How to feed a cat for weight gain
The thinness of cats can be a source of diseases. Just eating won’t fix the problem. The solution is special ready–made feeds. In this article you will learn how to fatten a cat and what kind of food to feed a cat for weight gain.
The lack of weight in cats can be caused by physiological reasons or some pathology. The reasons for thinness can be:
- fasting;
- stress;
- metabolic disorders;
- improper nutrition;
- feeding a large number of kittens;
- dehydration due to disorders of the gastrointestinal tract (vomiting, diarrhea);
- infection with worms (helminths).
A doctor can determine the exact cause of the disease after reviewing the results of the tests and examining the animal. In addition, some animals lose weight rapidly and cannot gain weight after surgical operations or long-term treatment with medications.
stop pet For physiologically competent weight gain, which will benefit an overly emaciated animal, special high-calorie feeds have been developed. Naturally, it is better to give preference to holistic or premium-class feeds. By the way, read our rating of top cat food.
The best cat food for Weight gain
When deciding what kind of food to feed a cat for weight gain, first of all, they usually pay attention to dry food. They are convenient to dose, they have a long shelf life, animals usually like them and contain a full range of necessary substances. The best dry feeds include:
- Royal Canin Gastro Intestinal Moderate Calorie
- Hill’s Science Plan Perfect Weight
- Acana Orijen SIX FISH
- Royal Canin Gastrointestinal Moderate Calorie Content
The food contains a daily dose of nutrients necessary for the cat’s health and is often prescribed by veterinarians for weight gain. This product is a special diet for cats with digestive disorders.
The composition includes – L.I.P.-proteins that are perfectly absorbed by cats. As well as prebiotics, beet pulp, rice, fish oil. There is an opinion that this food is intended for obese animals, but in fact it is not. A balanced composition will allow a cat or a kitty to both lose weight and gain weight, depending on what his body needs.
cat auto The pellets have an attractive taste for animals, which means that your pet will eat them with an appetite.
Hill’s Science Plan Perfect Weight
This food is also positioned as a product for cats prone to weight gain, because obesity is much more common than excessive thinness. However, the ingredients are selected in such a way as to adjust the weight, help cats become healthy and happy for many years to come.
The food is full-fledged, contains prebiotics that help normalize the digestive process and improve the absorption of nutrients. The reduced fat content will not overload the liver, so the owners see noticeable changes in the appearance and well-being of their pets after a very short period of time.dogfarm.
Akana Orien SIX FISH
This is a full-fledged cat food, the granules of which consist of 85% fish (sardine, herring, perch, hake, flounder, mackerel). In total, the percentage of protein is 40%. Not only the fillet was used, but also the insides, bones, which contain phosphorus, zinc, potassium, calcium, magnesium and other elements necessary for the health and proper functioning of the kitten’s body.
Reviews of owners and veterinarians note that the food smells nice, and most importantly, the animals like it. Acana Orijen SIX FISH does not contain any additional flavors. An attractive taste is achieved by adding freeze-dried liver.
The best wet food for weight gain
A diet based on wet food (canned food, spiders) will allow the pet to gain weight much faster compared to dry food. Owners of animals with a body weight deficit and veterinarians have seen from their own experience the effectiveness of the following wet feeds:
- Restoration of the Royal Dogs
- Royal Canin Recovery Support Cat
- Chicken and Duck Applaws
- Royal Canin Recovery
These canned goods, sold in 195-gram jars with a convenient key for opening, are intended for cats and dogs during recovery from illness and intensive care.
One of the main indications for the use of feed is a lack of body weight, contraindications – acute pancreatitis, hepatic encephalopathy, hyperlipidemia.
The feed provides the supply of proteins, fats and carbohydrates necessary for life, has a taste appeal even for weakened animals. If necessary, Royal Canin Recovery is used for feeding through a probe, diluted with water.
Royal Canin Convalescence Support Cat
This wet food belongs to the category of dietary and is intended for cats and cats who are recovering from operations and diseases, pregnant and nursing cats, as well as excessively thin animals.
The basis of Royal Canin Convalescence Support Cat is protein (pork, poultry, pork and chicken liver). Animal owners note that after the start of regular consumption of this food, cats gain weight quickly enough, their immunity strengthens, they become more active, playful, stool improves, the condition of the coat and skin improves.
Applaws Chicken & Duck
These canned goods consist of three-quarters of meat, which is cooked in its own broth. There are only a few ingredients inside the jar (chicken breast fillet, chicken broth, duck fillet and rice) – such simplicity and transparency of the composition attracts consumers, and in fact it is as close as possible to the natural diet of animals. They note that cats eat these canned foods with great pleasure, eat a regular portion, and most importantly, gain weight.
If you do not know what to feed the kitten in order for him to recover, then pay attention to wet food. Young animals with milk teeth are not always able to chew dry pellets. Read also additional recommendations on the diet for kittens.
Feeding a straight cat for weight gain
No matter how much the owners would like to fatten their pets as soon as possible in order to save them from weight deficiency, in no case should they give products rich in fat (sour cream, butter, fatty cottage cheese, pork, etc.).
The liver of an exhausted animal will not cope with the load.
When feeding a straight woman, it is necessary to ensure proper nutrition, which means to focus on products with a high energy value and at the same time take into account the taste preferences of a cat or a cat.
Feeding the cat for weight gain should be frequent. Break the usual amount of food for a standard two-day feeding into 5-6 servings. It is advisable to give food at the same time: this way you will accelerate your metabolism, activate metabolic processes, and weight gain will go more actively. The animal should gain weight due to muscle, not fat, so protein products should become the basis of the diet.
From meat, veal and chicken should be preferred. It is necessary to add fiber to them – bran and oatmeal. It is advisable not to cook them, but simply pour boiling water and cover them with a lid so that they are steamed for 10-15 minutes.
Twice a week, the main product can be chicken or beef liver, which needs to be frozen, and before serving, defrost in the refrigerator, and then boil or scald with boiling water.
Once a week, you can pamper an excessively thin pet with a chicken egg yolk or one quail egg. In small quantities, you can give boiled sea or oceanic fish (river fish is absolutely not allowed). A jelly cooked from cartilage will help to diversify the diet.
Cottage cheese, unsweetened yogurt can be diluted with low-fat milk, but if dairy products cause diarrhea or are not immediately eaten by animals, it is better to abandon them altogether. If you don’t have time to think over your diet and cook, but you are an opponent of factory cat food, try giving baby puree, for example, meat with vegetables.
Make sure that there are no seasonings, preservatives and flavor enhancers in the composition, a minimum of salt (and preferably without it at all), potatoes and legumes.
In the pet store, you should definitely purchase biologically active additives with vitamins and trace elements, as well as energy supplements (Gimpet Multi Vitamin Extra, Gimpet Gras-Paste, Calo-pet paste, Sanal Topmix, Grau Golden Animal Care, Excel Kittyvite Vitamin Paste, Beaphar Top10).