19 Cats And Counting

BIO:

Dr. Kelly Cairns graduated veterinary school from CSU in 2004, completed a small animal rotating internship at Cornell in 2005 and completed a small animal internal medicine residency at OSU in 2008, at which time she obtained Diplomate status. She enjoyed a rewarding clinical practice as an internist and medical director of a multi-specialty/ER hospital until joining Pathway Vet Alliance (now Thrive Pet Healthcare) in January of 2018. Dr. Cairns currently serves as Vice President of Medical Excellence and Education for over 400 hospitals in the Thrive Pet Healthcare family. She is also on the dvm360 editorial board and on the Chicago Veterinary Medical Association Board of Directors. She lectures nationally on profession-related wellness coaching topics as well as internal medicine.

Dr. Cairns provides coaching and resources to support the medical excellence, professional development and sustained happiness of veterinary healthcare team members. She is passionate about supporting the people in the veterinary profession on the front line who positively impact the lives of their patients and pet parents every day.
In her personal time Dr. Cairns is an avid runner and enjoys family life with her husband, two daughters, son, two cats and very sweet but poorly mannered lab mix.

Transcript:

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Announcer: This is Pet Life Radio.

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Announcer: Let's talk pets.

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Linda Hall: Hello, my cat loving friends.

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Linda Hall: Cats and eating is a tricky one that gets us every time.

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Linda Hall: We've covered the food and what is healthy and what isn't, but is your cat eating too much?

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Linda Hall: Is your cat eating not enough?

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Linda Hall: Overweight, underweight, it's very confusing.

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Linda Hall: Dr.

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Linda Hall: Kelly Cairns to the rescue.

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Linda Hall: She, you know, she's our favorite vet, and she is going to answer these questions.

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Linda Hall: You don't wanna miss this.

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Linda Hall: We'll be right back after a word from our sponsor.

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Announcer: Let's Talk Pets on petliferadio.com.

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Linda Hall: Welcome back to 19 Cats and Counting.

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Linda Hall: I am your co-host, Linda Hall, as always here with my lovely BFF, Rita Reimers.

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Rita Reimers: Hey, Linda, I'm okay, as you know, and if you guys follow us on our social media.

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Rita Reimers: The whole reason we're doing this topic was because I had a lot of questions about my Missy Kitty who was hungry, hungry, hungry, but losing weight, she had diagnosed thyroid, and we lost her two days ago.

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Rita Reimers: So I do still want to talk about her, because her situation might pertain to some people listening out there.

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Linda Hall: Definitely.

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Rita Reimers: Dr.

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Rita Reimers: Kelly has the answers, I hope.

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Linda Hall: Welcome back, Dr.

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Linda Hall: Kelly.

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Linda Hall: Thank you so much.

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Linda Hall: I don't know if we tell you enough how much we appreciate these visits.

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Linda Hall: We always learn something, and we know our listeners do too.

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Rita Reimers: Hey, look, your glasses match my shirt.

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Linda Hall: Yeah.

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: So 2024, ladies, it's so great to be back with you.

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: And this is gonna be an amazing kitty-filled 2024.

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: I will share with you.

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: It is the Year of the Dragon and the Vietnamese New Year.

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: They're starting the Year of the Dragon.

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: That's gonna be coming up in February, but I'm still deeming it the Year of the Cat.

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: Every year is the Year of the Cat.

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Linda Hall: I like it.

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Linda Hall: Every year is the Year of the Cat.

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Linda Hall: I like it a lot.

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Rita Reimers: Well, and I love that more rescues are realizing cats need just as much help as the dogs do, and they're becoming a very popular subject for new product lines and things too.

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Rita Reimers: We're testing some things now.

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Linda Hall: Let me start with the basics, because we've had clients tell us before, I'm feeding my cat, blah.

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Linda Hall: Is it enough?

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Linda Hall: And backing up, different breeds grow differently, reach maturity differently, size, weight.

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Linda Hall: What is, is there a metric to look at and say your cat is this?

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: So it should have this?

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: Yes, the crystal ball.

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: Well, there are some guidelines we can use when we're asked, trying to answer the question, is my kitty eating enough?

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: And, you know, the first thing, cats, just like people are individuals.

