How much to feed a 4.5 lb cat?

Our cat is only 4.5 lb, not 6 lb everybody guessed when our bathroom
scale was broken.

I have been feeding her 5.5-6 oz of canned food daily (either one
Friskies or two Fancy Feasts, split between two meals).

Now I think it may be too much. How much should she get? I could cut it
down to one Fancy Feast per day but that seems too little, or is it?

Please weigh in ... Hugs, purrs, thanks ...

On Tue, 30 Aug 2005 21:39:23 GMT, Kiran wrote:

Our cat is only 4.5 lb, not 6 lb everybody guessed when our bathroom
scale was broken.

I have been feeding her 5.5-6 oz of canned food daily (either one
Friskies or two Fancy Feasts, split between two meals).

Now I think it may be too much. How much should she get? I could cut it
down to one Fancy Feast per day but that seems too little, or is it?

Please weigh in ... Hugs, purrs, thanks ...


Unlike Dogs,Cats will eat only what they need. Feed her what she will
eat. Take note of how much she consumes daily and base your feedings
on that amount (twice a day feedings are best)

If you do cut to one can per day,put a little dry food down for when
the munchies kick in.

Ray
WebElder
I don't "Suffer" from Insanity..I rather enjoy it!

CATTS
http://members.tripod.com/~thewebster/catts.html

Home Page
http://www.geocities.com/Area51/Laby...6/meshead.html

"Kiran" wrote in message
...
Our cat is only 4.5 lb, not 6 lb everybody guessed when our bathroom
scale was broken.

I have been feeding her 5.5-6 oz of canned food daily (either one
Friskies or two Fancy Feasts, split between two meals).

Now I think it may be too much. How much should she get? I could cut it
down to one Fancy Feast per day but that seems too little, or is it?

Please weigh in ... Hugs, purrs, thanks ...

First, you need to get some accurate baby scales. Your cat is so small that
you need scales that weigh in small increments so you can monitor her weight
closely. I have Tanita, model #1583. It was fairly expensive, but Tanita
makes a number of accurate, easy-to-use scales. The model I have is a baby
scale, has a tare function to eliminate weight of towel or carrier, and has
a large footprint so it is easy to place the cat on the bed of the scale.
Once you have a good set of scales, you can experiment a bit to see if
variation in food permits her weight remains stable.

I use primarily Wellness canned food. Both Holly and Duffy get 1/3 of a 5.5
oz can twice a day (total of 2/3 can per day for each cat), and their weight
has remained absolutely stable. They also get a small amount of Wellness
dry every few days as a "treat" and an occasional small quantity of tuna for
the same reason. Holly weighs a little more than 9 lbs., and Duffy weighs a
little more than 8 lbs. A can of Wellness has approximately 190-200 kcal
per 6 oz. can. This means that my cats get approximately 65 kcal per meal,
and it is maintaining them perfectly. In my opinion (and based on the fact
that my cats maintain their weight on fewer than the recommended calories),
I think the general recommendation of kcal per pound is too high, especially
for an indoor cat that is fairly inactive. I think this is also true of
other pet foods. I have found that the "recommendations" given by most
cat-food companies is too high in calories and will cause weight gain. At
the same time, I would like to point out that I am not an expert on this and
am only working from my own experience.

MaryL

My cats --
Duffy: http://tinyurl.com/cslwf
Holly: http://tinyurl.com/9t68o
Duffy and Holly together: http://tinyurl.com/8b47e

"(WebElder)" wrote in message
...
On Tue, 30 Aug 2005 21:39:23 GMT, Kiran wrote:

Our cat is only 4.5 lb, not 6 lb everybody guessed when our bathroom
scale was broken.

I have been feeding her 5.5-6 oz of canned food daily (either one
Friskies or two Fancy Feasts, split between two meals).

Now I think it may be too much. How much should she get? I could cut it
down to one Fancy Feast per day but that seems too little, or is it?

Please weigh in ... Hugs, purrs, thanks ...


Unlike Dogs,Cats will eat only what they need. Feed her what she will
eat. Take note of how much she consumes daily and base your feedings
on that amount (twice a day feedings are best)

If you do cut to one can per day,put a little dry food down for when
the munchies kick in.

Ray
WebElder


This is not correct -- it is a myth to say that cats will eat only what they
need. There are *many* overweight cats, and it is usually for the same
reason that we have overweight dogs and overweight people. That is, they
eat too much and possibly exercise too little. It is just as important to
monitor your cat's weight (and make appropriate adjustments) as it is to
monitor your dog's weight. That is also one of the problems with
free-feeding. It is impossible to know how much a cat consumes when he or
she is free-fed.

MaryL

My cats --
Duffy: http://tinyurl.com/cslwf
Holly: http://tinyurl.com/9t68o
Duffy and Holly together: http://tinyurl.com/8b47e

"MaryL" -OUT-THE-LITTER wrote in message
news:025Re.3888$Ix4.99@okepread03..


Unlike Dogs,Cats will eat only what they need. Feed her what she will
eat. Take note of how much she consumes daily and base your feedings
on that amount (twice a day feedings are best)

If you do cut to one can per day,put a little dry food down for when
the munchies kick in.

