Fattest. Cat. Ever.

[Krisis]

I'm dog and cat sitting this week while my parents are out of town. They have 3 cats. Two of them are a little on the pudgy/fluffier side, but Luvadub is a freaking... cow. (she's black and white too so the description fits.) This cat is so fat it doesn't fit in the litterbox and my mom has to buy puppy training pads to keep the cat from peeing all over the laundry room. So fat it can't groom its own back and her fur is all dingy back there. The cat breathes louder than a human and I swear it thumps if it comes down the stairs.

My mom feeds them Eukanuba. She said she tried switching them to a weight loss formula but then the cats didn't eat. Luvadub isn't any special breed of cat like a Persian or one of the big breeds.

All three of the cats are terrified of the dogs so they stay upstairs hiding in my parent's room all day. Not much opportunity for exercise there.

Is there anything they can do to help this cat lose weight? I have never seen a cat this big. She's a wonderful, loving animal (dumber than a stump though) and I feel bad for her. My parents aren't really very into their pets...I mean, I treat my cats like they're my furry children and I don't think my mom would bat an eyelash if one of the cats were to die tomorrow. I think she just keeps them around because my Perfect Little Sister: would freak out if mom tried to get rid of any of the animals.

(Their Australian shepherd is also freakishly fat, but I know she's not overeating. We call her the pigdog. She barks nonstop and I hate her guts, but maybe someone can give me advice on how to not kill this dog while I'm here?)

[lifeguard]

Do they free feed or have set feeding times? I found switching our cats to set feeding times really helped (our male cat got quite big while staying with mil while we were moving). When they're bored & free feed they can just eat & eat & eat.

[Krisis]

They free feed. I tried doing set meal times with the cats today (morning and evening) and the fat one yowled and cried and whined all. day. until it was time to be fed again.

[Sol_y_Paz]

Free feeding has to go. Being overweight in an animal isn't healthy and can cause all sorts of health problems and a shorter lifespan in both the cat and dog, ask any vet for more information. This post makes me very sad

[rhiOrion]

It's going to be really difficult to make any lasting change in the short amount of time you're there. Do you think there is any chance your parents would want to help make the cat's life a little better? I would say that a good brand diet food would be a definite must (and of course, there are many disagreements here on what a "good brand" is, so that would be up to you guys).

The free feeding thing definitely needs to go. They should be fed a set amount at each feeding. You want to feed according to her "goal" weight, not according to her weight now. So let's say she weighs 20 pounds... you don't want to feed the recommended amount for a 20 pound cat (if they even HAVE a recommended amount for that!), you want to feed less. Of course, you wouldn't want to go immediately to feeding based on a 12 pound cat... but rather slowly decrease it over time. Sorta like weight watchers, I think

Having 3 cats with different needs is difficult, too. But if they're all pigs about food it can be easier, because you don't have to worry about one cat eating the food of the others, if all cats gobble their food immediately.

If she won't eat the diet food, then you could always try putting a bit of something she does like on it, and then slowly decrease that until she's just eating the food. Or try mixing a bit of the wet version of whatever food you pick in with the dry, if she's one of the cats who loves all wet food.

But really, what it's going to come down to is trying to get your parents on board with making these changes. Obesity is equally as dangerous for pets as for people. I once worked with a 23 pound diabetic cat who had to have insulin shots twice as day and through some hard work and tough skin (oh man are those i-want-food meows pitiful) we got him down to 16 pounds, and his insulin needs went way down, as well. On the other hand, I knew an almost 30 pound cat who we called "foot stool" whose parents seemed to think his weight was cute, and it didn't have a great ending.

Good luck!!!!

[Krisis]

This post makes me sad too. I don't think my parents are really going to be willing to do anything different, so I'm not sure why I posted. I just feel so sorry for this poor cat.

[Minky]

They may be unwilling to stop free feeding. I know that my parents are. However, mixing the current cat food with a diet one is likely to result in the cats eating the diet food.

[phatchristy]

Any chance they would let you keep her at your house for a while?