What to feed a British baby gaining weight. How to determine a cat's normal weight. Causes of low weight in cats
Often after suffering serious illnesses, including infectious ones, as well as in postoperative period The owners are faced with the question of what to feed a thin cat in order to quickly restore its healthy appearance. Let's take a closer look at how the diet of an exhausted animal differs and what should be included in it.
Features of the diet of emaciated animals
Exhausted animals lack nutrient reserves, usually develop vitamin and mineral deficiencies, and digestive system works poorly. Therefore, the food that should be fed to a thin cat should have a number of features.
Increased calorie content
Adipose tissue is formed only when the number of calories ingested from food is greater than their expenditure. The main source of energy for a cat is animal fats, and to a much lesser extent carbohydrates.
High content of quality protein
During periods of fasting, the body's supply of amino acids is depleted, which is most easily replenished with whole sources protein, such as meat. It is undesirable to use plant proteins - they have virtually no value for the predator's body.
Easy to digest
Quite a lot of energy is spent on digesting food and absorbing it, which a weakened cat may simply not have. In this case, specially prepared diets will come to the rescue, the components of which are previously broken down into simpler components that require less digestion costs from the body.
How to fatten a skinny cat on a natural diet?
Typically, veterinarians recommend ready-made diets for feeding animals during the recovery period. But that doesn't mean no alternative ways normalization of weight. How to fatten a skinny cat on a natural diet? In cases where for some reason it is impossible to switch the animal to ready-made food, it is permissible to create the correct diet yourself.
Here are the basic rules that should be followed to help a thin cat gain weight faster after exhaustion:
- It is better to exclude fiber;
- increase calorie content by increasing the amount of animal fats rather than carbohydrates;
- food should contain as much as possible complete protein animal origin (optimally meat, but you can add fermented milk products);
- the food should be crushed - this way the food will be digested faster and better;
- It is imperative to introduce a vitamin and mineral supplement for cats.
What specialized food should I feed a skinny cat?
If the cat is very thin, how to fatten the animal to normal indicators and restore health, the attending physician will advise. Most often, the main recommendation will be feeding with specialized ready-made diets, which can be easily found in large pet stores and veterinary pharmacies.
Among the most popular brands are the following foods:
- Royal Canin Recovery;
- ProPlan Convalescence;
- Hill's a/d.
All of these diets are produced in the form of pates, and it is no coincidence that it is in this form that food is optimally absorbed without loading the gastrointestinal tract. In addition, if necessary, the homogenized mixture can be administered through a tube if the animal is unable to eat on its own or refuses to eat.
These foods are high in protein and fat, and also contain vitamins and minerals necessary for quick recovery body. They are indicated after serious illnesses, operations, and with prolonged refusal of food.
It is important to understand that such a diet will only help recovering animals. Cats suffering from thinness due to chronic diseases, must receive appropriate therapeutic nutrition according to your main diagnosis.
Cats without health problems that need a highly nutritious diet (for example, barn cats after long-term malnutrition) can be advised to eat kitten food for the first time - they have a higher calorie content and contain more vitamins.
Correctly selected therapeutic diet can quickly return the animal to good physical shape, but only if the diagnosis is correct. This is why it is so important not to use veterinary diets on your own.
What canned food tastes best for cats?
RESEARCH ATTENTION! You and your cat can take part in it! If you live in Moscow or the Moscow region and are ready to regularly observe how and how much your cat eats, and also remember to write it all down, they will bring you FREE WET FOOD SETS.
Project for 3–4 months. Organizer - Petkorm LLC.
Excessive thinness, like obesity, has a negative impact on a cat's health. Very thin cats suffer from a number of related ailments, or rather conditions. What to do if your pet looks frighteningly thin and what to feed your cat to gain weight will be discussed below.
In a global sense, the causes of weight disorders are pathological and physiological. Thinness against the background of physiology develops for obvious reasons - the cat eats little and loses weight. If your cat eats well and still loses weight, we are talking about pathological weight loss.. To eliminate thinness in this case, you need to find the cause, probably a disease, and eliminate it.
Before you start diagnosing, make sure your cat is underweight. In this matter, you cannot rely on the opinions of friends, comparison with other animals, or even your own vision. Purebred pets must meet a standard that contains data on minimum and maximum weight. Among purebred cats, there are animals with excess or small build; this factor also needs to be taken into account.
