she ate the whole thing I went back to the space in the garden afterwards and there wasn't a trace of it, beak, feet, innards, all gone

At least she's tidy!

Two of my four cats were overweight, the older ones. I put them all on a weighed diet and feed them in different rooms based on their personality rather than weight as two of them are nervous, slow eaters and the other two wolf it down.

One of the overweight cats is losing weight slowly but the other one is gaining rapidly! I think she has found a second home in protest and she is very confident and pretty so just wanders into other houses.

This thread is worrying me.

My cat used to hunt and I’ve been very happy it’s stopped. However she’s also put on weight in that time so I’ve recently reduced her portions. Also put a do not feed me note on her collar for the neighbours to see, as they definitely were feeding her!

Does this mean the hunting will return now she’s being “starved”…? She never actually ate the mice, tended to leave them whole as little presents for us, so surely it wasn’t about hunger?

If she's Going Out For Lunch make sure you keep up with her worming regime

Our old cats' Vet said this was especially important if she was a Mouser
I'm sure our old cat did eat mice too , we didn't see any evidence though except the gifts which didn't have a mark on them just spit.

I think, in proper cat language, she genuinely is berating you for not providing. She's trying to be a good family member and show you how it's done, so be prepared for her to bring them home half dead so you can learn.

Remember, we are not humans we are weird, big, incredibly stupid cats to them 😂

Unfortunately I think you're right. It was very much her eyeballing me with an expression of "look what you made me do!"

Shes the sweetest, most docile cat, and most of the time just happily watches birds while sunning herself. She'll chase your fingers but never get her claws out. Lately though she seems to be possessed by a demon and I don't recognise my sweet girl at all!

Is this the cat equivalent of hangry!?

She's trying to be a good family member and show you how it's done, so be prepared for her to bring them home half dead so you can learn.

Remember, we are not humans we are weird, big, incredibly stupid cats to them 😂

Yes when one of my dc decided to become vegetarian one of the cats bought them daily half dead presents to make up for all the meat they were missing out on at meal times. Specifically sought out that child and dropped at their feet with a meaningful look.

Haribo had been doing this. He weighed 6.4kg in January and he was put on a diet. I weighed his food and once Spring came and a sparrow buffet across the road was established he's been supplementing his diet with them. Sometimes we've managed to rescue the little things but sometimes we've failed and he's evaded us and eats every bit, beak, feet, feathers included. I can go off him quite easily when he does this. He lost about 200g in 4 months!

My male Cat did this when he was put on a diet. We referred to it as him getting a Takeway.

Our little boy cat was ver' ver' excited in the garden a couple of weeks ago , there were a lot of feathers so I feared the worst .....
There were pigeon and magpie feathers , but no bodies , no blood at all.
He delighted in the magpie feathers (he brings them in to chew)

So it might have been a fight between 2 birds and he got the dregs?

(He doesn't swim in the deep part of the gene pool I have to say )

Well the exercise from hunting will do them good don't forget exercise is an important part of dieting 😂

Yes when one of my dc decided to become vegetarian one of the cats bought them daily half dead presents to make up for all the meat they were missing out on at meal times.

DH DD and I are vegetarian , DS eats chicken and occasional sausage
At Christmas I roast him FR skin on chicken breast ( usually 2 in pack). The cats are over him like a rash

I don't appreciate the earthworms though

I have 2 slim cats who both have wet food and decent quality dry food down all the time. They have all the food they could eat but they still hunt.

Cats don't hunt because they're hungry or because they are telling you something. Cats hunt because they're cats and bastards