Senior Cat Comfort & Care

While a little pudge may seem adorable, obesity can decrease your cat’s lifespan by as much as five years! Luckily, it's preventable and reversible. This is especially important for senior cats because extra weight can cause mobility issues and cause or complicate conditions such as hepatic lipidosis, respiratory issues, heart disease, diabetes mellitus, high blood pressure, and many more.

Extra fat does nasty things to a cat’s body. It releases inflammatory hormones and chemicals and creates an imbalance of free radical formation and removal. This can contribute to many diseases, especially arthritis.

In some cases, obesity can be an indicator of disease. For example, cats with heart or lung disease, insulinoma (a type of pancreatic tumor), or Cushing’s disease (an overactive adrenal gland) tend to be overweight despite efforts to decrease their weight.

Overweight cats generally need exercise, and a lower-calorie, high-fiber diet. Adding more moisture to their diet can also help your cat to feel full despite the calorie drop.