If your cat is not purebred, you need to rely on generally accepted standards. The first thing to do is to examine and feel the cat. In normal condition, the joints of the paws are directed back, not rolled over or turned out. When you feel your back, you will feel the spine, but visually it should be invisible. Similarly, the cat is in good shape, the ribs and muscles are not visible, but can be felt hip joints. The peritoneal area should be slightly sunken, and when the cat walks, a fold of skin should form between the cat's belly and hind legs. The size of the fold varies depending on the constitution of the body, but it should be there. In summer, a cat may lose a lot of weight, this is normal. In other seasons of the year, there is a small layer of fat on the chest, ribs and sides.
A special diet for your pet to help it gain weight is appropriate if you visually see a protruding spine, ribs or hip bones. Another reason for a nutritious diet is small muscle mass in an adult animal. When weighing, it is important to take into account that muscles are much heavier than fat, that is, a cat with normal weight can be obese, and a visually thin pet can be in excellent health. physical fitness– everything is very individual.
Note! There are no uniform norms for the weight of cats, but according to statistics, the usual adult cat weighs from 4 to 6 kg.
Why does a cat lose weight?
How to feed a cat so that he gets better? It all depends on the reasons why he lost weight. Perhaps your pet does not need a diet, but treatment. Let's look at the main reasons for thinness in cats. For convenience, we will divide the reasons into two types.
Metabolism and individual characteristics
So, a cat can lose weight naturally no threat to health. This process is explained by changes in metabolism. For example, most young cats appear thin because they are actively growing. While the cat's bones are forming, it does not gain weight, since the joints are not yet ready for stress. A sharp stop in weight gain can be observed in kittens whose teeth are changing. This is due to a temporary metabolic disorder and redistribution of the body's resources.
cats lose weight due to constant overload. It is important to switch your pet to an enhanced diet for another early stage pregnancy. During feeding and during the rehabilitation period, the cat also needs body support, vitamin supplements and a diet rich in proteins.
Stress and hunger- although negative, but natural factors losing weight. Very often, domestic cats lose weight quickly if they end up outside. A frightened animal climbs into a shelter and stays in it for as long as possible. The strength leaves the pet's body very quickly because it does not eat or drink. When the feeling of hunger becomes critical, the cat, if it has enough strength, comes out of hiding. Unfortunately, many domestic cats die from exhaustion if their owners do not detect them in time.
Weight loss background dehydration also a predictable phenomenon. For normal digestion and absorption of food, the cat’s body must have enough water. Rapidly progressive dehydration occurs with frequent diarrhea, overheating, poisoning, etc. When there is a risk of loss of moisture, and the cat refuses to drink, its body must be supported by introducing buffer solutions.
Many cats lose a lot of weight after illness or major surgery. In this case, the cause is a combination of several factors. Anesthesia leads to intoxication and dehydration. Treatment with strong drugs contributes to the development of dysbiosis and dehydration. Strong pain syndrome causes the cat to refuse food and water, which leads to weakness and dehydration. As you can see, common feature one is lack of water.
Thinness may be a consequence improper feeding or incomplete absorption of food. In this case, the cat eats a lot, but loses weight. The most common reasons are mixing dry food pellets with natural food and feeding regular food"from the table".
Weight loss as a symptom
Unlike physiological causes, pathologies that lead to weight loss cannot be treated with diets and care. If you suspect that your pet is not feeling well, be sure to show it to the doctor! The simplest diagnosis you may encounter is dysbacteriosis. It’s not pleasant, but this condition can be eliminated by taking a course of probiotics and adjusting the diet.
You can feed the cat the best products and on schedule, but this will not help you gain weight if:
Important! If your cat refuses food or water, there is no need to self-diagnose.
The symptom is very broad and can indicate pain, virus, infection, injury, etc. Be sure to consult a doctor for a comprehensive examination and diagnosis. Insist on drawing blood for a detailed analysis. If tests show abnormalities, the doctor will know in which area to look for the abnormality.
How to help your cat gain weight
You can go two ways, they differ only in price. Exist special food for weight gain, they are expensive because they belong to the medicinal class. If your cat is critically ill or cannot digest natural food, this is the only alternative. If the cat’s thinness is insignificant, then a natural diet will do.
