My obese cat can't clean herself. What are effective weight loss tips?

Have Spree examined by your veterinarian to diagnose any medical causes for her weight gain or lack of weight loss. You will need to institute some dietary changes as well as lifestyle changes in order for her to lose weight. Follow the link below to the PetCoach Library for tips on safe weight loss for your cat. In the meantime, provide an additional litter box and consider cutting a "doorway" into the side to make it easier for her to enter and exit. Groom or clean her bottom frequently to prevent urine scald and infection. Regular brushing will keep her coat healthy and prevent painful matting. https://www.petcoach.co/article/6-ways-to-slim-down-your-tubby-tabby/

This sounds suspicious that your cats anal glands may be full. The anal glands are located just inside the rectum at the 4 and 10 o'clock position and when they are full they can cause irritation resulting in the pet scooting across the carpet. So this is a common presentation. Typically the anal glands are expressed by pets when they go poop, but in obese or overweight pets this is difficult and can result in them not being expressed properly. So first thing is to get the anal glands checked by a veterinarian to avoid having them rupture because of over-filling. The second thing is to get your kitty on a low fat diet or weight loss routine, such as decreasing portions and limited extra calorie snacks. Here are my picks for weight loss foods if interested: 1) Hills Metabolic- by far the best product in my opinion for FAST (within 2 months approx. 79% of pets lose weight) weight loss and weight maintenance (prescription only) 2) Hill's W/D - effective and also can help regulate glucose to prevent diabetes (prescription only) 2) Hill's Low fat - over the counter, varying results

As long as they are cat friendly this is ok, but he may be less than impressed! I strongly recommend transitioning him to a high fiber metabolic/weight management diet which would be expected to improve stool consistency and prevent this happening as well as reducing his weight. Obesity is linked to many health complications in cats including diabetes, fatty liver disease and inflammatory diseases

I recommend changing his diet to a specialized weight management diet such as hills metabolic so he can feel full and receive all the necessary nutrition to be healthy, whilst still losing and then maintaining weight. Mist vets offices provide free weight clinics to monitor and advise on feeding such diets and maintaining health and fitness

It's great that you want to be proactive about Tiger's health! Feeding an all canned food diet can help a lot with weight loss in cats. There are also several prescription food options for weight loss like Hill's Metabolic that you may want to discuss with your veterinarian. Getting Tiger more active will also help him lose weight. I'd recommend setting aside 10-15 minutes a day to play with him with a laser pointer or other toy to get him moving. Because most cats are most active around feeding time varying the times of day he is fed will help stimulate more activity as well. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach and good luck with Tiger!

I would recommend a prescription weight loss diet. Those are high in fiber and have a lot more fiber than anything you can get over the counter. This will help him lose weight and with the constipation. If he continues being this overweight you are risking him getting diabetes which is very common in obese cats. Diabetes can be a true nightmare to manage. The diet I would say is the best for this issue is either going to be Hill's prescription w/d or Hill's prescription r/d. You can get this from your vet or your vet can give you a prescription so you can order online. Hope this helps. Best wishes!

Thanks for trying to be proactive about Fici's health! It's a shame you cannot get the Metabolic diet shipped to you as this diet is great for weight loss. An Alternative for Fici is Royal Canin Weight Control. I'd recommend feeding an all canned diet as this is more likely to help with weight loss than dry foods. If you cannot find any prescription diets then another type of canned food may still help with weight loss. Weruva makes canned foods that tend to be lower in calories and are available in pet stores or online. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach and good luck with Fici!