Exercising a cat seems like the classic example of the oxymoron. We don't typically walk our cats like we do our dogs and cat behavior is different when it comes to exercise. In fact, most of us are more accustomed to watching our cats sleep than seeing them exercise.
In the wild, cats stay thin because they chase down their food. If they want to eat they have to work for it. Modern cats, especially indoor cats, don't have to do much to get a meal. So what can we do to get cats to burn off a few calories? It's a good question because it really helps with weight loss and exercise and play serves to enrich the day to day life of our cats.
I attended a talk at the
NAVC on
feline weight loss and got a few tips. First of all, if you have a tread mill at home you can teach your cat to use it. Start by putting your cat on one end of the treadmill and a kibble of food on the other end. The cat will get accustomed to walking to get the kibble. You can use toys to teach them, too. Once they are used to the treadmill try making it move at the slowest speed and deliver a piece of kibble to the cat by putting it on the front end of the treadmill. I know this seems weird but I did see a
video of a cat on a treadmill during the talk.
A more fun way to encourage exercise is called the "treasure hunt". This game involves hiding food in several places around the house or apartment. Make sure you divide up the calculated amount of food and don't use more than your cat is supposed to get. Put just a few kibbles at a time in four or five different places. You are allowed to show your cat the hiding places. He'll remember where they are and he'll get some much needed exercise tracking stuff down. This game can feed his natural hunting instinct, too. [this video comes from YouTube - these cats are
getting a lot of exercise, even without the treats!]
You can also vary where you feed the cat. I like to call this "upstairs, downstairs." Mix it up because cats will figure this out and start living where you put the food bowl.
You can make up play areas where cats have to climb and play, too. You can buy these kinds of things or make them yourself using chairs, boxes and boards to connect them.
Finally, you can play with your cat. Make them chase cat toys or simple balls tossed into paper bags. Feather toys and flashlights work, too. Shoot for ten minutes a day. It will help with weight loss and be fun and enriching for you and your cat.
By the way, I was introduced to a really cool
web site devoted to pet obesity, treatment and prevention. This site is full of excellent information and tips to help you get both dogs and cats down to fighting weight.
OK, gotta go to a Hyperthyroidism talk. More on that later this week.