Let’s immediately make a reservation that a diet for weight gain is developed on the basis of a proper natural diet. Weight gain is achieved by replacing proteins with carbohydrates. Fatty foods You shouldn’t give it to a cat, since you need to strive to gain muscle mass, not fat mass.
Proper nutrition, increased calorie content, easy digestion - how to combine?
A cat's natural diet is based on its needs. healthy wild cat consumes a certain amount of food per day, 85–90% of which are sources of protein. When feeding pets, you need to strive for this indicator, but let’s immediately say that it is difficult to achieve.
Weight gain will not occur if the cat is deficient in proteins, so the diet should be based on meat (frozen or boiled). For normal operation The cat's intestines should receive coarse fiber, and these are unprocessed cereals, vegetables, fruits and herbs. Don't forget about vitamins, but we'll talk about them below.
The diet for a cat to gain weight is compiled according to the following list:
- Meat– beef, rabbit, chicken, quail, lean (boiled) pork, not often. Meat must be boiled or deep-frozen, otherwise there is a risk of infection with worms.
- Fish– boiled, oceanic, noble varieties. It is better not to give river fish to cats.
- Chicken and quail eggs– raw and boiled, 2-3 times a week. More frequent use will create additional stress on the liver.
- Natural dairy products(homemade) – cottage cheese, kefir, fermented baked milk, yogurt. Homemade products are introduced into the cat’s diet gradually, since they have a significant fat content.
- Homemade whole milk– puts a strain on the liver, so it is introduced into the diet gradually and in small quantities. If a cat experiences diarrhea after drinking milk, it should be excluded from the diet.
- Hard cheese – useful product, contains friendly lactic bacteria.
- Cereals– buckwheat, rice, oatmeal, with caution wheat porridge(may cause indigestion and flatulence).
- Vegetables- carrot, Bell pepper, raw potatoes. A cat is unlikely to eat vegetables in their pure form, so it is recommended to grate them and mix them with cottage cheese or minced meat.
- Fruits- at the request of the cat.
- Greenery– parsley, dill, grass for cats. Greens contain vitamins and help improve digestion.
- Oils– flaxseed, sunflower, olive (strictly as an additive).
Can be used as additives fish fat, meat and bone meal, brewer's yeast. If thinness is a consequence of illness, it is better to entrust the choice of supplements to a veterinarian. Thin cats often experience indigestion; sometimes, this situation can be relieved with the help of coarse fibers, for example, steamed bran.
Vitamin supplements
Thinness weakens a cat! Your task is to adjust the diet so that the body has to spend as much as possible less energy for digestion of food. Achieving this golden mean can be difficult, especially if the cat is allergic. Vitamin supplements can close “gaps” in the diet and stimulate metabolism. Specialized complexes can be purchased at a pet store. At home, you can prepare nutritious and easily digestible meals for your cat.
As sources of fast carbohydrates, you can give your cat:
- Jelly (jellied meat) without fat.
- A mixture of meat scalded with boiling water and steamed oatmeal.
- Boiled liver with cereals.
- Homemade fermented milk products.
- Boiled yolks – not often.
- Baby food puree without legumes.
- Dry baby food - very careful! Contraindicated in cats with hormonal imbalances.
remember, that fatty foods They will only harm the animal.
You should not overfeed your cat; it has been proven that weight gain occurs faster if the animal receives food in small portions, but often. This is due to the process of digesting food, reducing the load on the intestines and liver.
A person who has a cat at home certainly changes his way of thinking and worldview. With the advent of a furry friend, you have to increasingly think about how to provide the animal with proper care. Sometimes it happens that a representative of the cat family looks quite thin. Then the owners are wondering how to fatten the cat so that he is fat? Is it possible to help an animal gain weight?
How to do this correctly, without harming your health?
Visit to the veterinarian
Consultation with a specialist is necessary in order to exclude the presence serious illnesses. If you don't do this, sooner or later you will begin to doubt the correctness of your chosen tactics. When thinking about how to fatten a skinny cat, you need to act consistently. The veterinarian will examine the animal and make necessary tests. The overall picture will become clear when you spend full examination your pet. If no diseases are detected, then you need to pay close attention to nutrition. A lot depends on food: energy level, activity, presence or absence of appetite. Any knowledgeable specialist will tell you that proper nutrition is the basis of health.
