Weight Loss Strategies for Cats
Weight Loss Strategies for Cats
Just like humans, cats can become overweight if you are not careful. This can lead to a number of health problems, including diabetes, heart disease, and joint pain. If you have an obese cat, it is important to take action and help them lose weight. In this blog post, we will be discussing weight loss strategies and what you need to know to help your cat lose weight. Keep reading for more information, and contact us today to learn more about how PepiPets can help you!
Target Weight and How Much Is Too Much
The first step in helping your cat lose weight is to determine how much they should weigh. This will vary based on their breed, age, and body type. Once you have that information, you can start working towards a weight loss goal. When it comes to the target weight loss amount, you should aim for your cat to lose around 1 to 1.5% of body weight per week. Something to keep in mind is that you don’t want them to lose weight too rapidly. This is because anything above 3% of body weight per week could lead to significant muscle mass loss and significantly increase their risk of diabetes.
How to Calculate the Right Amount of Food
When it comes to cat weight loss, it’s important to make sure that you are feeding the right amount of food, so they can reach and maintain their ideal cat weight. The first thing to know is that on average, a cat needs between 49 – 64 calories per kilogram of lean body weight. However, because obese cats have lower metabolic rates, they tend to do less activities and burn less calories per day. This means you need to feed enough calories to help them function properly, but also enough to create a calorie deficit. Our recommendation of a good starting point is to feed about 34 calories per kilogram of the ideal body weight.
How to Monitor Weight Loss
With cat weight loss, another important step to take is to monitor how much they are losing. This can be done simply by weighing your cat every week or every other week. With these numbers, you should adjust their calorie intake up or down in 10% increments to help target 1% of body weight weekly to adjust for the right amount of weight loss for the week. You also should visually monitor their weight loss once a month by using the Body Condition Score assessment; this will also help you better determine the ideal cat weight.
What Should I Feed
What type of food you feed your obese cat matters because the different types of food are affected by two different factors of satiety. Those factors are gastric distention and protein content. Gastric distention, which is the more powerful factor, is the signal that is sent to their brain as their stomach starts to distend or fill with food intake. Protein content and diets help to decrease muscle wasting when there is a calorie deficiency. Calorie deficiency can happen when there’s a decrease in fat, an increase in fiber, or an increase in water. With this all in mind, we recommend feeding wet food as the calorie density is lower than dry food, so this means there will be greater gastric distention, or in simpler terms, your cat will be more satiated. Another benefit is that this will help decrease the amount of begging.
Cat weight loss can be a challenge, but it is important to take action if your cat is carrying around too many extra pounds. By following the strategies and tips above, you can help your obese cat get back to their ideal cat weight and help them live a healthier life. If you need help or have any questions about cat weight loss, PepiPets is here to help. Contact us today to learn more and to get help with your pet!