Good for the elderly
To Help Your Cat Gain Weight, Here’s What to Feed Them
The most effective strategy to encourage a senior cat to acquire weight is to ensure that it has access to food and water at all times. Cats like to eat tiny meals throughout the day rather than large meals twice or three times a day at set times. Depending on your senior cat’s napping schedule and playtimes, it may not have much of an appetite during those hours.
What exactly is going on? Chronic renal illness, diabetes mellitus, hyperthyroidism, inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), exocrine pancreatic insufficiency, and dental difficulties are only a few of the well-documented reasons of weight loss in older cats.
Your cat’s spine should be easily discernible when you run your palm down the length of the cat’s back. You should not, however, be able to feel each individual vertebra. Because of the layer of muscle and fat that exists between the cat’s spinal column and its skin, its spine should not be knobby if the layer is adequate to do so.
As cats get older, they tend to lose their capacity to digest and absorb fat properly. Despite the fact that obesity can exist in middle-aged cats, feline seniors are more likely to lose weight and have an unique ″boney old cat″ appearance.
Check with your veterinarian if you see any signs of sickness, like as weight loss. A medical problem that causes weight loss in senior cats is renal and thyroid disorders, which are both frequent in the feline population. If your cat is experiencing weight loss, it is critical that you visit your veterinarian as soon as possible.
As long as you can see that the cat is at least a few months old, you can provide a little portion of cooked chicken, turkey or fish, which you can turn into a broth for him. As an alternative, go to a pet store and get a wet food that is high in protein and of great quality, ideally made entirely of natural ingredients.
However, you should avoid giving kitten food solely or for an extended period of time to older cats. Weight gain and obesity are possible consequences of the increased fat and calorie intake. Not all elderly cats require more weight, and vitamins may be wasted on a cat that is otherwise healthy.
Petting your cat could also be beneficial. Change up the food: Cats do have preferences when it comes to taste, so experiment with different flavors. Herrick recommends feeding a tuna dish if they are used to eating chicken, and vice versa if they are used to eating tuna. Always remember to introduce new foods gradually to avoid upsetting their stomaches.
Cats may become hooked to tuna, regardless of whether it is packaged specifically for cats or for people. A little tuna every now and then is probably not going to hurt. However, a consistent diet of tuna cooked for people might result in malnutrition in cats since it will not include all of the nutrients they require. Furthermore, eating too much tuna might result in mercury poisoning.
When offered as part of a planned cat diet, canned cat food has less calories and is therefore more beneficial for weight loss. Cats who are nutritionally deficient and need to gain weight are considered overweight. While canned cat food has less calories than dry cat food, it smells more powerfully and entices cats, making it a good choice for cats who need to eat more.