Multicat household - how to put one cat on a diet?

[kedrys]

Socrates needs to lose some poundage, but he's one of 5 cats, and the other guys don't need to lose any weight. How do I put one cat on a diet and not have regular riots break out?

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

1. I've wondered that myself.

Milo is -- I wouldn't say porcine, exactly -- but he's distinctly chubby, and his girth can't be attributed entirely to fur (which he has a lot of). The other two are svelte. Jeoffry has a long, slender, Siamese-ish build, and Pixie is tiny. She also has a lot of fur, but underneath it there's not much to her. I want to get a little of the lard off of Milo without making the other two feel deprived. You can get "diet" cat food, but I don't know how to be sure Milo eats it and doesn't get into the good, fattening stuff. I guess they could be fed separately, but that gets complicated.

That was the long answer. The short answer is, I have no clue.

[kedrys]

2. Socrates weighs 25 pounds

His brother Plato weighs in at about 18 pounds, but he's not fat, just large. Socrates snores, which to me says slight breathing problem, plus he's just wide, which can't be good on his joints.

The kicker is that my 7 pound cat eats nearly as much as Socks does. :wow: If I knew where she puts it, or at least how she gets rid of it, I'd be rich like nobody's business.

[david13]

3. Perhaps separate feeding spots, which don't allow access to

other cats. But then also, you have to have limited feeding times. It's a tough one.
dc

[kedrys]

4. I've thought of that

Just haven't come up with a good way to implement it. :( Thanks for the suggestion though.

[Gormy Cuss]

8. As david13 suggested, separate feeding places and monitoring the eating is a way to do it.

When I worked as a cat sitter we had several clients with very precise feeding routines for each cat. The first thing that I had to do when I arrived was to isolate the cats. I then feed each one the precise portion requested by the owner and picked up the dishes when the cats stop eating.

[EndersDame]

5. Feeding time is insane at myhouse

I have a diabetic cat who gets wet Evo and 2 jealous cats and 1 jealous puppy (who tries to eat both the wet and dry evo and wants nothing to do with her puppy food)

[badgerpup]

6. Had a gratuitous weight-loss with one cat...

:hi:
We've got a free-feed station here (mostly because I'm lazy) and we use Diamond Maintenance...everybody was 5+ years.

Teeny baby kitty MacFeegle joined us, so needed a food with higher fat and protein content. The little guy preferred to eat the big cats' food however...and the older ones liked the change.

Figured a few months on the "Active Cat" (for kittens, pregnant queens and nursing mothers) wouldn't hurt anyone too badly-
give MacFeegle a chance to grow up big and strong, and the other cats were already accustomed regulating their own intake.

Riktor stayed the same, between 9-10 lbs, which is just right for his bone structure and size (I gotta weigh him so I know what his Cestex dosage is; he's right on the border) and Esme, my 15-pounder actually LOST WEIGHT on this formula.
Think having MacFeegle as a personal trainer might have contributed somewhat to this, but her coat has improved as well.

I've continued them on the Active Cat rather than going back to Maintenance formula since they're doing very well on it.

You'd think it'd be the other way 'round, wouldn't you...:shrug:





I remember the first time Wimsey had this. He was half-grown, hungry, probably had worms, and his family-at-the-time figured he could catch his own dinner.
MacFeegle had invited him over for lunch (and to beg me "PLEASE, Mom, we gotta adopt him! They're so MEAN to him!")
I put the bowl down. Wimsey (at that time known as "Blizzard") closed his eyes, took a deep sniff...his paws did the little 'dance'...and if a cat could burst into tears I think he would have.
*SNARF*
Poor boy was so hungry....
Realized I'd decided to adopt him when I found myself at the vet, getting him some Cestex for the worms, even though he wasn't even my cat.
Yet.

[kedrys]

7. What a neat story!

:hi:

I hadn't thought of putting them on active cat food - you're right, it's a tad bit counterintuitive.

