# Why are some cats fat? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [September 27, 2011, 3:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-some-cats-fat/597768 "2011-09-27T15:52:18Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Bearflag70](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Bearflag70](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bearflag70)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2011, 5:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-some-cats-fat/597768/21 "2011-09-27T17:53:08Z")
> [@Tom\_Tildrum](#): > > Presumably the big one is eating the little one’s food. There is plenty of free feeding food out and available for everybody at all times. ---
**Author:** ![AndyLee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/898d66/32.png) [@AndyLee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AndyLee)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2011, 5:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-some-cats-fat/597768/22 "2011-09-27T17:59:45Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Such cats are in fact weird. In the wild, it makes sense to get as fat as you can, when you happen to luck out and have an unlimited food supply. What’s wrong with all of these skinny cats, that they don’t? > > I suspect that the answer may just be that most housecats _don’t_ have an unlimited food supply. I saw this on one of those nature shows. The place where the lions were living was having a bumper crop. So the zebras and gnus and other grazing animals were reproducing beyond belief. So of course the lions and hyenias and cheetahs were getting too fat. They actually had pictures of these fat cats and hyenias. Eventually nature evens itself out. The lions killed too much and couldn’t run as fast, so they lost weight, the weather went bad and the lions got thin again when the bounty of grazing animals died off. ---
**Author:** ![AndyLee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/898d66/32.png) [@AndyLee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AndyLee)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2011, 6:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-some-cats-fat/597768/23 "2011-09-27T18:01:04Z")
One thing I noticed about cats is the ones that are rescued seem to gorge. I guess that makes sense as if you’re in the wild or a ferrel animal, you need to eat when you can. But if they are raised from a kitten and allowed access to food whenever, they don’t feel a need to eat so much, because they assume food will always be there. ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2011, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-some-cats-fat/597768/24 "2011-09-27T18:03:08Z")
My vet says no one knows for sure. I have 3 cats. Two are healthy and thin, one is fat. I believe they are all pretty much couch potatoes. All are brothers and sisters, too. My vet says it could just be “gene expression”. The fatty just turns food into fat, while the others don’t as much. ---
**Author:** ![VOW](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/vow/32/3043_2.png) [@VOW](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VOW)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2011, 6:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-some-cats-fat/597768/25 "2011-09-27T18:28:17Z")
Ahem. Big bones. With a good girdle, heels, and a black dress, many fat cats can achieve sleekness. ~VOW ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2011, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-some-cats-fat/597768/26 "2011-09-27T19:09:32Z")
> [@Rigamarole](#): > > I’m not sure I buy that though. Cats haven’t been domesticated _that_ long (from an evolution-scale frame of reference), and the house cats I’ve seen all still seem to retain their natural hunting instincts - they love to stalk/hunt/chase things even if they’re just pretending that it’s prey. A “lazy” animal wouldn’t last in the wild for any amount of time. Well, neither would a lazy human, but some humans are fat and some are skinny. Some are predisposed to be either. ---
**Author:** ![Philster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/13edae/32.png) [@Philster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Philster)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2011, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-some-cats-fat/597768/27 "2011-09-27T19:11:29Z")
> [@Rigamarole](#): > > That doesn’t explain why many cats can have an unlimited food supply available to them (such as the one I mentioned in the OP) and have absolutely no problems with overindulgence. Because cats are different, which was addressed in my post under the ‘‘cats with a tendency’’ part. Why do some posters take just snippets, when the entire post – which isn’t crushingly long – would serve others much better? ---
**Author:** ![Arkcon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/96bed5/32.png) [@Arkcon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arkcon)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2011, 1:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-some-cats-fat/597768/28 "2011-09-28T01:20:17Z")
> [@Rigamarole](#): > > It seems like, for the most part, animals just don’t have the same types of eating disorders that humans do. See, this bit, right here is what I’m not as sure about as you are. Obesity in pets is a common enough that they make obesity-treating pet-foods and sell them commercially, not just through the vet. Animal obesity is even a problem in zoos – there was a news story years ago about an obese elephant. She had gained too much weight, so they slashed her grin allowance, and upped her lettuce allowance. All the while constantly weighing her to see if she responded. Just like humans, it was much harder to lose weight after her gain. The news story mentioned that zoo animals have all sort of health problems associated with obesity – even a prevalence of diabetes at rates which would be lethal to a wild population. We only know how much an animal should eat because we’ve determined it through trial and error. And we don’t really have the numbers down perfect, either. Relying on animal instinct appears to work about as well as relying on human instinct to eat properly. 😃 [http://blogs.orlandosentinel.com/features\_lifestyle\_animal/2009/01/experts-seek-so.html](http://blogs.orlandosentinel.com/features_lifestyle_animal/2009/01/experts-seek-so.html) ---
**Author:** ![KarlGrenze](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/dbc845/32.png) [@KarlGrenze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KarlGrenze)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2011, 1:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-some-cats-fat/597768/29 "2011-09-28T01:33:23Z")
Ah, I took that to mean eating disorders as anorexia and bulimia, not obesity. The two former no, I don’t think have been recorded in animals. The last one, yes, is a well studied problem in all sorts of animals, usually the ones that depend on humans to give them food. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![carnut](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnut/32/3531_2.png) [@carnut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnut)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2011, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-some-cats-fat/597768/30 "2011-09-28T01:58:48Z")
