The Pet Tree House - Where Pets Are Family Too : Fat Cat The Pet Tree House - Where Pets Are Family Too : Fat Cat
Showing posts with label Fat Cat. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Fat Cat. Show all posts

Tuesday, August 28, 2018

Obesity In Cats - Is Your Cat Overweight?


Sometimes you will hear people say, "He’s just a little chubby," or "He really doesn’t eat that much … and besides, he’s cute!" Yes, he is a cutie, but is he overweight?

We sit down to eat ... and there they are those big cute begging eyes! I am sure you may think a little bit of this and a little bit of that won’t hurt him. But do you really know what table food does to your cat? Combining table food, treats and lack of exercise are all factors in making your cat fat, which can cause health problems.

The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) says obesity is an extremely common problem in pets and, as with humans, can be detrimental to the health of a cat. The overweight pet has many added stresses upon his body and is at an increased risk of diabetes, liver problems and joint pain.  You can read their views on Overweight Cats.

Cats and Carbohydrates
Did you know that cats, unlike most mammals, do not have a carbohydrate-digesting enzyme called amylase in their saliva? Humans and dogs do, and begin the digestion of carbohydrates in the mouth. In our intestines, amylase secreted from the pancreas breaks down large carbohydrate molecules into absorbable smaller units of glucose.

Cats generally have less amylase activity than humans or dogs. For this reason it is very important that you do not give your cat certain human foods! Cats need the nutrients specifically provided for them in good, premium cat foods, and any "extras" that they consume will take away their appetites for their regular meals.







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Monday, May 7, 2012

Meow, the Famous 39 Pound Cat Dies Of Pulmonary Failure



The animal world lost a (furry) gem on Saturday when Meow, a 39-lb, two-year-old rescue cat, died of pulmonary failure.

Weighing in at just under 40 pounds, Meow was originally dropped off at the Santa Fe Animal Shelter & Humane Society by his elderly owner. His extreme weight and desired 25-lb weight loss was featured on both the “Today Show” and “Anderson 360,” making Meow an overnight sensation.

Meow was even a much-loved celebrity on Facebook, with nearly 6,000 fans.

His death was first announced on the Humane Society’s Facebook page, when Mary Martin, the executive director, stated that despite having four veterinarians at his side they “were unable to stop the progression of what turned out to be pulmonary failure.”

“We will forever be grateful for the attention Meow’s size brought to pet obesity and to animal shelters across the country.”

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Wednesday, April 25, 2012

New Mexico Fat Cat Weighs in at Nearly 40 Pounds



In Albuquerque, New Mexico, a cat name Meow can't help but waddle. He's one super-sized cat.

The 2-year-old orange and white tabby tips the scale at nearly 40 pounds, and the Santa Fe Animal Shelter is on a mission to get the feline back into shape.

Meow's 87-year-old owner could no longer take care of him, so the pet was turned over to a shelter in southeastern New Mexico that called the Santa Fe shelter for help.

"The thing with this cat is when you look at it, certainly it's obese. You see that. But it's a sweet looking cat. His face is very sweet. It's just incredibly fat," shelter spokesman Ben Swan said Friday.

Meow has been placed with a foster family. He'll be on a special diet so he can start shedding some pounds. The goal is for him to lose at least 10 pounds so he can be put up for adoption.

The shelter plans to post updates on Meow's weight loss on its Facebook page.

It's not clear how the feline was able to gain so much weight in just two years. Adult cats typically weigh between seven and 12 pounds.

"If you go online, you'll see a lot of fat cats and these are people who have fed them just one thing, like meat or something that's not nutritionally balanced," Swan said. "Then the cat refuses to eat anything else and then they just get fatter and fatter and fatter."

Meow has one thing going for him. He's not the fattest cat out there.

That record belongs to Himmy, a tabby from Australia that weighed almost 47 pounds. The shelter said Guinness World Records has since stopped accepting applications for the record over concerns it would encourage people to overfeed their animals.

In Meow's case, the shelter is awaiting blood test results to make sure he doesn't have any additional health problems.

Shelter veterinarian Jennifer Steketee said the idea is for Meow to gradually lose weight by eating a special diet. He has already lost a couple of pounds since being turned in.

Steketee said the dangers of feline obesity are not much different than they are for humans — extra pressure on the heart and joints.

Swan said all the extra weight makes it tough for Meow to play. He had little interest in the super-sized toy mouse the shelter gave him when he first arrived and he couldn't squeeze much more than his head into the carpeted ring attached to the shelter's scratching post.

"He's very sweet. He's doing everything a normal cat would do except he loses his breath and tires easily," Swan said. "We're seeing what we can to do help him."



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