Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Body changes in obese cats losing weight and lean tissue loss
By German, Alexander J et al.·Published in Journal of feline medicine and surgery·2008·Small Animal Teaching Hospital, United Kingdom·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Changes in body composition during weight loss in obese client-owned cats: loss of lean tissue mass correlates with overall percentage of weight lost.
- Species:
- cat
Plain-English summary
Twelve obese cats were put on a weight loss program that included a high-protein, low-fat diet. On average, they lost about 27% of their starting weight over several weeks, which is roughly 0.8% per week. While the cats lost a significant amount of fat, they also lost some lean tissue, which is common when cats lose a lot of weight. This study shows that while weight loss can be safe for cats, it often comes with some loss of muscle mass.
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Abstract
Obesity is one of the most common medical diseases in cats, but there remains little information on success of weight loss regimes in obese client-owned cats. No information currently exists on body composition changes during weight loss in clinical cases. Twelve obese client-owned cats undertook a weight loss programme incorporating a high-protein low fat diet. Body composition was quantified by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry, before and after weight loss. Mean (+/-standard deviation) weight loss was 27+/-6.8% of starting weight, and mean rate of weight loss was 0.8+/-0.32% per week. Mean energy allocation during weight loss was 32+/-7.0 kcal/kg target weight. Mean composition of tissue lost was 86:13:1 (fat:lean:bone mineral). The proportion of lean tissue loss was positively associated with overall percentage of weight loss (simple linear regression, r(2)=44.2%, P=0.026). Conventional weight loss programmes produce safe weight loss, but lean tissue loss is an inevitable consequence in cats that lose significant proportions of their starting body weight.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/18417397/