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: So there are best practices we can apply, and then we have to look at what's working for that specific cat.

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: And really the biggest thing we're looking at when we're answering the question, is my kitty eating enough?

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: Is we're looking at the body weight and the body condition.

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: So body weight, objective pounds, body condition.

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: Do we have enough muscle mass?

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: You know, are we losing muscle mass or muscle quality or having any muscle atrophy?

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: So there certainly are formulas that we will apply that are average for what an average size cat should be eating to maintain a healthy body weight.

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: Just like people.

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: You know, you might see on something you're eating, it'll say this product or this, you know, Hostess cupcakes is a certain amount of calories.

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: This should be eaten as part of a normal healthy diet of approximately 2,000 calories a day.

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: But 2,000 calories is not for everybody.

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: You know, for my size and my age and my gender, if I ate that much every single day and didn't exercise, that might be a little too much for me.

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: And somebody else, that wouldn't be enough.

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: They're an athlete, they're tall, they're larger.

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: So we do have averages.

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: And when you're working with your veterinarian, they will use a calculator to come up with a formula.

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: But at the end of the day, your veterinarian will say to you, this is about how much of this specific diet you feed your cat, you should feed each day.

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: And then we're going to monitor.

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: Is your kitty gaining weight?

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: Is your kitty stable weight?

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: Is your kitty losing weight?

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: And then oftentimes it's helpful to partner with your vet to fine tune or tweak the amount of groceries your kitty's getting to customize it for your cat.

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Rita Reimers: It's hard when you've got multiples, especially the numbers Linda and I have, because we absolutely have to do some free feeding.

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Rita Reimers: That makes it more difficult.

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: You bet.

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: And look, we'll talk about ideal, and then we talk about practical life, right?

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: As a kitty mom for many years, sometimes with many, many cats, I hear you.

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: A lot of times we are free feeding, and then we do have to monitor.

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: And frankly, there are some kitties, you know, I've had them, a big, orange, amazingly sweet bean kitty that I would call Fatty Arbuckle because he was constantly at that free-

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Rita Reimers: Oh my gosh.

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Rita Reimers: That's what I call my peanut butter, Fatty Arbuckle.

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: So we do what we can do, and then we look to see how, if you're in a multi-cat environment and you are having a free feed drive, we look to see based upon the age, the personality, and any underlying maybe health issues those kitties have, if that's really working.

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: And there are some times where we have to get a little creative.

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: And I'm sure you ladies have had situations where, maybe you've had to pivot to a different strategy for a specific kitty that needs a different type of diet.

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Rita Reimers: You did Linda for Kismet.

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Linda Hall: Kismet, yeah.

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Linda Hall: Kismet has no teeth.

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Linda Hall: And every once in a while, you do catch him sneaking a piece of dry food.

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Linda Hall: I don't know how he's gummin it or what, but it's definitely not a significant part of his diet.

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Linda Hall: He won't eat anything crunchy or, you know, he can't.

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Linda Hall: So he gets a third wet meal that the other cats don't get, and they don't love it.

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Linda Hall: And we knew that this was gonna be a struggle.

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Linda Hall: That's awful to feed this cat while the other cats aren't getting it, but they've all learned.

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Linda Hall: There's a few of them that sit and watch and wait for him to leave the bowl so they can clean up any crumbs he's got, but they've learned that this is Kismet's special thing.

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Rita Reimers: I was doing that with Missy too.

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Rita Reimers: She was getting an extra meal that the other cats didn't get, but then Jet Kitten came along and he kept trying to eat it.

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Linda Hall: Stealing it, yes.

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Linda Hall: So all right, let's give you some scenarios, Dr.

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Linda Hall: Kelly.

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Linda Hall: One, we have a cat here, Shadow.

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Linda Hall: She was found eating out of trash cans.

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Linda Hall: So some of her food obsession is a trauma-based thing, but she's very small.

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Linda Hall: She looks like maybe a eight, nine month old kitten, and she's probably, I don't know, six or seven.

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Rita Reimers: That's like my pie.

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Rita Reimers: My sweetie pie is that small.

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Linda Hall: I think with Shadow, it was nutritional deficiency, but so she's hungry all the time.

