My neutered cat is gaining weight on diet. Could it be disease?

I certainly understand being concerned. Have B seen by a vet. The vet can discuss weight loss methods with you including a prescription weight loss food. Play with him every day to get him moving, and to help him lose weight. You are doing the right thing by getting rid of this extra food, and tell your family you spoke to a vet who said he needs to be at a healthy weight or he will develop serious health problems from being overweight. I hope this helps!

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! I’m glad to hear Grippet has lost the weight you wanted him to, but at his age we would want to ensure all the weight loss is for healthy reasons and not an underlying medical issue. As cats age, they frequently can get an overactive thyroid, diabetes, or kidney issues (among others) that can lead to unhealthy weight loss. I would recommend he be evaluated by his regular veterinarian and have bloodwork done to ensure all his weight loss is healthy and there isn’t an underlying issue that needs to be addressed. Good luck!

The first thing I would ask myself in these sorts of situations is if there is ANY POSSIBLE WAY he is getting food from any other sources. This can include other people, hunting, scavenging on the ground, the garbage, etc etc. If this is not possible, then he may just have a slower metabolism that a cat normally would for this young of an age. You are right in saying that hypothyroidism is rare in cats, to the point where I have not really ever met someone who has diagnosed this without the help of a surgical complication. There are other metabolic disorders and organ dysfunction that can result in weight gain, all of which would require further investigating with your regular veterinarian or through an internal medicine specialist. Hope this makes sense.

That's tough because cats hate exercising so you really have to make then adhere to a strict diet. First off make sure that you are feeding based on the resting energy requirement which can be calculated by the following equation: 30 x body weight (kg) + 70 Which gives you the number of kcals required per day. Then you need to look at the food and figure out how many kcal are in a can or cup. Once you figure that how you should be able to calculate amount to be fed per day. For an average cat: 30 x 5kg + 70=220 kcal If the food contains 315kcal/cup, 220/315=0.69 cups or about 2/3 of a cup. Also, the science diet metabolic diet is great for weight loss.

Cats get hyperthyroidism and this actually causes them to get too skinny. Cats who are over weight at at a much greater risk for diabetes but if they get the disease, they tend to lose weight and drink excessively. To answer your questions though, both conditions require blood work for diagnosis. Most cats get heavy because they eat too much and their metabolism slows down. Feeding multiple cats is difficult when one needs to lose weight and requires commitment on the humans part. You cannot leave food down all the time. You must separate the cats at feeding time. You must switch the heavy cat to a light cat food and control the portions. Cats do best if they are feed 4-6 times a day. For my own fat cat, I got an automatic feeder that stays shut in a room. It portion controls and is timed. All I do is open the door and shut it behind him. It’s pretty easy and I like that. I hope this is helpful and please feel free to post any additional questions.

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! There is diet that would be perfect for him because it can help him lose weight and it is also well-balanced. It is the Science Diet metabolic weight management diet. If you wish to not use a weight loss diet then any of the Science Diet foods for adult cats would be great for him. Good luck and have a great day!

Thanks for visiting Petcoach. A lot of vets have a hard time assessing an overweight cat during an exam, mainly because some cats have a short temper and we are working against the clock in a lot of these cases. So sometimes we cannot feel for the ribs, spine, etc. It is very possible that Jasper was overweight to begin with and now is more ideal weight. Without a photo attached it is hard to tell, but as long as his other faculties are intact (i.e. eating well, normal stools), then I would not worry about the weight loss. The weight control food is limiting his calorie intake, and with his activity level, he is likely just going back down to his normal standard weight. He should level off with he weight loss once he has reached his ideal weight soon, if this is the case. Here is a website link so that you can assess his BCS (body condition score) yourself at home https://www.wsava.org/WSAVA/media/PDF_old/Body-condition-score-chart-cats.pdf If however, you are still concerned about his weight loss, and he seems overly hungry, then I would be suspicious of underlying thyroid disease. A thyroid test would be next on the agenda if he meets these criteria. Thyroid disease is typically easily managed in cats and he is of the age where we do see more of this disorder. i hope that Jasper's weight loss is attributed to his new food and that he starts to level off with his weight soon! Best wishes and take care.