How To Fatten Up A Cat That Needs To Gain Weight
There are tons of stories in the media about overweight pets but rarely are we told how to fatten up a cat that needs to gain weight.
Have you ever asked yourself, Is my cat too skinny?
In this article, we will look at the possible causes of weight loss in our feline friends. We will also explore options for how to make a skinny cat gain weight.
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Two Different Cat Body Types
Although cats arguably come in many different shapes and sizes, you can put them in two broad categories based on how they look. Mixed-breed domestic shorthairs usually fall between the two body types, and the two different body types include:
- Cobby Build The cobby build is for cats that have short bodies, a shorter and stouter tail, and heavy bones. This body type typically ranges between 7 to 12 pounds, and the Persian would be a good example of this build.
- Oriental Build The oriental build is for cats that have long and slender limbs, svelte bodies with fine bones, and long slender tails. Their weight usually falls between 5 to 10 pounds, and the Siamese or Domestic Shorthair are good examples of this build.
Its important that you know which build your cat falls under because the weight range varies. Its easier to tell if a cat with an Oriental build is underweight than it is to tell if a cat with a Cobby build is underweight because theyre more solid overall.
Tips For Helping An Underweight Cat Gain Weight
Treating the underlying cause of your cats weight loss is essential, but you may also need to make changes to their diet and lifestyle to help them get back to a healthy body weight.
Here are some ideas to help an underweight cat gain weight:
- Offer your cat a different type of cat food and see how they respondmany cats change their tastes as they age.
- Increase the quality of your cats diet to improve digestion and the absorption of nutrients.
- If you buy dry food, try switching to wet food, or using a meal topper to make your cats current food more palatable and appealing.
- Make sure any dry food you serve is fresh .
- If you serve wet food, dont let it dry out in the bowlgive your kitty small, fresh servings.
- Try warming up your cats food by adding warm water or low-sodium broth .
- Feed your picky cat three to four smaller meals throughout the day instead of two larger meals.
Just increasing the amount of food you feed your cat may not be enough to help him gain weight, especially if they have low interest in food. Talk to your veterinarian first and then consider switching to a nutritionally balanced cat food high in protein, fat, and calories to help your cat gain weight.
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Feeding Schedule For Cats
If your cats hunger seems out of control, consider how regularly you are feeding it. Cats love to graze on food throughout the day.
If you feed them 4-8 small meals per day at consistent intervals, your cat is less likely to experience hunger pangs.
When it comes to feeding your cat, consistency is paramount. If your cat is forced to wait hours and hours for a meal, itll be ravenous by the time the food arrives.
If your feeding schedule is irregular, your cat may develop a condition called psychogenic abnormal feeding behavior. This can cause them to steal food, binge eat, and constantly pester you for food.
How To Make A Skinny Cat Gain Weight
There are many factors that can cause your cat to lose weight. The most common of all is when a very little amount of calories is being consumed by your cat. This low consumption is caused by health problems such as wounds in the mouth, dental diseases, and painful throat amongst a few other factors.
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American Journey Duck Recipe Grain
Most Affordable Cat Food for Weight Gain: Cat foods for specialized diets can cost a pretty penny. If youre looking for a cat food recipe that is affordable but still high in quality, consider the American Journey brand. This particular recipe features fresh duck as the main ingredient which is a rich source of premium animal protein and a high-fat protein at that. This recipe also contains chicken meal, duck meal, and menhaden fish meal as supplemental proteins for a total protein content of 40%. Youll also find several sources of healthy fat in this recipe such as chicken fat and flaxseeds. This recipe is complete and balanced with the help of vitamin supplements and chelated minerals, not to mention probiotic supplements to support healthy and regular digestion. Plus, at 410 calories per cup, this recipe is slightly above average in calorie content for a cat food .
- Pros: Rich in premium animal protein, healthy animal-based fats, slightly above average calorie content, wholesome natural ingredients, highly digestible with probiotics, chelated minerals
- Cons: Contains some plant protein , could be higher in calorie content
Is My Cat Too Skinny
Knowing whether your cat is too skinny can be challenging. Fortunately, there are two easy tools you can use to determine if your cat is too thin, overweight or just right.
- The Body Condition Score: Vets use the body condition score to evaluate a pet’s weight. A body condition score chart can help you determine if your cat is too skinny. You can either find a chart online, from organizations like the American Animal Hospital Association and World Small Animal Veterinary Community, or at your vet’s office.
