My cat Miya has just been to the vet for her annual check up and all is fine but she is slightly over weight (4.5kg) she is quiet a petite cat but not anymore. :-/
Ive been trying to cut down on her food (Orijen 6 Fish) or at least restrict it to the guidelines (55g) for a while but its difficult as she loves her food so much. Her weight injcrease has also coincided with her previously loose stools becoming very firm, weve put this down to her stomach settling down in adulthood.
She also has treats of dreamies and occasional tins of Encore served 1/3 at a time.
She is an indoor cat with access to a good sized garden when we are in on an evening and weekends. She has also been neutered.

Baically my question is, is there another high quality diet I could feed that would be easier to keep her weight down to a more suitable level or is it just a case of feeding less ?

Thanks
Nick

A move to a high meat content wet food would be my move, which will fill her up quicker than the dry food.

Dry also contains lots of carbs etc which can quickly pile the weight on a cat.

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I would say that she is only slightly overweight - don't panic too much. Just be aware and maybe limit the food you are giving to the guideline amount only. If she continues to gain weight, start to think about more meat and less of the stodgy dry food.

I've just started giving my cats Orijen (as snacks/treats rather than their main diet) and they've gone crazy over it, so I can understand how a cat could easily get overweight on it!

I'd agree with introducing more good quality wet food into her diet. She can eat a much larger volume this way, and will feel more full.

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Proud Mummy to:

Sam (born June 1999, found August 1999)
Milly (born May 1999, adopted September 1999)
Eva (born 2010, adopted us August 2011)

Thanks for the replys, I suppose it makes sense that wet food would fill her up easier as it contains a lot more moisture.

Has anyone any suggestions for a wet food or feeding routine ?

Mine are just in the process of changing over to Animonda Carny and Grau (both from Zooplus), and it's going down very well. They have 4 small meals a day - 200-300g in total depending on their size - plus a small amount of Orijen as snacks.

The important thing is to introduce the new food gradually. In our 4 meal routine, we're starting out with one meal of new food a day for 2 weeks, then we'll increase to 2 meals for 2 weeks, and so on. If you find she doesn't take to new wet foods immediately, mixing in a few pieces of Orijen with the wet food might get her interested.

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Proud Mummy to:

Sam (born June 1999, found August 1999)
Milly (born May 1999, adopted September 1999)
Eva (born 2010, adopted us August 2011)

I`m thinking of feeding a animonda 200g tin half morning / half evening and then leaving a small amount of dry food out during the day and evening (if its not eaten straight away.

I would rather feed a "light" quality dry food, has anyone got any recommendations ?

You could also add a splosh of warm (pre-boiled) water to the Animonda and give it a good mix. I do this with my lot and they love the 'gravy' they get with it. Sometimes, I need to add more water as they have lapped it all up amd left a load of dry meat!!! I'm not complaining though as more water is good.

For dry maybe Applaws.....? I leave this sometimes for mine.

Or, if you are home in the early evening - split your 200g tin into 3 smaller meals (with added water ) and maybe only leave out the dry if you are going to be home late.

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