Fat Cats

You have a picture in your mind of a " Fat Cat" is that of a rather plump feline sitting on a settee, with a glass of cognac and a fat cuban cigar. You have seen pictures of fat cats, or know someone that has an enormous looking cat eating bonbons that looks more like a hedgehog, than from feline species. Why do cats get fat? Is it the fact that they ate too much turkey at Christmas time, or too many cheeseburgers at the local drive through?

I have seen some pretty butterball shaped cats from some of my friends, the cat walks into the room waddling side to side, and can barely walk. This is not only hard on the cat's heart, but increases the chances of heart disease, diabetes and similar diseases we humans get when we get too plump around the hips. So what do you do with a Fat Cat? Put it on the treadmill, get a sauna to sweat off the extra fat?

A very little known fact of the so called " Lite" pet foods are not recommended for fat cats. These brands actually omit the essential fatty acids and a higher quality of protein that along with the preservatives are a chemical disaster for fat cats.

Feeding raw, foods and nutritional supplementation, with plenty of water and exercise will slim down your cat so that it can be in a healthier state and back to a normal weight. The risks of a fat cat, are highly deadly including feline diabetes where you will be giving your cat daily insulin shots and monitoring sugar levels for the rest of its natural life.

Checking your cat's thyroid levels to rule out any hormonal problems by blood and urine tests at your veterinarian.

Tips on Weight Loss for Cats:

1) Moderate the diet by including raw foods, with less preservatives, chemicals and grease.

2) Increase the playtime and activities of your cat, with new and interesting toys it can play with for hours.

3) Fresh air and sunlight -put your cat on a leash and bring it outdoors for some exercises.

4) Encourage more vegetables either in a puree, blended in with food, which helps

move the bowels.

5) Use a pet slim supplement which promotes efficient metabolic function.

Feeding the right foods is a good choice to start with, and when you combine it with exercises, and natural light can induce weight loss in your cat. Enjoy some extra walks with you cat and increase play time by tossing a ball up and down stairs. There are many ways to get your cat off the couch as they do sit around a lot more than dogs do and are usually indoors for longer lengths of time.

Always start slowly while increasing the activity and consult your veterinarian for an exercise program to help with losing weight. In most cases with walking and playing outdoors we can also lose a few pounds ourselves which is always a healthy benefit.

In all cases consult with a holistic veterinarian that along with diet changes, more exercise, and nutritional supplements you can regain the cat within your cat. Inside every fat pet, is a skinny pet - trying to get out. Enjoy the holidays, in a healthy and nutritious way.

Teri Salvador is a freelance writer with a site primarily on dog health issues that offers frequently updated articles on natural remedies, pet product reviews and current articles on pet foods. You will read it first on DogHealth1.com even before CNN gets around to covering the story.

Visit: http://www.DogHealth1.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Teri_Salvador

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Got A Fat Cat? How To Help Your Obese Cat Lose Weight by Tom Thomas

My girlfriend Lynn and I share a chubby 9 year old female cat named Raja. We became worried about her weight after her last vet visit. In one year she gained over 2 pounds! Wow! That's like a 120 lb. person gaining 24 pounds!

When Science Fails...
We promised the vet we would put her on a diet, which consisted of senior and weight-loss formulas from a "scientific" brand of cat food. We continued to feed her dry cat food because she liked it fine and it was convenient for us. One small bowl a day and she and we were satisfied. We also started measuring her food to prevent overeating, according to the vet's instructions.

After a couple of months, we and guests to the house noticed that she seemed even fatter and more lethargic. We became very concerned, but still trusted in our "science" dry food.

Then, I just happened to come across a book at the local library while browsing the new book section. It was called: "Your Cat: Simple New Secrets to a Longer, Stronger Life." I decided to look up "obesity" in the index and found some very shocking information.

According to the author, Elizabeth M. Hodgkins, D.V.M., the dry food we were feeding Raja was not only the cause of her weight gain and laziness, but it had the potential to cause more severe problems, like feline diabetes! I was surprised to learn that cats are not like us or even like dogs... they are "obligate carnivores", which means they get their entire nutrition from meat. Unlike us and dogs, who are omnivores, cats can't process grains and other carbohydrates very well. Their bodies just aren't built that way.

Guess what the main ingredients of those "scientific" diet foods we were feeding Raja? Corn, wheat and other grains! She need to go on a "Catkins" diet and fast!

The Ideal Cat Diet
The ideal diet for any cat is protein, fat, moisture and low carbohydrates... just like the makeup of their natural prey: small animals and birds. If left outside, cat's eat what they catch and they don't chase after corn on the cob! They prey on mice, chipmunks, birds, etc.

The only cure for feline obesity according to Dr. Hodgkins, is low carbohydrate, high protein wet cat food. She insists that all cat owners drop dry cat food altogether. So, armed with this new information, I went on a quest to find readily available canned cat food that consisted of decent meat ingredients and that had carbohydrates at the recommended amount: 10% or less.

My Search For Healthy, Low Carbohydrate Cat Food
It took a while, but I found quite a few flavors of Fancy Feast, Petsmart's Sophisticat Supreme, Walmart's Special Kitty, Trader Joe's Tuna Cat Food, and Innova Evo's Cat and Kitten that met the low-carb, high protein, healthy ingredients criteria.

