How to put a cat on a diet. Please help !!!

One of my DD1’s cats was insatiable. Would push the other cat off her food and then steal from the dogs if he could. She tried everything, feeding him separately, being really strict with his intake, nothing worked. He was food obsessed. So she tried the opposite tactic. She got one of those feeders which trickle feed dry food constantly. For the first day he gorged. Then when he realised the food was always there he stopped and just grazed. And lost weight! As someone has already said it was the fear of not getting the food that made him greedy. When it was on tap he stopped bothering.

The vet told me my cat was overweight (just a little) and suggested I only give him 3 chicken hearts a day instead of 4 (in addition to dry food). Seemed reasonable enough to me, but the cat kept telling me he was dying of starvation until, as I walked off upstairs telling him he could have some dinner later, he chased after me and sank his teeth into my calf.
Needless to say, we went back to 4 hearts a day, but recently I’ve dropped it to 3 again and so far so good...

you can get diet food online cheaper, we had a rescue who weighed 10.3kilos when he arrived aged 9years but he slimmed down to his target weight of 7.5kilos (he was a big catwith paws like a labrador!) on Royal canin diet food and it went a long way, I'd order two large bags on line (no postage for 2) and it would last for ages

That renal diet food is disgusting, no wonder he's stopped asking for more :D

I've just gone through this with my 9 year old male cat and he has been diagnosed with kidney disease by our vet! He is now on renal food and this seems to be helping, he's not calling for food all the time which is relief as he has such a loud yowl!!!

I agree with IngeJones it is very dangerous to put a cat on a crash diet. Gradually cut down what he/she eats. A good cat biscuit is best but make sure the cat drinks plenty of water, if not perhaps a good moist food would be better, gradually cutting down the amount, weigh the cat monthly if possible.

If he is outside a lot it's possible he's still scavenging for food as if he is still a stray. The same logic applied to scoffing his food to get to the other food bowl could be relevant to what he does outside. Plus he sounds like a real sweetheart and is easily identified, so maybe there is a bit Six Dinner Sid going on.

Hope the vet gives Blue the all clear so you can start cutting back on his food to see if he still acts hungry when his food bowl isn't available all the time.

Just a thought, but one of our lovely cats who had always been a bit greedy, suddenly became food obsessive and terribly greedy, clamouring for food all the time. After a while, the vet checked him and we discovered that kitty had developed acromegaly, which is apparently more common in cats than in humans. He had ongoing treatment, and lived for another 18 months.

Perhaps a blood test at the vets? Do very much hope that you cat is just a greedy kitty and not an ill kitty. ?

Hyperthyroidism can also make him eat and eat. Have you had him checked out with the vet? Don't be alarmed my cat lived until he was 16 with the condition. Medication is expensive however.

I also agree with Cookie’s comments. I never feed only dried food to cats for that reason. I see my cats drinking regularly. If I didn’t I would stop the dried food entirely.

I agree with lesley about Senior food, but not about IAMS. The advertising is very persuasive, but the research shows that it is simply expensive rubbish. Royal Canin is better (although some people have issues with the quantity of grain in it). My cats and dogs do well on it. They have a Senior and a ‘Diet’ version. I would also have a chat with your vet, if only to rule out any physical health issue that may be contributing to the problem.

PS. Forgot to mention, I really do not like the idea of dried cat food especially with cats, especially 'Toms' as it can cause urethral problems. Our Mackie suffered a swollen urethra which meant that he could not wee and went into urine retention. This meant a rush to the Vet as it was a medical emergency.
Cats who do not drink enough + biscuits are a definite no-no. One of our 'girls' had problems last year with her urinary tract. She had been having biscuits once a day. We stopped them immediately, after a visit to the vet, and she has been fine. We stick with wet food ( sachets ) now, adding a little extra water to make sure that their fluid intake is up to scratch, more so in the summer months.

