Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
High fat diet and spaying cause weight gain in cats
By Backus, Robert C et al.·Published in The British journal of nutrition·2007·Department of Veterinary Medicine and Surgery, United States·View original on PubMed →
PetCaseFinder translated the abstract of this peer-reviewed paper into plain English so pet owners can read it. We do not publish original research — every detail traces back to the citation above. How we work →
Original publication title: Gonadectomy and high dietary fat but not high dietary carbohydrate induce gains in body weight and fat of domestic cats.
- Species:
- cat
Plain-English summary
A group of 24 young cats, aged 9 to 12 months, were studied to see how different diets affected their weight and fat after being neutered. The cats were given diets with varying levels of fat and carbohydrates. After neutering, all the cats gained weight, but those on the high-fat diet gained significantly more, especially the females, who gained about 39% more weight compared to 10% in males. The study found that a high-fat diet led to increased body weight and fat, while carbohydrates did not have the same effect.
People also search for: why is my cat gaining weight after neutering · best diet for overweight cats · high fat diet for cats weight gain
Abstract
A high concentration of dietary carbohydrate is suggested to increase the risk of obesity and diabetes mellitus in domestic cats. To evaluate this, food intake, body weight, fat mass and circulating adiposity-related factors were determined in twenty-four sexually mature (9-12 months) cats assigned to four six-cat dietary groups balanced for body weight and sex. The effect of dietary fat in exchange for carbohydrate at 9, 25, 44 and 64 % of metabolisable energy (ME) in a purified diet of constant protein:ME ratio was studied 13 weeks before and 17 weeks after gonadectomy (GX). Body weight did not significantly change among the cats before GX except for an increase of 17 (sem 5) % in cats given the highest-fat diet. Following GX, all groups gained body weight, and body fat mass was positively correlated (r 0.50; P < 0.04) with dietary fat percentage. Post-GX weight gains were much greater for females (+39 (sem 5) %) than males (+10 (sem 4) %). Plasma ghrelin concentration negatively correlated (P < 0.02) with dietary fat percentage and, before GX, was greater (P < 0.05) in females than males. Plasma insulin concentration increased with weight gain induced by high dietary fat. Plasma glucose, TAG and leptin concentrations were not affected by dietary fat percentage, GX or weight gain. These data provide evidence that in cats, high dietary fat, but not carbohydrate, induces weight gain and a congruent increase in insulin, while GX increases sensitivity to weight gain induced by dietary fat.
Find similar cases for your pet
PetCaseFinder finds other peer-reviewed reports of pets with the same symptoms, plus a plain-English summary of what was tried across them.
Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/17524182/