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Linda Hall: Do not dare walk away from food and leave it, right?

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Linda Hall: You gotta stick it somewhere and hide it.

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Linda Hall: She will eat the house, but she's tiny.

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Linda Hall: She's, I like cats with a little extra on them in case they get sick and I can't get extra on her.

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Linda Hall: So what, you know, she's eaten a ton, but she's not the fat I expected her to be.

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Rita Reimers: She's got a high metabolism then, right, Dr.

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Rita Reimers: Kelly?

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Rita Reimers: Is that a thing for cats?

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: Yeah, so when we're looking at a kitty and we're assessing what we call body condition, there are actually some things that folks at home can do to fine tune or kind of what we call semi-quantitate the body condition.

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: So you can do what's called, you can actually feel, we always do this, right?

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: We're feeling our kitties, we're petting them.

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: And what we want is we want to be able to be able to feel just a little bit the ribs, but not have those ribs sticking out.

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: If you can't feel the ribs at all, and as a matter of fact, there's, you know, two inches of kush, of squoosh and kush, you know, then probably that kitty is carrying around a little more weight than might be ideal.

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: And likewise, if the ribs are just, you know, skin and bones and you can see them and they're prominent, then that cat's too thin.

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: We also want to look for a nice little waist or an abdominal tuck, where we do have a little bit of a demarcation of going from the ribs to the tummy.

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: Now, when cats get older, they will get what I call that kind of low hanging, kind of that.

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Rita Reimers: I call that the slingy dingy.

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: The slingy dingy.

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Linda Hall: Yes, I know the correct term is primordial pouch, but yes, I call it the middle age spread because we all get that.

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: But if there's an excessive, swingy dingy, we'll call it more pouch, then that probably means they're over conditioned.

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: And ideally we want a kitty to have what we call a body condition score of about a three.

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: A four, they've got some extra padding.

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: A five would be really a lot of extra padding.

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: A two would be getting too lean and a one is just emaciated.

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: So back to your cat, I think what we can do is look at, even if she's small, assess if she's okay.

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: Maybe she's on the leaner end, but not too skinny in looking at those when you feel those assessments.

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: And if that's normal for her and it's not trending skinnier or down, then yes, I mean, again, there are just like different people have different metabolisms, cats can have different metabolisms.

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: Now, what also can be helpful is to look at as best as you can to quantitate how many calories you're feeding your cat.

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: And that is actually doable.

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: You know, all bags of cat food dry and all cans of wet will say to you how many calories are in a can or in a measuring cup.

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: So you can get a pretty good napkin map, even if you do feed some appropriate treats, they have calories on there too, to be able to say, wow, you know what?

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: She seems like she's eating a ton, but when I look at her weight as stable and not dropping, and when I look at how many calories she's actually getting, maybe it's the high end of when you talk to your vet, that kind of napkin math formula of what's average.

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: Maybe it's high end, but it's still within the bell curve.

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: And then you say, that's normal for this kitty.

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Linda Hall: That's what I think, and I do that once a month.

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Linda Hall: I try to get my hands on each cat and go through a fully, they just think I'm petting them and loving them.

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Rita Reimers: Oh, you said the word treat.

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Linda Hall: And I go away.

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Linda Hall: So I'm being stared at because I said the word treat, but yeah, her ribs, I can feel them, but they're not sticking out.

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Linda Hall: So I, gosh, she's a healthy weight.

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Linda Hall: I guess I'm just used to big cats and it's like, you're too little.

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Rita Reimers: It's harder with the fluffy ones too, like Sweetie Pie, she's a little cat, like your cat, but she's really fluffy.

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Rita Reimers: So it's hard to get in there and get an assessment of how she is.

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Rita Reimers: She feels okay, but if you just look at her, she looks fat because of the fluff.

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Linda Hall: That is a very good point.

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Linda Hall: My karma before I put her down, she's Maine Coon and she looked okay to me.

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Linda Hall: And then one day I got my hands on her.

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Linda Hall: She was a former feral, so you didn't get to pick her up much, but she was getting sick and I was like, she's so light.

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Linda Hall: I like flipped out.

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Linda Hall: I didn't realize because of all that fluffing fur.

