Domestic cats are at risk of obesity: to prevent this dangerous condition, here are the tips on diet and exercises for the obese cat.
The cat living in the house is much more at risk than the dog of becoming obese: obesity is a very widespread and dangerous condition for domestic cats, which become more predisposed to the onset of dangerous diseases and lose their proverbial agility, which is essential. due to their nature as hunters and more.
Like many other pets that live in the house, the cat can incur obesity for various causes: incorrect nutrition, poor physical activity and the consequences of feline sterilization are certainly the most common.
If your cat exceeds its ideal weight by a percentage greater than or equal to 20%, we can talk about obesity: in this case, it is essential to take cover by taking care of the diet and proposing more physical activity.
How to cure and prevent obesity in cats?
Once the actual condition of obesity has been diagnosed with the veterinarian, it is essential to work essentially on two fronts: nutrition and exercise. The obese cat, in some cases, may need the support of a drug treatment to help him lose weight.
To help the obese cat get out of its pathological condition, it is essential to study an ad hoc path with a veterinarian expert in feline nutrition : however, there are some general tips on diet and exercise that can be useful to know.
Diet tips for obese cats
Even if he has gained a little too much weight, it will be very difficult to convince the cat to eat less: the best thing is to originally choose the most suitable foods for him.
On the market there are cat foods specially formulated for specimens with overweight and obesity problems, which will allow you to feed the obese cat enough but at the same time help him lose weight.
Even for snacks you need to focus on low-calorie and healthy products, perhaps trying to introduce some fruit and vegetables into the cat’s diet : certainly, before doing anything it is essential to consult your veterinarian to understand what to feed the obese cat and to set up periodic weight checks.
Games and exercises to get your cat back in shape
In addition to a low-calorie and controlled diet, the obese cat needs to do more physical exercise in order to lose weight in a healthy and effective way: if he is too lazy, you can convince him to do some physical activity by leveraging his natural instinct to hunter.
There are some games that will make the cat move without him even realizing it, because he will be having too much fun: let’s see which are the most useful exercises for him to do, both alone and in your company, that can help the cat to cure and prevent obesity and overweight.
1. The game of hunting
To encourage the cat to move more, hide some “prey” around the house that he can hunt: consult your vet to find out which greedy but low-fat treats are suitable for him and place them in places that the cat can reach by climbing or jumping.
2. The pursuit
This is a game that you can play together with your cat, thus combining two advantages: you will spend time together and your obese feline friend will get healthy exercise. Have him chase the classic toy with a feather or a light, being careful not to point it in his eyes. Gradually, as he loses weight, he will appreciate this game more and more feeling more agile.
3. Hide and seek
One of the funniest things for the cat is to ambush the owner : just hide behind a door or a piece of furniture and go out saying “Cuckoo!”. The cat will pretend to be scared and run away, then come back accepting the challenge.
4. The box
When you are out of the house or have no way to interact with your cat, simply leave a box or paper bag for them – they will have so much fun hiding in there and then go out and go back into hiding.
5. The ball
Among the best exercises for the obese cat there is certainly the ball: throw it at him and you will immediately see him running here and there in an attempt to catch it! This game helps to train the muscles and burn a lot of energy, and slowly you could teach the cat to return the ball.
6. Climbing
You can stimulate the cat to climb and jump by building a structure for vertical climbing for him (or buying a ready one) : between ladders, platforms, pipes and obstacles, the cat can exercise its agility and lose weight while having fun.