Breed characteristics
It turns out that this matters too. When wondering how to fatten a cat, you need to pay attention to the breed characteristics. You need to understand that Siamese cat by definition cannot be fat. If the owners are too zealous in feeding, the animal is more likely to acquire a lot of health problems than to get better. If you are thinking about how to fatten a Bengal cat, you need to take into account that the breed’s peculiarity requires them to remain at a weight of three to four kilograms. There is no need to try to break the norm on your own. Otherwise, the animal will become obese. It is necessary to clearly differentiate where weight gain is required, and in which case it is worth abandoning the idea itself.
Scottish and British breeds
These seals, by their constitution, are designed in such a way that they should be relatively massive. When deciding how to fatten a Scots cat, you need to focus on the norm. You want him to be at his ideal weight and not overeat? Then you should understand that a healthy animal without pathologies cannot be heavier than five to six kilograms.
For a Scot this is a perfectly acceptable option. If he weighs more, he may become obese. When a caring owner is thinking about how to fatten a British cat, you need to understand natural features breeds These animals look quite massive due to their dense short hair. Ideal weight the British ranges from six to nine kilograms. It is undesirable to gain a large mass, since in this case there will be a serious load on cardiovascular system.
Feeding rules
If your pet really needs increased nutrition, you need to understand what you need to pay attention to. How to fatten a cat if he is thin? There are two options here - natural nutrition and professional ready-made food.
Which one to prefer depends entirely on the choice of the owner. Under no circumstances should you mix different types feeding. Otherwise, it will immediately affect the health and well-being of the pet. Cats typically eat several times a day. At the same time, they themselves measure the size of their portion.
Natural nutrition
If you decide to feed your animal regular food, keep in mind that all food must be fresh. You need to immediately understand that natural nutrition is not food from the table. You should not offer your pet what is left from lunch or dinner. There is a high risk that the cat’s delicate stomach simply will not be able to cope with the load placed on it. Let's look at the most useful and necessary products that help you gain weight the required norm.
Beef
Meat is a source of protein. If you really want your pet to please you for many years, you should try to include boiled beef in its diet.
Raw meat can be given only frozen to reduce the risk of infection with worms. When thinking about how to fatten a cat, you must remember to give him beef. You will see how the fur will change, a larger one will appear physical activity. If an animal eats properly, it will look the part.
Fermented milk products
In the diet pet Fresh cottage cheese, kefir, and fermented baked milk must be present. Milk, contrary to popular belief, is not recommended for cats. The fact is that it is learned only by babies. U adult upset may occur gastrointestinal tract.
If you try to feed your pet correctly, he will be at his ideal weight. Fermented milk products are generally very beneficial for the health of both humans and animals.
Chicken eggs
An irreplaceable product that should not be forgotten either. However, it is recommended to give cats only the yolk. They cannot digest protein. The yolk should be given no more than once or twice a week. If you accustom an animal to proper nutrition since childhood, then as a result you will not have to deal with correcting your own mistakes later. It is known that treating a sick animal will be much more expensive than trying to immediately prevent the development of the disease.
Poultry meat
You should mainly include chicken and turkey in your diet. Poultry meat is very beneficial for cats. If you feed it regularly along with a hearty side dish, the animal will be at its optimal weight.
It is necessary to accustom your pet to proper nutrition from childhood, then in the future it is guaranteed that no health problems will arise.
Noble fish
Today, many owners know that it is not recommended to feed cats pollock. If you give fish, you should do it no more than once or twice every ten days. For this purpose, it is recommended to choose flounder, salmon, and cod. You can give your pet navaga if your cat loves it. If you give fish little by little and rarely, nothing bad will happen. Your pet will not lose weight and will make you happy healthy looking.
Industrial feed
If you have chosen finished products, you should not choose one that belongs to economy class. A variety of “Whiskas”, “Friskas” and “Kitekets” have a detrimental effect on the health of your pet. Not only will they not help him gain weight, but they can also significantly worsen the functioning of the digestive system.
Industrial feed you need to choose the right one if you don’t want to harm your pet. Brands that are truly trustworthy are not publicly available in supermarkets. main feature The fact is that such feeds have a completely balanced composition. If you feed your cat Proplan or Royal Canin, then she does not need to add any additional vitamins to her food. Such feeds are of high quality. In the composition you will not find dyes or various harmful substances which have a negative effect on the body. In addition, expensive foods have special lines that can be used to improve the health of your pet.