- The Hand Test: You can also use your hand as a reference to determine your cat’s body condition. Feel your cat’s ribs if they feel like the back of your hand, then their weight is just right. If they’re ribs look or feel like your knuckles, then you have a skinny cat. If the ribs feel like your palm, then they’re likely overweight. Still not sure? Check out this video from dvm360 that demonstrates the hand test.
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How Often Should You Feed Your Skinny Cat
Feeding your cat once or twice a day is appropriate, and agemakes a difference. The most important point is cats need to eat everyday.
They like to hunt so a few small meals throughout the day where they have to work for their food is what we like to tell customers. Try putting food or treats in feeding toys around the house. Keeps their minds active and bodies too, and your cat will enjoy eating more, make it a game, says owner Nancy Fedelem.
Ziwi Peak Lamb Recipe Canned Cat Food
Best Cat Food for Weight Gain and Sensitive Stomach: Food allergies and sensitivities can cause a cat to lose weight if he has trouble digesting food. In many cases, food allergies are caused by low-quality ingredients and by-products, but some cats are allergic or sensitive to common proteins like chicken or beef. If youre looking for a good food to boost your cats protein and calorie intake without triggering allergies or sensitivities, try this Ziwi Peak Lamb Recipe Canned Food. It features lamb as a single source of premium animal protein with limited carbohydrate content and plenty of natural flavor. It contains a dry matter calculation of 43% protein and 27% fat.
- Pros: Single source of premium animal protein, rich in healthy fats, low in carbohydrate content, full of real meat flavor, complete and balanced, chelated minerals
- Cons: Somewhat expensive compared to average wet food
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What Is The Common Time That A Cat Can Take To Add Weight
Basically, this mostly depends on the foods that you feed your cat with, how you feed it and the frequency of feeding it. However, the most ideal time that a cat can take to achieve the ideal weight so as not to be underweight is between six to eight months. If that period lapses and your cat is not adding weight, then you will need to consider changing some few things that you usually do. This could be the food you give it or even the nutritional value needed by your cat. It could also be a sickness meaning that you will need to involve your vet.
Your Kitten May Still Be Learning What They Like To Eat
Once they start transitioning to solid food, kittens should be exposed to different types and textures of food so they learn what they prefer. If your newly weaned kitten wont eat, it could be as simple as switching from a round kibble shape to oblong.
Offer wet food and dry food with different textures and shapes . You can also try to make the food more appetizing so that the transition is easier. A cats appetite is strongly driven by their sense of smell.
Make sure that any wet food that you feed your kitten is room temperature or slightly warmer warming wet food up increases its aroma and appeal.
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How Often Should My Cat Come In For A Recheck Or Weigh
After you have put your cat on a weight loss program, it is critical that you determine if it is working for your cat. In general, your cat should be weighed at least monthly until the ideal weight is achieved.
“Each cat is an individual and may require adjustments in the recommended diet or routine before finding the correct approach.”
Each cat is an individual and may require adjustments in the recommended diet or routine before finding the correct approach. The goal is generally to lose 1-2% body weight per week. Weight loss that occurs faster than this can result in severe liver disease . If there is no significant weight loss within one month , then the program will need to be modified. Sometimes making only a slight change can deliver significant improvements.
Canned Food Is The Best Choice For Healthy Cats
Canned food is more beneficial than dry food for several reasons. But, it is also more expensive and messier to feed. As fresh-kill hunters, cats in the wild consume most of their water along with fresh prey and do not have a strong drive to drink independently of eating. I believe most dry food cats under consume water resulting in stress on their kidneys and overly concentrated urine. Canned food mimics the water content of their prey in the wild. This encourages more dilute urine that is less likely to lead to bladder and kidney issues overtime.
Canned food also tends to be lower in carbohydrates compared to dry food and thereby higher in protein. High protein, low carb diets are touted by some to be less likely to cause obesity in cats, but this has been disproven in feeding studies total calories consumed is most important. Most cats need 4-5 ounces of canned food per day, total. Pate-style varieties tend to be higher in calories per can than the varieties that more resemble people food with chunks and gravies- this can be useful when trying to fine-tune the number of calories per day being consumed.
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Kitten Food Is Good For Thin Cats Of All Ages
If you can get your kitty to eat more calories, she’ll gain weight. The easiest change is to switch to a food with more protein and fat. Kitten food might be a good choice, since it is higher in protein and fat than most adult cat foods. Look for grain-free kitten foods, as they almost always will have the highest protein and fat levels, and don’t contain any grain fillers, which is like junk food for our feline friends. Good brands for high-quality dry kitten food include EVO, Blue Buffalo, Fromm and Orijen.