Ray
WebElder


This is not correct -- it is a myth to say that cats will eat only what
they
need.

I can vouch for this. Free feeding works for some but not others. I
free feed until there is a problem with weight then switch to controled
portions.

"MaryL" -OUT-THE-LITTER wrote in message
news:025Re.3888$Ix4.99@okepread03...
This is not correct -- it is a myth to say that cats will eat only what
they
need. There are *many* overweight cats, and it is usually for the same
reason that we have overweight dogs and overweight people. That is, they
eat too much and possibly exercise too little. It is just as important to
monitor your cat's weight (and make appropriate adjustments) as it is to
monitor your dog's weight. That is also one of the problems with
free-feeding. It is impossible to know how much a cat consumes when he or
she is free-fed.

MaryL
For all the years of our cats life I always fed our male cat as much as he
wanted & he was never overweight. I thought all cats were like him &
wouldn't over eat since he had no competition for food but I suspect cats
are like humans...some will over eat & some won't. In the last few months
before he died, he was eating 4-5 small cans a day & not gaining weight.

"Kiran" schrieb im Newsbeitrag
...
: Our cat is only 4.5 lb, not 6 lb everybody guessed when our bathroom
: scale was broken.
:
: I have been feeding her 5.5-6 oz of canned food daily (either one
: Friskies or two Fancy Feasts, split between two meals).
:
: Now I think it may be too much. How much should she get? I could cut it
: down to one Fancy Feast per day but that seems too little, or is it?
:
: Please weigh in ... Hugs, purrs, thanks ...


Well, does the cat look overweight?
How old is it? Cats up to 8 months should get whatever they can eat vet
says, they're growing.

carola

MaryL wrote:
"Kiran" wrote in message
...

Our cat is only 4.5 lb, not 6 lb everybody guessed when our bathroom
scale was broken.

I have been feeding her 5.5-6 oz of canned food daily (either one
Friskies or two Fancy Feasts, split between two meals).

Now I think it may be too much. How much should she get? I could cut it
down to one Fancy Feast per day but that seems too little, or is it?

Please weigh in ... Hugs, purrs, thanks ...


First, you need to get some accurate baby scales. Your cat is so small that
you need scales that weigh in small increments so you can monitor her weight
closely. I have Tanita, model #1583. It was fairly expensive, but Tanita
makes a number of accurate, easy-to-use scales.

Oh please. It easy to determine if a cat is fat without expensive
baby scales. And for a cat that small free feeding is ok.

Clinically many vets follow the guidelines outlined on the chart copied on
this website:
http://www.cathelp-online.com/health/bscore.php

Its not so much the weight of the cat, but the condition the cat is in (much
like people). Calorie requirements will depend on individual cat
statistics, like; age, reproductive status (spayed/neutered cats require
less energy), health status and activity level.

Water should be available free choice and water from your toilet is not
poisonous (generally), although some cats have vomited after drinking water
that is treated.

I agree that some cats can free feed and not become overweight and others
cannot.
When feeding a nutritionally balanced feline diet, you can adjust the amount
you feed depending upon whether your cat is under conditioned or
overconditioned.

While there are numerous disease processes which can affect how much your
cat will eat, a very common cat disease is hyperthyroidism. The first thing
an owner may notice is that your cat may be able to eat as much as s/he
wants but remains thin. There are other signs too of course, but I just
wanted to make sure you thought about this particular disease when adjusting
your cat's diet. Hypothyroidism on the other hand is not common in cats.

"223rem" wrote in message
news:EQ9Re.77281$084.36918@attbi_s22...
MaryL wrote:
"Kiran" wrote in message
...

Our cat is only 4.5 lb, not 6 lb everybody guessed when our bathroom
scale was broken.

I have been feeding her 5.5-6 oz of canned food daily (either one
Friskies or two Fancy Feasts, split between two meals).

Now I think it may be too much. How much should she get? I could cut it
down to one Fancy Feast per day but that seems too little, or is it?

Please weigh in ... Hugs, purrs, thanks ...


First, you need to get some accurate baby scales. Your cat is so small
that you need scales that weigh in small increments so you can monitor
her weight closely. I have Tanita, model #1583. It was fairly
expensive, but Tanita makes a number of accurate, easy-to-use scales.

Oh please. It easy to determine if a cat is fat without expensive
baby scales. And for a cat that small free feeding is ok.

Dr.Carla,DVM wrote:

: Clinically many vets follow the guidelines outlined on the chart copied on
: this website:
: http://www.cathelp-online.com/health/bscore.php

Her profile looks like between 3 and 4 in this chart, so a little
overweight.

I was feeding twice daily, one 3 oz can or 1/2 of the bigger can each
time, not only because that's what manufacturers seemed to recommend
but, to be honest, also because it is easy to manage such regime. But I
will change it to 2/3 of the smaller can or 1/3 of the bigger one.

I don't give her treats. Dry food only when I cannot be there at one of
the mealtimes. Only once when she was extremely attracted by the smell
of grilled chicken did I shred about 2 teaspoons for her. Otherwise it
is two square meals per day. But the square needs to be tad smaller.