Thus, if you are thinking about how to fatten a cat, you should be guided by simple rules. You need to immediately decide for yourself what type of feeding you will choose and stick to it throughout the animal’s life.
Some cats, despite comfortable conditions residence and round-the-clock access to food bowls, face the problem of being underweight. Thinness can occur suddenly or be an innate property of the animal. One way or another, when you look at such an individual, you want to immediately provide it with food in order to bring it to a “normal” state. But how to feed a cat so that increasing portions does not affect the health of the pet?
This question is not as simple as it seems, since more food does not always solve the problem. In addition, several more equally important dilemmas are added to the question of fattening. How to determine where healthy weight ends and painful underweight begins? How to determine the condition of a cat? All breeds have different norms and pathologies, which is why the owner can easily become confused. We will talk further about the causes of thinness and methods of combating it.
Before you start fattening a cat, you need to understand the reasons that prompted the owner to make such a decision. If cats are not sick or hungry, they are able to independently control their weight and the amount of food they consume.
Among the good reasons why a cat owner can begin to purposefully feed him are the following:
Causes of exhaustion
There are many causes of exhaustion that cannot be covered in this article. The simplest and brief classification The reasons are presented below.
Physiological
TO physiological reasons refers to weight loss due to circumstances in which the cat could not fully satisfy his nutritional needs. This applies to stray cats, cats in heat, and cats experiencing prolonged stress. Physiological exhaustion is also typical for cats that have fattened a large litter and given all their energy and nutritional resources to their offspring.
As you can see, the causes of physiological exhaustion are exogenous; they are tied to the specific environment with which the cat interacts.
Thus, a stray cat can be brought into order with the right diet, a cat experiencing stress can be calmed down. The mother, who fed the family, is fed back to a healthy state. Among other things, some breeds have a predisposition to thinness - Sphynxes, Ukrainian Levkoys are difficult to fatten, which is also due to their peculiar bodily constitution.
Pathological
Pathological causes include malfunctions in the pet’s body itself. No matter what comfortable and stabilizing conditions a cat with pathological thinness finds himself in, his condition will not change. The causes of such exhaustion can be both acquired and congenital diseases.
To feed such a fragile pet, you must first undergo an examination with him at the veterinary clinic. The test results will show the cause of problems with weight gain and the veterinarian will develop a diet that is suitable for your pet. It is not recommended to act as a nutritionist on your own for cats with pathological thinness, since the likelihood of complications is high.
The dangers of excessive fattening
For those owners who want to fatten their pet for their own aesthetic needs - to admire how funny the cat licks or runs - it is useful to learn about the consequences of feline obesity. Since obesity in cats, like in humans, is a disease, fat cat sooner or later will face health problems, including:
- Diabetes of the second type - being initially not prone to diabetes, your pet can develop it with an incorrect lifestyle and, in particular, nutrition. As a result, the owner will have to periodically inject insulin into the cat to avoid sharp deterioration his well-being;
Diabetes is one of the most dangerous consequences overfeeding the cat
- Cardiovascular diseases - the higher the weight of the animal, the greater the load on the heart. Fat cats As a rule, they rarely move and prefer a recumbent lifestyle, which only aggravates the situation;
- High probability of joint injury - any jumping on long distances may result in dislocations, or, in the worst case, fractures. Since the bones and joints of each cat are tailored to a certain body weight, which has its own threshold, going beyond its limits is fraught with all sorts of injuries;
- Predisposition to arthritis. Fat animals are the first at risk in terms of the likelihood of becoming acquainted with this unpleasant illness, accompanied by inflammation of articular tissues and deformation of the limbs, not to mention purulent complications;
- Hypertension - this disease is difficult to diagnose initial stages, however, its harm to the entire body is very great. IN chronic form hypertension leads to hypertrophy of the heart muscle, which, with the least favorable prognosis, ends in cardiac arrest.
Keep in mind that a deviation of one and a half kilograms from the norm is already considered obesity and unsafe for the pet’s health. Since pets differ significantly from us in size, they only need to gain a few hundred grams for this to become noticeable. You can read about how it goes on our portal.
