Two Easy Ways to Start Earning Rewards!
Earn 2X Pals Rewards points at Petco
when you use Petco Pay!
Updated on September 23rd, 2025
Pet's info: Cat | Mixed Breed | Female | spayed | 7 years and 10 months old | 8 lbs
Hi- my female cat Myla, who is almost 8, has been losing weight over the past few months. She used to be slightly overweight. I feed my 3 cats wet food 2x/day and put out a small amt. of dry food in the afternoon. Myla is very picky and doesn't seem to eat much, despite changing the varieties of wet food. I never see her eat dry. She also coughs up a lot of hairballs. I tried laxatone & she wouldn't eat that. Do I need to take her to a vet?
2 Answers

Answered By Lauren Jones VMD
Veterinarian
Published on July 31st, 2020
Answered By Penelope Graben, DVM
Veterinarian
Published on June 22nd, 2018
Hi there!
In the vet world, cats and dogs can range so much by size that we don't usually recommend a specific number for a weight. We generally make weight recommendations based on their fat accumulation using something called a "Body Condition Score".
If you attach pictures of her standing, one side view and one top view, I can roughly visually assess if she is underweight.
Many cats are picky about both their humans and their food. If she has always been a picky eater on the thin side, that is likely normal for her. If her eating and weight are steadily decreasing, that would be a time to go to the vet, where they will likely recommend bloodwork and x-rays.
I hope that helps! Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach!
1Pet Parents found this answer helpful