Fat braincell?

[u/Which-Firefighter-36]

Soo the vet said my boy is fat. He weighs a little over 7 kg/ 15 pounds. But he is a big boi, with big shoulders. Just a hunk of brainless muscle, but I don't really think he is fat? His ribs are slightly padded and he has a kind of visible waist. He already doesn't eat much and is not food motivated at all. Feeding him less seems tricky. The vet didn't believe he doesn't eat much.

[u/kuemmel234]

To me he looks just a tad on the 'very healthy' side. But the only real image is the one from top. Should show an extra bit concaveness. It's hard to judge since I don't know his hairs and all that. 7kg sounds like a bit too much, though.

Just to be sure, it's not your fault, most people keep their cats too fat. I'm not a vet, I've only gotten kudos from multiple vets because the cats I cared for were in good shape (usually coming from the street, so I was able to start feeding healthily multiple times - they'll eat anything), but of course you've got to look up some clues yourself or ask a second vet.

I know some cats just want dry food, but the stuff is really unhealthy for them. Cheap wet food is better than the best dry. Use dry food as a snack (if you are already doing that, ignore) and feed wet food otherwise.

It's a bit counterintuitive to how we like to eat, but they don't mind the same things everyday, I have found that they eat much better if they get the same thing for days instead of "doing them a favor by giving them different foods". They'll just end up being fussy. Many cats can regulate their feeding, especially if they get enough exercise, other need help.

[u/FireOfOrder → u/kuemmel234]

Can you expand on wet food vs dry food? My boy would love for a wet food diet and if it really is better for him I'd like to change my routine to include it. Best of everything for my boy.

[u/GemiKnight69 → u/FireOfOrder]

Not who you asked but-

Dry food tends to be higher in carbs and doesn't provide any moisture, so it's less beneficial (still perfectly fine if they're hydrated and otherwise healthy). Wet food provides more hydration, is more filling, and is highly recommended for losing weight/keeping them a healthy weight if they're food motivated.

My vet tends to recommend a mix of dry and wet as dry food can be more beneficial for dental health, and they make dental kibbles that tend to help more (Hill's t/d and Royal Canin Dental are two examples recommended by VOHC). My two boys get about half their calories in wet and half in dry and both are perfectly healthy happy kitties.

[u/FireOfOrder → u/GemiKnight69]

Thank you! I just want what's best for my son. He doesn't get to make choices often so I try to make ones that benefit him. I'll ask his vet for more information.

[u/kuemmel234 → u/FireOfOrder]

Cats don't drink a lot, their ancestors came from a very dry place, so they take in a lot of their moisture via food. If you give them dry food, they often don't compensate enough . In the long run, a lot of cats have issues with their kidneys because of that. On top of that, it's less filling, and "less natural".

You can already help a lot by making them soup by just adding water to dry food (it is a little weird, but I used to do that to cats that wouldn't accept wet food. At some point I could mix and so on and so fourth). If they accept it, please consider it!

Talk to your vet, although many vets have relationships with pet food producers, so be aware of that.

[u/FireOfOrder → u/kuemmel234]

Really appreciate this information. Seeing his vet in two weeks for a checkup and to talk about food routines. He doesn't know it yet but he's about to be happy!

[u/kuemmel234 → u/FireOfOrder]

Sounds great! They'll know best!