Can Obesity Cause Cat Diabetes

by Taath · Published February 22, 2012 · Updated May 18, 2012

A recent research project asked the question, can obesity cause cat diabetes? The results shows that obesity is indeed related to cat diabetes. That doesn’t surprise me at all.

All my friends and relatives that have diabetes are well overweight, so to me it is very much a case of stating the obvious. So why shouldn’t the same be true of cat diabetes?

I’m not suggesting that all overweight people or cats are going to suffer from diabetes, what I am saying, and this research shows it, is that being overweight together with other factors can lead to diabetes.

What are the other factors? Well, nobody really knows. Perhaps there are genetic influences, perhaps the lifestyle of the cat or maybe even its psychological makeup.

An overweight cat is also likely to have a number of other illnesses or should I say be more susceptible to other illnesses such as arthritis, weak immune system, skin conditions, organ problems etc.

Obesity among indoor cats is becoming an epidemic with many vets claiming that over half of indoor cats are overweight. That’s is an alarming statistic but is totally in line with the increased incidence of cat diabetes.

To put this information into perspective, the APOP (Association for Pet Obesity Prevention) offers the comparison that a 14 pound cat is equivalent to a 237 pound man!

Cat owners really do need to examine the type and amount of food they give their cat. Talk to your vet to try and work out a weight loss regimen for your cat. I can’t help thinking that modern pet cat diets contain too much carbohydrates and going back to a cats natural diet is always best.

Also try and get the cat to be more active, play with your cat and let it out more often if that’s possible. Cats were not designed to be couched potatoes and the easiest way for them to be back to their normal weight is plenty of exercise and a natural diet.

Here is a link to a scientific report from Cornell university that gives a number of interesting statistics on obesity and cat diabetes.

Can Obesity Cause Cat Diabetes

Obesity is not only an epidemic in humans, it is also reaching epidemic proportions in our pets. Over eating, eating an unbalanced diet and lack of regular exercise are causes of obesity in humans and also in our cats and dogs.

I firmly believe that going back to nature is best. What foods and lifestyles were we designed for???? Well cats for a start were not designed to sit on couches all day and eat manufactured food high in carbohydrates. So can obesity cause cat diabetes? You’d better believe it!