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Rita Reimers: That's what happened with me and Missy.

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Rita Reimers: And when she first started losing the weight until I picked her up, I didn't notice.

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Rita Reimers: She had thyroid issues.

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Rita Reimers: And I know we've talked about this.

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Rita Reimers: She was hungry all the time, but she just wouldn't eat.

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Rita Reimers: Even when we got her on the Methamazole, she would eat a little bit, but then she would be under my feet in the kitchen.

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Rita Reimers: Like she's hungry, but I just couldn't get her to eat enough.

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Rita Reimers: Why was that happening?

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: Well, and this is the question of the ages.

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: So let's try to unpack something that I don't have magic crystal ball for, right?

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: And sometimes kitties can be weird, but I do think there are some reasons why that could have been happening.

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: So in general, if a kitty has an excessive function thyroid, they will tend to be starving and actually eat the food, right?

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Rita Reimers: Yeah, I've had those.

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: Right.

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: When kitties tend to be sick for a lot of other reasons, they would then, law of average, stereotypically not maybe be nauseous or not feel well in the tummy and then just act like they don't want to eat.

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: So with what was happening with your kitty is kind of a little bit outside the law of averages where she was seeming starving, but then you put the food in front of her, any food, and she didn't want to eat it.

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: So I think there's a few things that could have been going on.

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: And some of this might be maybe a little anthropomorphizing what happens in humans to animals.

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: I'm speculating, but I think we need to consider it.

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: I know we've all been sick.

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: I've been sick in cases where I do feel really hungry, but maybe I've lost my sense of taste and smell.

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: I'm starving.

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: And then I go to start eating and it doesn't really kind of scratch that itch, so to speak.

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: And I kind of put it down and walk away, but I'm still hungry.

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Dr. Kelly Cairns: So not submitting to you that I know with certainty that kitties lose the taste of smell and lose their sensation of taste and their sense of smell the way people do.

00:14:10.248 --> 00:14:23.348
Dr. Kelly Cairns: I don't know that we can directly transcribe that, but I do think it's logical to say that you may have a kitty that's not reading the rule book that maybe does have some tummy upset or doesn't feel quite right, but they still know they're hungry.

00:14:23.368 --> 00:14:28.388
Dr. Kelly Cairns: And then when they start to eat, they get unsettled in the tummy, right?

00:14:28.408 --> 00:14:31.848
Rita Reimers: Yeah, because she would eat two or three bites, unless it was a piece of cheese.

00:14:31.868 --> 00:14:33.328
Rita Reimers: Now she would eat that whole piece of cheese.

00:14:33.868 --> 00:14:39.668
Linda Hall: Let's see, haven't you had moments where you've been a little not, you've been starving and then somebody says, oh, do you want soup?

00:14:39.728 --> 00:14:41.548
Linda Hall: And you think about it and go, nope.

00:14:41.748 --> 00:14:42.668
Rita Reimers: Yeah, when I had COVID.

00:14:42.688 --> 00:14:43.228
Linda Hall: You want toast?

00:14:43.748 --> 00:14:44.168
Linda Hall: Nope.

00:14:44.408 --> 00:14:46.528
Linda Hall: You know, until, and then they say, oh, do you want blah blah?

00:14:46.548 --> 00:14:48.488
Linda Hall: And you're like, yeah, that's the thing.

00:14:48.508 --> 00:14:50.228
Linda Hall: Yeah, my stomach didn't react to that.

00:14:50.248 --> 00:14:53.908
Linda Hall: So maybe she's starving and you put it down and then she tastes it and is like, nope.

00:14:54.568 --> 00:14:55.548
Linda Hall: But she's still starving.

00:14:55.908 --> 00:15:05.028
Dr. Kelly Cairns: Let me add to just, and maybe not applicable to your kitty, but just in general, I really want pet parents to know all the things so their knowledge is power.

00:15:05.288 --> 00:15:12.748
Dr. Kelly Cairns: There are also a lot of times when a kitty might be really hungry, but they have what we call a pseudo anorexia.

00:15:12.988 --> 00:15:25.688
Dr. Kelly Cairns: And what that means is that they're really hungry, but they don't eat because there's something physical that's causing them pain or discomfort or inability to eat, usually related to a problem in the mouth.