Video - Consequences of obesity in cats
How to understand how much weight a cat has?
Despite the fact that it is difficult to mistake an emaciated cat for a well-fed one, as well as vice versa, there are nuances and transition states that it is advisable to pay attention to. Thus, gradual weight loss may be an indicator developing disease. Weight gain may indicate an incorrect diet and disproportionately large portions.
Table 1. Weight categories for cats
| Underweight | Normal weight | Excess weight | Moderate obesity | Severe obesity |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bones (especially the pelvic bones and ribs) show through and are visible to the naked eye in smooth-haired and hairless individuals | The animal has the correct proportions; when viewed from above, the cat's body takes on the shape of an hourglass. | Fat accumulates primarily in the back, abdomen and face | The bones are indistinguishable and can barely be felt. The fat layer appears in the abdomen, chest and beginning of the tail | Pronounced accumulations of fat in the back, base of the tail, chest and abdomen |
| Lack of fat on the chest and ribs | The ribs have a thin layer of fat, but are easily palpable | The ribs can be felt but not visually identified | The ribs can only be felt when pressing | The ribs and spine are indistinguishable under a layer of fat |
| No belly fat | A small amount of belly fat | Marked abdominal fat when viewed from the side | When viewed from the side, accumulations of fat on the abdomen are noticeable | The belly sag noticeably due to fat |
| The waist is sharply defined due to the sunken belly | The waist is distinguishable, but does not provide a clear contrast with the ribs | The waist is vague, the body shape resembles a rectangle | The waist is almost indistinguishable | When viewed from above, the waist forms a circle, making the cat look like a bowling pin. |
The vast majority of cats grow and gain weight before they reach one year of age. They develop especially quickly during the first six months, gaining on average 150-200 grams daily. Over the next six months, the kittens develop their body structure and develop sexual differences, ending by the age of one year. Of course, each breed has its own optimal weight. Maine Coons will likely be heavier than Miniature Munchkins and Sphynxes.
Average mongrel cat weighs from three to six kilograms. The cat is inferior to him in weight by 1-3 kilograms. However, even outbred cats have different skeletons. The expression “broad bone”, in addition to an ironic connotation, also has a completely serious meaning. Various cats with different structure and the thickness of the bones are different rate weight. With the same 5 kilograms of weight, we can observe both a plump and a fit individual.
Therefore, one of the main signs of thinness-fullness is the ability to palpate or visually identify the ribs and chest. The more difficult it is to do this, the greater the deviation of the animal’s weight towards fullness.
Anorexia in a cat
The topic of such a specific illness as anorexia requires special attention. This disease is widespread not only in the human world, but also in the animal world, which only a few pet owners know about. Anorexia should not be confused with extreme exhaustion, since it is only one of the possible consequences. Anorexia is a refusal to eat due to lack of hunger.
Long-term anorexia leads to the transformation of a cat into a “living skeleton”
In people, food aversion is associated with aversion to it, vomiting, neurotic and psychotic states. But what can we say about cats? Why do these domesticated predators go against their survival instinct and condemn themselves to a balancing act between life and starvation? There are several reasons:
The problem of anorexia cannot be solved by fattening. Because this serious condition occurs in in case of emergency, its removal should be left to a veterinarian. Sometimes cats are given IV drips so that the animals can receive nutrients through a vein. Sometimes special devices (for example, probes) are used to put food into the pet's mouth.
Ways to fatten a cat
The word “fattening” itself allows for some ambiguity. It is necessary to distinguish between different understandings of this concept from the very beginning. If you want to fatten up your cat by increasing its fat layer, then you can easily do this - just focus on foods with a high fat content. Of course, such a diet will sooner rather than later hit your pet’s liver. Cats' bodies are not designed for such unlimited fat consumption.
The view of fattening as restoring the health of the cat and bringing its digestion back to normal requires development balanced diet, which at first will take into account the narrowed stomach of an exhausted pet. Otherwise, the diet of a fattened cat is no different from the diet of an ordinary healthy cat.
Additional help for the body
Since sometimes, with advanced emaciation, a cat experiences pathological change eating behavior, sometimes before fattening it is necessary to awaken your pet’s interest in food. For such purposes, there are several special recommendations:
Vitamins
Make sure you provide your cat with everything he needs. vitamin complex, which will help restore balance to the body and accumulate useful material, in which he for a long time refused. Special attention Pay attention to vitamin C. In veterinary pharmacies it is sold in the form of tablets. If your pet is neutral towards the tablets, you can give him the whole vitamin.
