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I recently saw “Cookie”, an 11 year old cat,
for his six monthly health check. Cookie is a “big
framed” cat at the best of times, and is never going
to be around the 4Kg mark of the average cat, but keeping
him to a reasonable weight has always been a problem, as
he is a voracious eater! 6 months ago he reached an all
time high of 7.2Kg – considerably more than many of
the dogs we see! I strongly advised that he be put on a
strict diet.
Dieting cats is not always easy, especially if they live
with other cats and the food is left down for them to help
themselves to. Another problem can be that other people
may feed your cat – either on purpose, or by your cat
using other peoples’ cat flaps etc! And hunting/scavenging
can provide extra calories that you may be unaware of. There
is no doubt that considerable effort and dedication is needed
to fight the flab!
Cookie’s owners had their work cut out as they had
another cat, and Cookie would pinch his food at any opportunity.
Thus, they have spent the last 6 months constantly picking
up and putting down food bowls to make sure only the correct
cat gets the correct amount of food. The whole family have
had to be “on side”, to make sure that everyone
understands the importance of being strict, and no-one gives
in to Cookie’s pestering for food, for a quiet life!
Their efforts were rewarded last week when Cookie weighed
in at 6.2Kg – a reasonable weight for his frame. So
long as he keeps off the cookies, all should be well!
Geraldine
Young BVSc CertSAM MRCVS
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