I discovered that it's important to read the labels of the canned foods you feed your pet and not trust any brand totally with your pet's health. Even within the above mentioned brands, there were flavors of canned cat food that were too high in carbohydrates or that had low quality ingredients.

How To Read A Cat Food Label
The key to reading labels is to make sure the food has decent ingredients and low carbs.

Here are some ingredient criteria that you should look for:

* 1st 2 ingredients must be some form of meat, and NOT meat or fish by-products. (by-products are poor sources of protein and should not be the main ingredients in any quality cat food.)

* No corn or corn meal in the list of ingredients. Corn has a high-glycemic index which means it is too readily converted to sugar in the body... VERY high in unnecessary and dangerous carbohydrates.

* No rice, or other grains in the first 5 ingredients. (Same problem... too easily converted to sugar & too high in carbohydrates.)

* No bone meal or bone phosphorous in list of ingredients. (Bone meal and bone phosphorous may contain harmful and poisonous chemicals.)

* Actual carbohydrates 10% or less.

* Limit feeding of canned food with fish ingredients to no more than 3 days per week. (Fish has mercury which is poisonous to your cat.) NOTE: Be vigilant when reading cat food labels. I was surprised to find that some non-fish flavors of canned food contained fish somewhere in the ingredient list. This is ok, but just be sure to limit feeding of fish-containing foods to 3 times per week to be safe.

How To Determine The Carbohydrates In Canned Cat Food
By law, each can of cat food must list the "Guaranteed Analysis" percents for protein, fat, fiber, moisture and ash. There is no requirement to list carbohydrates, so those must be computed from the other guaranteed analysis percentages.

Yikes, math! No sweat, the math is simple enough. Just add up the percentages for protein, fat, fiber, moisture and ash. If the total is 98% or higher, then carbohydrates will be 10% or less, which is what we are looking for. (This assumes the usual moisture content of 75-80%). The carbs will vary somewhat if the moisture % is not in the 75-80% range so you'll have to re-compute.

For More Information...
Please see my blog: http://Help-My-Fat-Cat-Lose-Weight.blogspot.com for complete formula details and a list of healthy cat food brands and flavors that I found.

We were relieved that we had found a way to prevent feline obesity, diabetes, and other diet-related maladies that our cat might have contracted if we had remained with her inappropriate dry food regimen. So if your feline friend is getting lazy and fat in his/her old age, try switching to healthier wet food and put your pet on a "Catkins" diet for the rest of his/her happy life!

About the Author

Tom Thomas is the co-owner of a chubby adult cat named Raja. I've done some research into cat diets and nutrition to solve her weight problem and to make sure she doesn't develop a more serious condition, like feline diabetes.

Visit my Blog at: http://Help-My-Fat-Cat-Lose-Weight.blogspot.com for the complete feline obesity story and a list of healthy cat foods for your feline friend.

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Don't Let Your Cat Get Fat! by David P Lee

Cats, although very independent are also considerably affectionate and fun pets to have. Making sure your cat is healthy requires the simplest of upkeep. However, you do need to monitor the amount of food your cat consumes each and every day. If you allow them to, cats, in a similar manner to dogs, will eat as much as they possibly can. While they may well be particular about the kind of food you give them, they seem to have no self control over the actual quantity they eat. We all love to spoil our pets, making sure there is always more than adequate food available in their dish but feline obesity is fast becoming a problem on a grand scale. One of the main reasons that this obesity is such a problem is the fact that it predisposes cats to arthritis, diabetes, and even hepatic lipidosis, known as fatty liver. Luckily for the cat, there are many ways to keep an eye on the weight of the feline, warding off obesity and ensuring they keep in good shape.

You should switch from a "free choice" meal plan to a "meal time" plan. Cats are normally able to eat any time they choose, as the owners just keep filling their dishes up. If you change this regime and feed your cat at set meal times and with smaller amounts of food this will certainly help the cat to stay in shape. After all, the recommended daily quantity of food for a cat is only one ounce, not the cupful we give them every time they look at us with those feed me eyes.

Cats in general have difficulty digesting carbohydrates. Carbs are present in abundance in dry cat food, which is also full of preservatives, so another measure you can take is to feed your cat a meat based diet. Always look at the ingredients when you are buying cat food. Products which have more flour and sugar than fat and protein should be substituted in favor of a food of the opposite ratio.

Most people are happy to let their cats sleep all day long on their favorite cat furniture or cat tree but this lack of movement is one of the major factors in feline obesity. You should buy some inexpensive cat toys and get down on the floor and play with your cat during day time hours. If you yourself are not in a physical condition to do this, then you could always use a laser pointer which acts as a great substitute. While you remain seated the cat will run around after the light from the pointer but remember to take care not to accidentally shine the light into your cat's eyes.

You clearly love your pet or else you would not have chosen to have one, but you should be aware that by letting your cat be too independent you could be causing more harm than good. However, the good news is that by making a little effort to change the cat's habits, your pet will have a long and healthy life.

About the Author

David Lee is an expert on pet care. See his site for more information on cat furniture, Dog Disease, Dog Illness cat teeth.

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