If the cat resists, you can crush the dragee into powder and mix it with water. The resulting solution should be drawn into a syringe and poured into the cat’s mouth. It is also possible to dissolve the crushed dragee in minced meat;
Beneficial bacteria
Give your cat lacto- and bifidobacteria half an hour before each meal. Thanks to lactic acid, these bacteria will cope with their harmful “colleagues” that have accumulated in the pet’s gastrointestinal tract during the period of dysbacteriosis.
In addition, lactobacilli take part in increasing immunity, which is useful for both sick and healthy animals. Among the pribiotics that have positive impact on the intestinal microflora and the body as a whole includes Bifitrilak, Enterol, Zoonom, Subtilis and others;
Weight gain on dry food
Select your feed carefully. During the period of exhaustion digestive tract your pet is especially sensitive to low-quality formulations replete with chemical additives. Therefore, it is advisable to please cats that are gaining weight with premium food and higher, which often already includes some vitamin supplements and coarse fibers that normalize intestinal function.
Specialized feed
Dry food high class They have a line called Gastro Intenstinal - this is what should interest the owner. There are also canned food from the Royal Canin brand, called Rekoveri, which can be fed even through a tube in cases where the animal is not able to consume food on its own.
All these dry foods are close in composition to natural food, compressed and dried. Thus, the first places in food labeled Gastro Intenstinal include meat, high-quality offal, cereals, dairy products and carbohydrates - each of these components helps the cat maintain strength and immunity at the proper level. The pet can receive all these products in their original form on a natural diet, but dry food thinks out in advance the correct ratio of ingredients.
Each dry food manufacturer sets its own daily norm consumption. As a rule, it is written on the packaging or indicated on the measuring cup included with the food. You should never increase the dose if you think your pet is malnourished and the doses are too small. The volume of granules poured does not depend on the degree of satiety. More doesn't mean better. All that is required of the owner is to comply with the limits and monitor the condition of the pet.
Gaining weight on a natural diet
With a properly formulated diet, natural food is an ideal option for every cat.
But once you accustom your pet to a certain diet, you will be freed from the need to constantly make some changes. Cats are very frugal when it comes to food and tend to carry certain eating habits throughout life. They remain loyal to certain food categories, be it eggs or watermelon, and eat every portion with pleasure.
As already mentioned, emaciated individuals often experience a decrease in stomach size, which is why such cats may not be able to cope with the most standard portions. At first, give your pet food at short intervals, but in small quantities. This way he can gradually adapt his stomach to new system nutrition.
When creating a diet for your pet, use the following tips:
Vegetables containing large amounts of B vitamins are reluctantly accepted by cats as food. To increase their interest, you can mix minced meat with vegetable puree. It is not recommended to stew vegetables, because when they boil, they release all their beneficial substances. Pay attention to tomatoes, cucumbers, cabbage, zucchini. Potatoes and beets, which are poorly digestible by animal stomachs, should be avoided.
The main mistakes when planning your diet
I would also like to touch upon the topic of mistakes in feeding pets, made by owners with the best intentions. Despite the fact that each owner chooses his own intuitive diet plan for his pets, one can notice repeated and very sad “rake”, which people regularly continue advance.
Some cat owners believe that the doses of dry food indicated on the packaging are too small for their cats; some overfeed their pets with all types of meat, being confident in its clear benefits.
Complications with digestion or hair that arise later in an animal sometimes cause genuine surprise among the owners and a lack of understanding of their role in the resulting illness. We’ll talk about how to recognize your mistakes in planning your cat’s nutrition and stop them in time.
Conclusion
Despite the cute photos of fat cats that are circulating on the Internet, do not forget that a healthy cat is a slender cat. The saying "in healthy body- a healthy mind" applies to animals to the same extent as to people. "Funny" look full of cats and their clumsy movements indicate improper functioning of the body, be it a metabolic disorder, incorrect operation endocrine system etc.
Therefore, you need to fatten your pet only when there is objective evidence for it. Exhaustion and obesity are two extremes that must be avoided to ensure a comfortable life for your cat. To fatten your pet up to healthy weight No knowledge of any dietary nuances is required. It is enough to follow the nutritional rules that apply to all cats and monitor your pet’s well-being.
