kitty debate!

my bianca is the truely first animal i have ever loved! she is a white albino and she is deaf with sky blue eyes. with her being sick not to long ago we had her at the vets office and she was weighed. she was 9.2 pounds and vet said normal is 9 to 11. i was quite happy, i thought she was overweight. well after my hubby and i get home we were talking about her weight. he wants A FAT CAT. a big rag a cat. i want her healthy! if i allow her to gain and become what he wants it will take years off her life as we all know! he has upped her nightly treates from 3 pcs to about 7. i just dont know how i can control this. i got this surgery to live a longer healthier life. hubby supports my 100% but yet i feel like he is trying to kill my cat off early because he wants A FAT CAT who is big, beautiful, lazy, and limber. what do i do? i need info that will stop him and make him think twice! i dont know what a cats life span is but i want her here with me as long as possible! any suggestions? shes 2 1/2

Hello! You are so right when you say that it takes years off of their lives by them being overweight. I just took my kitty to the vet (one of them-I have nine!) and he weighed in at 17 lbs. I didn't let him get this way on purpose, it just happened. He is one of two of mine that are overweight. Well let me explain to you actually why I had to take him in. He had beautiful long hair. Well, he got too big to groom himself, and he got full of knots. I had no choice but to have him shaved down. You may say big deal, but let me tell you, to him it was! He was depressed for a couple of weeks. He would just lay on my bed, or the couch. He was very mad at me. (You may be wondering why I didn't brush him??? He wouldn't let me, he hated it, and would nip.) My other baby that is overweight is short-haired, and she has developed knots on her back as well. They are not as bad as his were, but they are getting there. I try brushing them out, and she hates it too. Another thing about her is that she breathes really heavy, her belly almost rubs the floor when she walks, she is just not healthy being that big. Its not good for a cat to be fat. Don't let your husband do that to her. Its not fair to her! She won't live long, and in a sense, he will be feeding her to death. Cats have tiny hearts that can't support a lot of weight. Please stop him!!! Desirae

Your kitty will not appreciate the extra treats when she gets fat & becomes diabetic & then you have to inject her with insulin every night. Also, if she becomes diabetic, she might stop using the litterbox. Has your hubby thought about THAT?

I have one of those big, beautiful, fat cats. I adpoted him almost 4 years ago from the vet clinic that I worked out. He had been there for almost 3 years. Anyway, he was big like that when I took him home. He has been diabetic for 7 years now and I give him insulin injections twice a day. It is also very hard to regulate a cat with diabetes, so you will have to take the cat in often for bloodwork to make sure that the insulin dosage is correct. Now from being over weight so long, he has MAJOR arthiritis in hos rear legs and can't get around as well as he used to. And he has developed a grade 4 heart murmer out of 6 and I have to take him several hours out of the way for special testing on his heart. What I am trying to say is that although cats may look beautiful when they are big it is not in their best health interest to allow them to be. It decreased their life span and also makes them less able to be like a cat and run and jump on things. I have 3 other cats that are normal weight and they are nearing 8 years old now and no one believes me when they see them. They look beautiful and act like kittens still.

I adopted an obese cat. I call it saving her from those folks who were trying to kill her with food. I got her down from 18 lbs to 13 by feeding her IAMS Weight Management. Pass this on to your husband: Fat cats are not more limber. Poor Bernice has arthritis in her hips from the stress of the weight. Fat cats are not more cuddly. They don't like being held or snuggled because it is painful for them. Fat cats will require more expense because of frequent trips to the vet Fat cats cause damage to furniture. Poor Bernice had to drag herself up on my bed if I wasn't quick enough to lift her. Ask him flat out if he is trying to kill the cat. That is what will happen if the kitty is overfed. It is a form of animal cruelty. If he wants a large cat then tell him to buy a Maine Coon Cat. They get to be very large and fluffy.

Ok, I want to give your hubby the benefit of the doubt and say that maybe he doesnt want a truley FAT cat, but maybe a big one. Some breeds of cat are naturaly big (not fat) and are very healthy. Main Coons are a good example of this. Just a thought.

Your hubby should consider getting his own cat if he wants a big cat - I've read some people's posts about Maine Coon Cats, another good breed if you like big cats is the Ragdoll. They get their name from the fact that they love to be cuddled, and go limp when picked up. Birmans are another good breed if you like a big cat. If you prefer shorthaired cats, Cornish Rex can also get quite large, however they are NOT fat at all, in fact they are very slim. I've also found that male Oriental Shorthairs and even some Siamese can get large, though still svelte and short-haired. Orientals come in pure white (as well as many other colours), with different eye colours. If cost is an issue when considering getting a purebred, many breeders offer retired show cats for adoption. These cats come neutered/spayed and with all their shots, and are usually not very old. A couple of years ago I adopted my beautiful lilacpoint male Siamese from a breeder and only paid $60 for him, as opposed to the $500-600 I would have paid if I'd bought a (pet-quality) kitten from her! Piper was only 2 years old when I got him, and he's been a wonderful addition to our human/cat family. If hubby is still feeding your cat extra treats on the sly, throw away the treats you have and replace them with some of the low-calorie cat treats out there - or just give your cat natural foods like roast chicken (no skin) or fish for treats. Some cats even like fruits and vegetables- my two go nuts for small pieces of peaches, and canned mandarin orange slices! Also, put your cat on a weight loss formula for his main food. If he's on dry kibble, you can mix the weight-loss formula with his regular diet, especially if he's not really fat right now. Another thing I'd suggest is to take your cat in to the vet, AND bring hubby along with him. With hubby present, ask your vet what he/she thinks of fattening a cat up? If your vet is anything like mine, they won't have much good to say about it! I've heard my vet actually yell at people who let their pets get fat! Another thing you can do is make sure to keep your cat well-exercised by playing with him for a while each day. That way he will burn off any extra calories your hubby may try to feed him when you're not around. By the way, the average house cat, if well looked-after and in good general health, lives to be around 12 - 14 years old. Some breeds have shorter or longer lifespans (Siamese are known to live 20 years or more) and of course letting them get fat, and letting them roam outside, can shorten their lifespan dramatically.

Hi Leigh - Ok - Having a FAT CAT is bad news! My baby boy was only 1 1/2 old and he was heavy - I lost him to a liver disease which is prone to heavier cats. I was devistated. Heavier cats are also more likley to diabetes. My aunt had a fat cat and she had to give him insulin shots 2 times a day. Plus the vet bills were unbeliveable. She had to take him in every 6 weeks for a blood test, which cost money too. Overall it is not good for a cat to be overweight. If you want to keep your cat around for a long while I would strongly suggest against the weight gain. God Bless and Merry Christmas! Tanya