One of my cats was quite overweight on a dry food diet. I switched her (gradually) to mostly wet food and her weight is down to normal. The vet thinks she was just getting too many carbs from the dry food. Cats need protein, not corn gluten. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2011, 3:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-some-cats-fat/597768/31 "2011-09-28T03:39:04Z")
> [@KarlGrenze](#): > > Many cats are able to self-regulate, and even if the plate is overflowing with food, they won’t eat more than what they strictly need (the finicky eaters). Also, they may have owners who don’t overflow the dish with food. > > Other cats, though, don’t get the self-regulate part, and keep eating well past what they should. Their owners, in turn, help them by keeping a steady, constant supply of food instead of restricting it. I’ve been told (though I don’t know if it’s accurate) that one factor is whether the cat has every been a stray, or otherwise not had reliable access to food. Such cats tend to not be able to self-regulate their eating, and will be likely to immediately eat any food given to them. I’ve had two cats, both of whom were rescued strays. Neither of them were capable of restraining themselves from scarfing down their meals immediately. So, we’ve had to be very careful in how much we feed them, to keep them from porking out. ---
**Author:** ![Jragon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e19b73/32.png) [@Jragon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jragon)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2011, 4:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-some-cats-fat/597768/32 "2011-09-28T04:32:20Z")
I’ve heard some cats actually get addicted to the texture of dry food, and eat it not because they’re hungry, but they like the texture. ETA: Though I’m not sure what study quantified this or how, it’s not like they asked the cat’s opinion. ---
**Author:** ![IAmError403](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/dec6dc/32.png) [@IAmError403](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/IAmError403)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2011, 4:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-some-cats-fat/597768/33 "2011-09-28T04:58:31Z")
Is the fat one declawed? I have two cats, one who is declawed and fat (had to have him declawed at my old place) and my current cat still has her claws and is very skinny (but she was just recently spayed and about a year younger). She likes to climb, so i think that keeps her fit. I will monitor the situation and see if the cat with claws gets any skinnier. ---
**Author:** ![IAmError403](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/dec6dc/32.png) [@IAmError403](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/IAmError403)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2011, 5:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-some-cats-fat/597768/34 "2011-09-28T05:00:11Z")
> [@carnut](#): > > One of my cats was quite overweight on a dry food diet. I switched her (gradually) to mostly wet food and her weight is down to normal. The vet thinks she was just getting too many carbs from the dry food. Cats need protein, not corn gluten. That’s also interesting carnut. My fat cat also prefers dry food. ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2011, 5:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-some-cats-fat/597768/35 "2011-09-28T05:30:23Z")
> [@KarlGrenze](#): > > Ah, I took that to mean eating disorders as anorexia and bulimia, not obesity. The two former no, I don’t think have been recorded in animals. Then scientists need to meet Sassy. She regularly eats until she throws up, occasionally right into the bowl :smack: ---
**Author:** ![rhubarbarin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/eb9ed0/32.png) [@rhubarbarin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rhubarbarin)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2011, 3:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-some-cats-fat/597768/36 "2011-09-28T15:13:31Z")
20% - 50% (depending on who you ask) of American cats are obese or overweight. So it’s pretty common, and linked with many health problems. Just like for humans, feline obesity involves many factors including genetics and hormonal balance, over-consumption of calories, the types of food eaten, and least of all, activity level. Cats are obligate carnivores equipped to eat nothing but raw muscle, fat, organs, and bone. It’s not surprising to me that so many get and stay overfat even on a managed low-calorie diet of carbohydrate-based ‘cat food’. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2011, 6:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-some-cats-fat/597768/37 "2011-09-28T18:14:51Z")
I once had a 27-pounder. Yes, he was big-boned even when he had been thinner, but much of the weight was fat. The problem: his younger sibling was ill for several years, and needed to be encouraged to eat as much as possible, which meant leaving food out all the time. There was no way to segregate the cats (I lived in a studio apartment), so even the healthy one had a continuous buffet. His weight wasn’t as serious a problem as the other cat’s survival. I did try to get him to exercise, which was futile. ---
**Author:** ![gonzomax](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e8c25b/32.png) [@gonzomax](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gonzomax)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2011, 6:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-some-cats-fat/597768/38 "2011-09-28T18:42:44Z")
Boris is the only fat cat I have ever had. He loves food and is a demanding kitty jerk. I feed him from a bowl on my desk. If it were on the floor or a lower table, the Beagles would get at it. When the bowl is empty he shoves everything on the floor . He meows loudly and will not quit until he gets fooded. He will attack the beagles for exercise and is always ready to play with a string. Catnip will keep him busy for awhile too. ---
**Author:** ![Vihaga](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Vihaga](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Vihaga)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2011, 7:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-some-cats-fat/597768/39 "2011-09-28T19:10:23Z")
I have a cat that isn’t terribly overweight (he has a slight belly, but only slight), but it’s not because of his automatic ability to regulate his food intake. It’s because we put his ass on a diet every time his weight starts to creep up. My friends generally don’t free-feed their cats, either. I’m not sure how you’d figure out the percentages, but I am sure that not all thin housecats are thin because of their innate weight regulation. ---
**Author:** ![carnut](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnut/32/3531_2.png) [@carnut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnut)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2011, 11:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-some-cats-fat/597768/40 "2011-09-28T23:35:29Z")
> [@IAmError403](#): > > That’s also interesting carnut. My fat cat also prefers dry food. I recommend giving it a try. I just slowly tipped the balance of her meal from dry food to wet. She’s quite sveldt now. Now, if only the cats would alter \*my \*diet for better health. 😃 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-some-cats-fat/597768.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-some-cats-fat/597768.md?page=3)