Not all cats are prone to obesity. Some are even quite the opposite, prone to underweight. How can a cat gain weight? Necessary special food and special care! But first of all, you need to be sure that the pet’s thinness does not really go beyond the norm, it is quite objective from medical point vision.
How to determine a cat's normal weight
There are several ways in which you can determine normal weight cats. You can just pat her on the back. If you feel the tops of the animal’s vertebrae, you can be calm. If you don’t feel it at all, then your cat is fat, so a diet is necessary. The pet's nutrition can be increased if the vertebrae can be lightly picked up with your fingertips.
Also define excess weight You can feel the cat's chest. This can be assessed quite simply: its ribs are under a thin layer of fat, and the cat’s waist always stands out from the sides and from above.
Most often, excess fat accumulates in groin area animal. Place your pet on a flat surface. His rib cage, if the weight is normal, it will be even. If it is above the level of the abdomen, it means that it has gained weight and a strict diet for a cat will not be a hindrance.
The most proven method is carried out on floor scales. But not every cat agrees to stand or lie down for a while on an unfamiliar surface. That's why owners take their pets in their arms.
Causes of thinness
Veterinarians divide the reasons for cat thinness into two types!
Skinny, emaciated cat in the photo.
The first of them is physiological. It occurs only due to fasting, stressful situations, poor diet and metabolic disorders. These also include:
- Consequences of feeding large quantity offspring.
- Stressful situations And long fasting. For example, your cat spent about a month on the street and then returned.
- Due to attacks of vomiting and diarrhea.
- Severe dehydration.
- Consequence of intensive treatment.
- Medical error.
- Incompatibility of natural and non-natural food products.
- Metabolic disease.
- Acute dysbacteriosis associated with the consumption of harmful products.
Pathological thinness occurs due to illness or congenital pathologies in an animal. The only way to cope with it, to make the pussy fatter, is to diagnose the animal’s body and begin progressive treatment.
Is it necessary to fatten if the cat is thin or does treatment need to be done?
There are a lot of questions on the Internet: why? Scottish cat skinny, why British cat is not gaining weight, what should I do to make my pet gain weight? In fact, the causes of underweight do not depend on the breed of pussy. Treatment for representatives different breeds also similar.
The causes of thinness in a cat always slow down its metabolism, and it gradually begins to lose weight. The pet will return to normal shape after its diet becomes complete. It is necessary to ensure that the animal does not consume inedible, harmful objects.
Due to dysbiosis and metabolic disorders, you can seek help from a veterinarian. He will adjust the diet and also prescribe a course of probiotics and vitamins for weight gain to keep your pet healthy.
However, increasing nutrition does not always help the pet.
For example, if a cat is infected with worms, then special anthelmintic drugs will help her.
Dehydration and diarrhea are most often caused by E. coli infection.
If your pet flatly refuses cooked food, this is not normal, and you should consult a doctor who will tell you the rules of nutrition for such a case. This symptom may indicate several diseases at once!
What to feed a cat to gain weight, how many times a day, basic nutritional rules
There are not many rules for creating a diet for your pet.
Under no circumstances should you give fatty foods, no matter how thin you are. This will put a lot of stress on her liver. The feeding schedule must be followed constantly and always taking into account the healthy and at the same time favorite foods of your cat.
Food should be separate and in small portions, preferably with foods that increase the animal’s energy. You can feed once every 2 hours. Then the pet will definitely gain weight without a distended stomach, as it will gradually decrease in size. And the cat will begin to consume less food. She will begin to move more actively, and her metabolism will gradually return to normal.
Weight Gain Products
If your cat’s excessive thinness does not give you peace, then you need to introduce foods such as beef, steamed oatmeal and different kinds bran together with other food for weight gain (vegetable protein).
Also suitable are scalded chicken or beef liver, chicken and quail eggs(anything that contains much-needed protein). You can boil a small amount of raw sea fish and make a good jelly from cartilage, such a product will also contain a lot of protein.
Your pet's diet may include dry ready-made cottage cheese, natural yogurt, milk or low-fat cream. You can make him fruit purees and baby food.
Also, do not forget that an experienced veterinarian can tell you what to feed your cat to gain weight.
