In today’s society of designer pets, chickpea-based diets and rights for inanimate objects, it should come as no surprise to readers when I write than many pet owners are moving their pets onto vegetarian diets. Instead of tackling the issue of rights and the subject of ‘what people should do’, it is my job to give you the facts so you can make your own informed choices.

Cats are carnivores. From their bones, teeth and claws to their senses, stomach and bowels, cats are ‘designed’ to hunt, kill, eat and excrete meat. In the wild, almost 100% their nutrition comes from meat. However, let us bear in mind that, in the wild, meat is the only source of the nutrients that cats require to be healthy. This is no longer the case for a felis catus…

Although domesticated cats cannot get all their essential nutrients from a vegetarian diet alone, we humans have developed clever supplements which, when combined with a vegetarian diet, ensure cats get everything they need without having to eat meat. The same goes for our human diet as well – nobody ‘needs’ to eat meat. When combined with the fact that lots of companies conduct tests on animals, as well as the massive environmental damage that keeping livestock to slaughter for food does to the environment, it may be hard for cat owners to justify their pet’s meaty diet.

Image from adcnews.go.com

After the popularity of our story about Socrates, the dieting cat, I thought I’d bring you another Fat Cat tale; this time, however, you might be able to help…

Higgins, a cat at a Cambridgeshire-based rescue centre, weighed 11kg when he arrived in March; making him bigger than a small dog! Now he has managed to lose almost a third of his body weight, the RPSCA are looking to find an owner who can handle a food-obsessed cat and help keep Higgins on a healthy diet; “This cat will need a very special new home as he is obsessed with food and will need someone who can commit to helping him towards a healthy lifestyle”, said a representative of the RSPCA.

Rita Austin, the cattery supervisor, said of Higgins that “He has a long way to go to reach his target weight, but we think Higgins will make the perfect companion, especially to anyone who can identify with the trials and tribulations of weight watching.” The RSPCA are looking for somebody who can identify with a cat that is “competitive over food” and capable of investing both time and money into the necessary cat insurance and special diet to help Higgins keep losing weight. If this sounds like you, why not get in touch with the RSPCA or with us here at the Cat Health blog – maybe you’re the perfect companion for this competitive cat.

Socrates, a cat from Newcastle, was 124% overweight when he was put on a 100-day fitness and diet programme by vet charity PDSA. At 10.1kg, Socrates was over double the weight he should ideally be, which is never healthy for any living thing!

He is now halfway through the 100-day challenge and has lost a massive 0.65kg! Bill Duncan, his owner, is thrilled and hopes his pet will be down to 8.8kg by the New Year; “His coat has brightened up and he is much silkier to the touch. He has also started to groom himself more and has loads more energy” the proud owner declared. There won’t be a New Year blowout for Socrates though, as Bill plans for his cat to trim down to an impressive 4.5kg over the next year and a half; “at the end of it, I will have a healthier and happier cat”. Bill might be pleased to know that his pet insurance premium will probably also drop radically when his cat reaches a sensible size!

The diet and fitness programme for Socrates has been tailored by Newcastle PDSA PetAid hospital, who report that he “the change in him, even at this halfway stage, is fantastic”. Hopefully this story will serve as a reminder of our responsibly to keep our cats trim and healthy over this season of gluttony!

When it comes to our cat’s diets, all cat owners should be aware of the high levels of salt in human food.  Of course we all want to treat our little feline companions from time to time, but the deli counter at the supermarket simply isn’t the right place to buy your treats!  We humans already eat too much salt; it’s in almost all of our food!  If a cat consumes too much salt, by being fed human food for example, it can cause all kinds of nasty problems – urinary tract infections expecially!  If you want to treat your cat and insist on doing it with human food, consider organic meat shops instead.

Do try to get food without grain and always avoid milk.  Despite the fact that cats and milk seem to go hand in hand, dairy products aren’t good for them and they’ll put on a lot of weight pretty fast!  I this respect cats are like humans; they might foods that are bad for them!

Otherwise, don’t treat your cat’s diet like you would a human – be specific with your treats!  For the real cat-lover, I can highly recommend Paws, Applause or Thrive Cat Treats – especially the freeze-dried chicken and prawns!  My cats can’t get enough of them!

Of course, when humans and cats live side by side, sometimes things do go a bit wrong with their diet- they do have  a knack of getting into the rubbish don’t they?  For this reason, I always advise cat owners to get pet insurance; it means you can whisk them off to the vet at the first sign of trouble, without worrying about the charges!