Although recognizing the fact that a cat or dog is overweight or obese is the first step for any weight loss protocol, write the authors, many owners cannot perceive that their pets are obese. Owner perception, on the other hand, is definitely a contributing factor to a cat’s obesity risk. (The same was not true for dogs: BMI in dog owners is linked to body weight of their dogs.)
The upshot? Veterinary therapeutic weight loss diets are convenient and effective, but exercise recommendations often fall flat.įeline obesity is on the rise, and although parallels have been drawn between this increase and increasing levels of obesity in humans, Loftus and Wakshlag point to a recent study that showed the anecdote doesn’t hold water for cats: no significant association was found between owner body mass index (BMI) and body weight in those owners’ cats.
John Loftus and Joseph Wakshlag discuss the complicated problem of obesity in cats and dogs and what the current research reveals about what can be done to help too-heavy cats. About 30-40 percent of cats are carrying around too much weight, but what are the best treatment options? In their review in a recent issue of Veterinary Medicine: Research and Reports, Drs.