The triplets are 8 and a half (today!) and the twins are 7, so everybody should be okay from that standpoint. Neutrino and Quark are dead on at their ideal weight. Evie could lose a few ounces, same for Plato...and Socrates (aka So Crates) needs to shed at least a couple of pounds. Maybe 5. :D

Thanks for the tip - and the story!

[ginnyinWI]

9. well at my house food just doesn't sit out.

Each cat gets what I want it to have and all three of them eat it all up and that's that. If one is looking a little pudgy, I give her less for a few days.

I generally feed this way:

breakfast--one 5.5 oz can split three ways, but giving the larger cat a bit more than the other two.

lunch--about 1-2 T. dry cat food for each. (this meal is totally optional; if I'm not home, too bad.)

dinner--one more can divided among the three. maybe a little milk later on, and some special dry kibble thrown out as treats--the Science Diet tartar control kibble that someone here recommended.

The cats are generally satisfied with this because the wet food contains enough fat to fill them up and nourish them well. I use Friskies mostly but also other brands--nothing really high end though. The dry food is Purina Natural--the highest protein dry food I could find without, again, paying an arm and a leg.

p.s. Before spring of 2008 I was feeding mainly dry food. One cat was very overweight before switching to canned food--and she went from 15 lbs down to a normal weight in about six months after the switch in diet. She's about 15-16 years old but now acts much younger because she's rid of that weight. The other two were starting to look fat--being ages 4 and 5--but I put a halt to that eventuality. They are sleek and fit now. Plenty of energy, silky coats, and bright eyes.

I feed three cats on about 85 cents a day.

[kedrys]

10. Perhaps you can talk to my cats...?

They have dry kibble pretty much on tap, and wet food 3-4 times a day (small portions). 5 cats, 7 bowls (only 5 of which get filled at mealtime) because they like to switch who they're eating next to.

Socrates can still jump up on my night table in one swoop (annoying as hell at 6:30am), and he hauls ass playing with the other cats, no prob. He's just, well, too damn big.

[ginnyinWI]

12. If you would be willing, try this as an experiment:

take away all the dry food for four weeks. In my experience, that's what makes cats fat. It's not only the concentrated calories, it's the fact that it has way too much carbohydrate for a cat's system and just makes them pack on the pounds. Cats are carnivores after all, not omnivores. Wet food will keep them satisfied--in fact you might see appetites moderate some as they come off the "sugar rush" effects of the higher-carb kibble. If you have real kibble addicts you might have to taper off over several days to a week. (My daughter had a cat who had to be "taught" to eat wet food by putting some kibble on top for a while as an incentive. But if your cats already like it, no problem.)

Instead, increase the canned food by a bit. The fatter cats can have a little more at first until their weight goes down to normal. Like maybe one small can per day per fat cat, divided into two or three meals. For a normal sized cat, two-thirds of a small can is plenty. It's better for them to eat more food at a time and have fewer meals--keeps their elimination going good--and it's easier on the owner too. One of my cats is a larger breed long-hair, and she still only needs up to 3/4 of one can per day.

After the four weeks is up, take a look and see if you have slimmer, more active and alert kitties. I did.


So why is cat food the way it is in this country? The politics of pet food: cat food production was developed based on the dog food model. Dogs are omnivores and can eat carbs in their food. Cats get sick on it, eventually. They get overweight, they get urinary tract disease, they get kidney problems, diabetes, etc. You can't make kibble without basing it on grain. It has a grain base and then is coated with a sticky animal product "slurry" to make it taste good to the cat. Yuck.

[soleiri]

11. Out of 8 cats, I have 3 cats on special diets.

The 2 boys get CD, and they've learned to follow whoever is carrying the bowls of food into one of the other rooms. The girls eat regular cat food in the kitchen, and quickly learned to wait patiently in the kitchen (one will sometimes follow into the hallway to make sure the feeder returns) and my 16 year old girl kitty eats in my room (she lives in there and gets access to food anytime she wants.)

I thought it would be a problem when my boy kitty had to go on the special diet, but they all adapted within a few days. I let them eat for about 1/2 an hour and then clean up when they are done. They're fed twice a day.