00:15:27.328 --> 00:15:27.728
Dr. Kelly Cairns: Right?

00:15:27.748 --> 00:15:42.548
Dr. Kelly Cairns: So again, maybe not applicable for your kitty, but it's super important because what pet parents should be having their vet, and vets will do this, they will do a full physical exam and pay really close attention to the oral cavity.

00:15:42.668 --> 00:15:46.188
Dr. Kelly Cairns: It's another reason why we want to be proactive with that dental care.

00:15:46.628 --> 00:15:50.528
Dr. Kelly Cairns: Kitty might have a resorptive lesions or problems with the gums.

00:15:50.768 --> 00:15:56.788
Dr. Kelly Cairns: They might have a tooth that's very painful or a mass growing inside the mouth.

00:15:57.268 --> 00:16:01.628
Dr. Kelly Cairns: And your vet's going to evaluate for that to try to figure out if that's what's causing the issue.

00:16:01.648 --> 00:16:04.348
Rita Reimers: Especially if you see a lot of drooling, that's not normal.

00:16:04.568 --> 00:16:09.168
Rita Reimers: That's a good indicator that there's some thing going on in their mouth and there's some pain involved.

00:16:09.188 --> 00:16:10.248
Rita Reimers: That's why they don't want to eat.

00:16:10.408 --> 00:16:16.428
Linda Hall: We took in a sanctuary cat, Zuckey, and he would take a bite and then he would throw his head back like he was throwing it back.

00:16:16.828 --> 00:16:20.088
Linda Hall: And so yeah, immediate vet and yeah, teeth problems.

00:16:20.108 --> 00:16:21.348
Rita Reimers: He had to have some teeth pulled, yeah.

00:16:21.508 --> 00:16:25.548
Linda Hall: He got them pulled and all of a sudden, Rita said he lives at the food bowl now.

00:16:25.568 --> 00:16:25.928
Rita Reimers: He does.

00:16:27.648 --> 00:16:28.888
Rita Reimers: But he still won't eat wet food.

00:16:28.908 --> 00:16:30.108
Rita Reimers: He'll only eat dry.

00:16:30.128 --> 00:16:33.028
Rita Reimers: And I have two cats that will only eat dry and it worries me.

00:16:33.628 --> 00:16:34.928
Linda Hall: That's a good question.

00:16:34.948 --> 00:16:36.288
Linda Hall: I actually wanted to ask that.

00:16:36.308 --> 00:16:37.008
Linda Hall: Thank you.

00:16:37.028 --> 00:16:40.248
Rita Reimers: Actually, before you answer, let's take a quick break.

00:16:40.268 --> 00:16:42.008
Rita Reimers: I know those sponsors, but we love them.

00:16:42.028 --> 00:16:43.608
Rita Reimers: We'll be right back with Dr.

00:16:43.748 --> 00:16:44.148
Rita Reimers: Kelly.

00:16:46.768 --> 00:16:48.408
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00:16:50.308 --> 00:16:51.888
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00:16:53.008 --> 00:16:55.088
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00:16:55.288 --> 00:16:58.548
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00:17:27.208 --> 00:17:29.068
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00:17:29.528 --> 00:17:33.188
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00:17:41.608 --> 00:17:42.548
Announcer: Pet Life Radio.

00:17:53.438 --> 00:17:55.758
Rita Reimers: And we're back to 19 Cats and Counting.

00:17:55.778 --> 00:17:57.758
Rita Reimers: We're talking about cats and appetite.

00:17:58.618 --> 00:18:00.798
Rita Reimers: Cats that eat too much, cats that eat too little.

00:18:01.098 --> 00:18:01.998
Rita Reimers: How much is too much?

00:18:02.018 --> 00:18:02.898
Rita Reimers: How much is too little?

00:18:03.198 --> 00:18:05.398
Rita Reimers: And we last were talking about...

00:18:06.358 --> 00:18:07.878
Rita Reimers: What were we talking about, Linda?

00:18:07.898 --> 00:18:12.198
Linda Hall: So we personally, not bats, push wet food.

00:18:12.218 --> 00:18:14.038
Linda Hall: We think it's very important to have wet food.