What Foods Can I Give My Cat To Gain Weight
Cats that are less in weight should be fed with food that has a high protein content of about 30% or more and the fat content should be about 20%. The combination is applicable when the food being consumed by your cat is dry. On the other hand, when feeding it with wet food, the mix of the nutrients should be about 7% in protein and 5% in fat. Revival Animal Health Doc is a typical cat food that can make your cat gain weight. These contents can be varied a little.
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Make Your Cats Food More Appetizing
Here are a few more tips to tempt a skinny cat to the food bowl:
- Try splitting your pets food into several smaller meals throughout the day. Some cats prefer to eat little and often, but notice immediately when a previous meal has been allowed to stale.
- Warming food can also help stimulate a cats appetite. Warm food is more aromatic, which makes it more appealing if your cats sense of smell is fading. Take care, though, to check to temperature before feeding.
- Make sure the food bowls are clean. Your pet, quite justifiably, is unlikely to want to eat from a dirty bowl.
From Dry Food To Wet Food
Making the transition from dry to wet food can be quite tricky. The texture and taste of dry and wet food are different. A sudden change will confuse your pet cat.
How do you make a successful switch from dry to wet food without facing too many setbacks and hurdles? Here are a few tricks that will ensure that the change is successful.
Start by sprinkling the usual dry cat food on top of the new wet food. This will help the cat get used to the new smell of wet food. The next trick is to mix the dry food with wet food. Grind the dry food into a powder. Mix the powder well into the wet food before you serve it to the cat.
Warm the wet food as it will help improve the texture and taste. This will help cats successfully make the transition from dry to wet food.
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What If My Cat Stops Eating For More Than A Few Days
Our staff can always helpanswer questions about how to support your cat when theyre boycotting theirmeals, but if those missed meals go on for a few days, you should journal andtake notes about whats happening and make a vet appointment. Cats need to eatevery day or they can develop fatty liver disease .
There are ways to stimulate askinny cats appetite, and experts recommend products like bone broth. Ourstaff also has tips and tricks that work with their animals.
- Try Answers Fish Broth or their goats milk 15 minutes before feeding
- Always have meat-based baby food available
- Offer small meals throughout the day can be helpful
- As a last resort try feeding smelly canned cat food
With that in mind, make sure you always have multiple bowls of cat food out if you live with more than one cat! Bullying can be an issue, and your shy cat may be missing meals because theyre anxious about eating.
The Six Ways To Fatten Up Kitten Post
After the mother cat fully stops feeding its offspring, the kittens would begin to supply their own need for food. Some cats can manage their daily needs of nutrient while others cant. It often results in the skinny body to the latter kittens. Hence, you should know how to help kitten increase her weight safely and fast.
1. Give only the kitten food.
Most manufacturers selling cat food divide their product into the kitten, adult and senior food. The food separation based on cats life stages is not made for no reason. They adjust the intake of nutrients that vary between different ages. Kitten food holds the larger amount of essentials protein and fat than any adult product. Therefore, it is necessary for kittens since they spend the wake time consuming so many energy.
2. Pay attention to the nutrition of the cat food you choose.
Instead of protein, some food may consist of many carbohydrates. Only take the high-quality cat food that composed of 30% protein and 20% fat.
3. Give variation to kitten diet.
Sometimes cats need the change in their diet and kittens are not the exception. Feeding the same product in a long time may get the kitten bored and lose their appetite. You may serve a wet food occasionally as the change to the usual diet dry food. This food may become your best option to fatten up kitten as it tempts their appetite and is easy to digest. Dont forget to warm it first to give off the similar sensation of a fresh prey.
6. Visit the veterinarian.
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Prologue: Know Anything About Mother Milk
The importance of mother cat milk
Mother cat milk, along with environmental warmth and other issues that follow, is the utmost thing when kittens have not yet reached the age of three weeks after birth. The milk mother cats provide consists of colostrum as property capable of producing antibodies. These antibodies can keep kittens delicate bodies away from many illnesses and give enough nourishment they need. Given the importance of this motherly feature, you should recognize the basics of related matters as follows. Hence, it is possible to fatten up kittens when they reach further stage after the weaning, in the fast but healthy way.
The period of kittens dependency of its mother milk
As kittens begin to grow, mother cats gradually decrease the amount of milk supplied. It happens around two to three weeks when their offspring are able to stand. During this time, they also start developing their first teeth .
When the young have reached the age of four or five weeks, they can sustain the whole body. They begin to walk although a little bit shaky. Seeing that, the mother cats start to introduce kittens to cats natural food. They would bring the fresh prey they recently caught. By directly showing the dead animal before them, kittens could then stimulate their inner hunting nature from only the smell and the appearance alone.
The mother milk substitute