Your cat's weight - what you need to know

How much should I feed my cat?

To help prevent weight gain with your cat, we would suggest weighing their dried food. When free feeding (leaving unmeasured amounts of food down all day), it is very easy to overfeed them. They may also become bored with this routine and either eat too much or alternatively, lose their appetite.

For an average cat, 2 sachets of complete wet food and 30-40g of good quality dried food is enough for the day (this may vary slightly depending on brand). Providing this food in small meals throughout the day is best, if possible. This pattern will prevent them overeating as well as replicate their natural feeding pattern.

Make feeding time fun

Making feeding time fun for your cat by enrichment feeding them will not only help stimulate their minds, it will also help to slow down their eating and provide exercise for them. If your cat is driven by food, then playing games such as throwing their biscuits and getting them to chase them will get them moving as they chase their tasty treats. For more ideas on enrichment feeding, please click here.

For multi-cat households where one cat may be more food orientated than the others, we would suggest using microchip feeders. These will only open up for the cat who is registered to that feeder. This should be done along with providing separate feeding stations for each cat, allowing them to have their own resources and space.

Provide enrichment

Outdoor access for your cat will provide them with the space to exhibit natural behaviours as well as exercise and maintain a healthy body. If you are unable to provide this space, then please take a look at our enrichment ideas for indoors.

How to measure your cat’s body condition

Any diet plans should be discussed with your vet first as losing weight too quickly can cause other medical issues. Please note, quantities may also differ if your cat is on a prescription diet. Any changes to this should always be discussed with a vet.

Need more advice?

If you are still concerned about your cat’s weight, or health in general, please do not hesitate to contact us for free advice.