Thank You so very much to everyone so far for their advice. We both think that perhaps he has had to fight for his dinner in his previous home because of all the other animals. (The previous owners adopted him as a rescue cat too, so maybe there is more to his little life than we first thought ).
At first, he would bolt down his own food so fast so that he could get to the dishes of our 2 other cats. He has improved and now has the courtesy ( most of the time ) to wait until they leave whereby the dishes are usually empty. He loves being outdoors, so he is not exactly leading a very sedentary lifestyle.
Interesting about removing the food dish as soon as he has eaten. I don't normally, but it makes a lot of sense.
Blue has definitely not got hyperthyroidism. Our beloved cat Mackie had that. He ate and ate, but lost weight rapidly. For the last few years of his life, he had to have a pill everyday but at the end, even that did not work and our much loved Mackie had to be put down at 18.5 yrs old.
Blue really is the picture of health and a big cat in that he is really long compared to our 2 female cats, but he is getting hamster cheeks as we call them. I will have a word with our vet and get him in for a health check.

Our cat had a very overactive thyroid and was constantly hungry despite normal meals and hunting on the nearby fields. The vet removed half his thyroid which didn't solve the problem so he removed the rest. I was worried things would go the other way with no thyroid but he said that enough cells would be left to keep him healthy and he was right. He lived to the grand age of 19. He would eat anything and everything at his worst - including stealing my toast and marmalade while I was distracted reading the paper - but didn't put on weight. He got thinner in fact, so if your cat is getting fat I guess it may not be his thyroid to blame.

Worms or thyroid dysfunction?

Yes get him checked for hyperthyroidism. Our son’s cat had it and the vet said it is very common in cats.

My vet claims that my cats are overweight. He suggested changing to Senior pouches and Hills Diet dried food. I only give half a pouch each for breakfast and a measured amount of dried for the desired weight for tea. They are constantly wanting food from 4 am. They have not lost weight at all, and hardly go out, so don't think they are feeding elsewhere. They seem perfectly healthy to me so I give up!
Good luck with Blue, 1974cookie

Diabetes can also cause a cat to be ravenous. Does he drink a lot too? Having said that, we have a cat with diabetes and a normal cat. The normal one is the glutton LOL! Have to protect the other cats canned food which they get twice a day. They also have unlimited dry food. The normal cat cries at our bedroom door to be fed his canned food, starting at 4:30or 5:00 in the morning and has done for many years. He is now 13 and I am going to have him tested for diabetes too. He is not overweight.

One of our cats developed a constant hunger and ate everything in sight including the other cats' dinners. The vet said she had something wrong with her kidneys and this was what was causing the overeating. It might be worth getting your cat checked out.

That sounds lovely, I may look out for that one for the DGC

‘Six Dinner Sid’ - a lovely children’s story by Inga Moore about a cat who had 6 owners and 6 dinners, 6 beds etc. No one knew about the others.

We have just homed a Rescue cat whose owners moved away and left him behind. The neighbours fed him for over a year and I think this is why he is hungry all the time.
We have the added problem that he eats so quickly that he has terrible wind. (Green cloud that can clear a room!)
I have been giving him Royal Cnin digestive and it’s a bit better. They do loads of different dry foods for sedentary cats, overweight etc. It’s a little expensive but it lasts for ages
He has been checked by a vet and given a clean bill of health but he did find an air gun pellet lodged in his side. It was still in his skin and had caused a lump.
P.S.Harry is so loving, even though he has been so badly treated..

One of mine is, and always has been, very very greedy. I have to feed mine in different rooms and make sure greedy cat can't pinch timid cat's dinner. I have to hide all food as she will savage bags to get at it, even bread, scones, croissants etc! I just try to keep to her two meals and a treat during the day. It is hard as she clammours for food all the time I am in the kitchen but if you give in and give her some she does it even more.

PS she wasnt overweight. Also I had a kitten called Holly I gave to a friend.. She never ate any usual cat food. My friend would buy her ham, chicken slices etc. And cut up the meat into small squares for Holly. She was treated like a child. She would drink milk with her paw, and sit under the fridge and cry for her ham or chicken. She was over weight.

Years ago we had a cat called Suki. She moved with us many times with no problems. Very much loved. She lived to 17 years. When we left that last address the lady next door told us that when we were at work/school, Suki would go in to their house to be fed!! along with all the other food she got from us. Cats are very clever/crafty.