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OliveOilMom
Queen of cans and jars
Joined: Nov 12, 2011
Posts: 6783
Location: Living in Faulkner's nightmare
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 Posted: Thu May 10, 2012 5:13 pm Post subject: |
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My mother's cat is really fat. Not that fat, but pretty fat. She feeds it constantly. Canned food three times a day and she keeps a small pet dish full of dry food plus she feeds it those cat snacks all the time. The vet told her to put it on a diet but she won't. She is on a fixed income and spends more on that cats food than she does her own, which means we end up having to feed her most of the month! Plus, she only buys the most expensive cat food she can for it. It's like in her mind, the'more she loves her cat the more she will spend on it. Plus, she never changes the litter and she buys the most expensive litter too, which doesn't do anything about the smell, so it's horrible over there.
She will also ignore her own health but spend so much money on vet bills that it's not funny. That vet takes advantage of her so much. Loving and taking care of your pet is good, but going so far overboard to the point of doing without yourself is entirely wrong in my opinion. By doing without yourself, I mean buying cases of pet food and then not having any food for yourself for over half the month. Some people, like my mother, just can't see where the line is and they constantly cross it. She also can't have any knicknacks or anything sitting around in her house because the cat knocks them off and she won't pop it on the nose or spray it with water or anything to teach it not to do those things.
She's a horrible pet owner.
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Frances
I can be a little much sometimes. |
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lostonearth35
Phoenix
Joined: Jan 06, 2010
Age: 39
Posts: 844
Location: Canada
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| Posted: Thu May 10, 2012 11:06 pm Post subject: |
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Why would someone do that to their cat? It's animal abuse.  |
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CrazyCatLord
Phoenix
Joined: Oct 25, 2011
Posts: 2177
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| Posted: Fri May 11, 2012 6:39 pm Post subject: |
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| ooOoOoOAnaOoOoOoo wrote: | | I have one cat the vet warned me not to feed too much. He is one of those cats identified at risk for becoming obese. I feed him 1/3 a cup dry Purina One divided into two feedings a day and he still maintains his weight @ 15 pounds. Some cats are genetically predisposed to weight gain. My other cat eats the same amount and he is a perfect weight for his size. |
Cats can't lose weight on dry food. Some vets recommend it as a diet food because many owners are reluctant to feed anything else, but one doesn't really do cats any favors by feeding them dry kibbles. Cats have evolved to consume most of their water intake through the prey they eat. So when they feel thirsty, their first impulse is to eat, not to drink. But after eating dry food they'll feel even thirstier and end up eating more than they actually need.
Another problem is that dry food contains way too much fiber and starch. Cats shouldn't eat any starch or sugar. Their bodies need large amounts of protein, which is lacking in dry food (as well as in cheap wet food). Low protein intake also causes cats to overeat, and the carbohydrates in dry food cause rapid weight gain. The only healthy cat food is wet food without plant protein, grains and by-products that contains at least 70% real meat. Additional water intake can be encouraged with a cat drinking fountain, since cats don't like to drink from standing water (that's why many cats are fascinated by water faucets or a toilet flush. In nature, running water is safer to drink than standing water). |
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CrazyCatLord
Phoenix
Joined: Oct 25, 2011
Posts: 2177
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| Posted: Fri May 11, 2012 6:57 pm Post subject: |
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| lostonearth35 wrote: | | Why would someone do that to their cat? It's animal abuse. |
My first cat -- the first that I had since I started living on my own, that is -- was already 7 years old and overweight when I got her. She was used to dry food, refused to eat anything else and never lost weight. She gained more weight later on when she had arthritis and didn't move around much anymore. It's really hard to manage a cat's weight, especially when they refuse to eat anything healthy But she still got 18 years old.
When her liver gave up (a side effect of her arthritis medication) and she was in obvious pain, I had to have her put down. I'll never forget how the vet looked at me when I opened the transport box. It was clear that he thought "how can anybody let a cat become this fat?" Back then, I swore myself if I ever got a cat again, I'd raise her myself and get her used to healthy food from day one.
Which I did with my two current cats. Aside from occasional treats such as prawns or salmon, I only feed them healthy wet food like Vet-Concept, Mac's and Classic Cat. I don't have to ration it; they have access to food 24/7, but never eat more than they need and are both slim and extremely active. Whereas cats that live on dry food with high grain filler content are usually quite lethargic and sleep most of the day. They appear content, but many of them are diabetic due to the unnaturally high carbohydrate intake and are probably close to a hyperglycaemic coma after pigging out at the food bowl. |
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OliveOilMom
Queen of cans and jars
Joined: Nov 12, 2011
Posts: 6783
Location: Living in Faulkner's nightmare
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| Posted: Fri May 11, 2012 7:42 pm Post subject: |
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My mother wouldn't listen to any of that to save her life. She's always over fed and over everything every pet she's had that I know of. They get hugely overweight, she takes the to the vet for every sneeze, she buys them all kinds of stuff they don't need, and basically overprotects them the same way she did me when I was a kid. They are always very antisocial to everybody but her too.
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Frances
I can be a little much sometimes. |
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