Cat Food Regime

[davidanthony]

How often should a 17 year-old cat be fed using the pre-packed pouches now available.
Mine gets two a day, but it is noticed he is getting gradualy thinner. Is there a " formula" realting to how much food against cat weight shold be given ??

[IggyB]

There will be instructions regarding how much to feed your cat on the packaging but at best these are just guesses you are best just to be steered by the cat itself. If the cat is getting thinner give them a bit more food, harder with the wet pouches than dry food but still possible to slightly adjust until you have the right level.

[wildwood]

Are you feeding food specially formulated for old cats? Have you had it's blood checked?

At 17 it has had a good innings and you have to expect that at that age they will start to lose body conditioning and toning. I expect everyone knows of a cat that made it to 23, but all cats were not created equal.

[RATTER15]

Just like old people, they don't need to eat much and they do often get very thin with muscle wastage as not as active, I would seek advice from your vet before you do anything just to make sure you are doing the right thing.

[ST24]

Consider that thinning at any age could be caused by worms.

[rsvp]

Your cat needs to be seen by a vet - there may be an underlying cause for the weight loss that requires treatment. Very common in older cats and not necessarily feed related.

[josaphine32]

http://www.royalcanin.co.uk/downloads/vetlibrary/nutritional_information_for_pets_during_convalescence.PDF

Hope the link Works, This stuff is brilliant, I used it on my 20 year old cat in the past, all animals love it, It is really high in protein great for the digestion system. If you go for it do not go for the Meat one, Mine was really fussy but in her defence even the ferrets wouldn't eat it, It is a little expensive but well worth it and you only need a small amount.

[ladybirder]

As the owner of a 20 year old cat who has gone through exactly this I would suggest you go to your vet pronto. Your cat's kidneys could be failing and/or it could have hyperthyroidism, mine had both. It is manageable so don't worry too much, it happens to lots of old cats. Mine is OK at the moment but she can eat 4 x 100g packets of SENIOR cat food a day when she's on form and she weighs only 3kg. Do make sure you are buying SENIOR food as it has less protein than the normal stuff. But please, if your cat is losing weight it needs to see a vet. Good luck to both of you.

[Kleiber]

I have an 18yr old cat and she's fine, but I had to have her sister (same age) put down just before Christmas. She was eating anything and everything I put down for her, but was losing weight (she was never very big anyway). The vet said she just wasn't assimilating her food and her little body was just wasting away. Obviously, this may not (hopefully) be the problem with your cat, but it's worth getting him checked ou by your vet. Also, get him tested for F.I.V., as that can cause weight loss. To add to my problems, my 10yr old female cat has tested positive for it and although she's reasonably OK at the moment, I've got to keep an eye on her. Fortunately, she gets on well with the other 3 (I know, I'm crazy, having 4 cats!!) so there's no risk to them. Good luck with your little moggy. K xx

[ladybirder]

Eating like crazy but losing weight is a sign of Hyperthyroidism.

[Kleiber]

I thought it could have been that with my old cat, but all the thyroid tests came back negative. It was a mixture of things with her, not helped by her age, poor wee lass.

[ladybirder]

Sad isn't it. Mine had hers out and she's been OK since, but at 20 ... ???

[queenofmean]

Our beloved Jess was about 19 when he died, he was on four (or more) of those pouches every day. You should be buying the cat food for senior cats (over 8 I think), but Jess loved his food and always ate more than four.