00:18:14.058 --> 00:18:15.758
Linda Hall: We know that cats are desert animals.

00:18:15.958 --> 00:18:17.598
Linda Hall: They don't drink enough, yada yada.

00:18:17.798 --> 00:18:22.038
Linda Hall: And especially boys, they've got shorter plumbing, they'll get more prone to crystals, blah, blah, blah.

00:18:22.238 --> 00:18:27.918
Linda Hall: But we hear it a lot, and Rita's had a few of these, I have not, that a cat will not eat wet food.

00:18:27.938 --> 00:18:29.118
Linda Hall: I have two right now.

00:18:29.358 --> 00:18:32.438
Linda Hall: Is that something that should concern us and we should address, and if so, how?

00:18:32.718 --> 00:18:34.738
Rita Reimers: Actually three, because Larry won't eat it either.

00:18:34.758 --> 00:18:35.578
Rita Reimers: But anyway, go ahead.

00:18:35.958 --> 00:18:41.458
Dr. Kelly Cairns: So no, it is perfectly fine for a cat to eat all dry food in most instances.

00:18:42.058 --> 00:19:08.698
Dr. Kelly Cairns: I do agree that wet food is often preferable for the relative level of moisture, as well as decreased amount of carbohydrate and often a little bit higher protein that can be metabolically beneficial to cats to not only maintain a healthy weight and not get overweight, but also to lessen the chance in a predisposed cat that they may develop diabetes, because cats have some different metabolism than dogs.

00:19:08.718 --> 00:19:16.798
Dr. Kelly Cairns: They're a desert species, and they are biologically adapted to a different type of diet, even in how their body processes nutrients.

00:19:17.458 --> 00:19:26.998
Dr. Kelly Cairns: However, it is absolutely fine for kitties to eat dry food, and in most cases, there's no distinct advantage that you would confer for a kitty to eat wet versus dry.

00:19:27.018 --> 00:19:42.718
Dr. Kelly Cairns: That's why, again, related to how old is your cat, do they have any underlying health conditions, your vet will be able to tell you what type of food they recommend, not just dry versus wet, but what's specifically in the makeup of that food, be it dry or be it wet.

00:19:43.078 --> 00:19:51.118
Dr. Kelly Cairns: What becomes really important is, whether you're feeding dry, wet or a combination, that you are feeding, again, not too much.

00:19:51.198 --> 00:19:58.558
Dr. Kelly Cairns: And that is where sometimes we can see with dry food, especially, because you're not cracking a can, that's got a definitive amount in it.

00:19:58.838 --> 00:20:07.638
Dr. Kelly Cairns: But a lot of times, even if you're not free feeding with a feeder, you might be pouring into a bowl and you're topping off the bowl of dry food every time it runs down.

00:20:07.638 --> 00:20:24.718
Dr. Kelly Cairns: So if you're able, in say a single cat household, because again, when there's multiple cats, it can be hard to know who's eating what, it is helpful to measure a specific amount of dry food based upon the amount your vet has said is the right amount of calories to start out with your cat.

00:20:24.738 --> 00:20:45.838
Dr. Kelly Cairns: And because of less moisture in the dry food, I think it's another reason why you wanna make sure that you have lots of fresh, available water sources, because an average healthy cat that doesn't have any sort of underlying condition where they need to drink more will still maintain what they need with that dry food diet through the water you provide for them.

00:20:46.098 --> 00:20:48.238
Rita Reimers: How much water should they be drinking per day?

00:20:48.598 --> 00:20:49.478
Dr. Kelly Cairns: That's a great question.

00:20:49.798 --> 00:20:51.798
Rita Reimers: Is that a quantifiable amount?

00:20:51.998 --> 00:21:02.858
Dr. Kelly Cairns: Yeah, so there is a number and a formula that your vet, based upon how big they are, kind of like the calorie situation for their weight, there's a similar situation related to their weight.

00:21:02.878 --> 00:21:12.078
Dr. Kelly Cairns: The bigger, you probably heard of how many eight ounce measuring cups of water you should drink per day based upon how much you weigh as a person, right?

00:21:12.098 --> 00:21:13.078
Dr. Kelly Cairns: Same thing with cats.

00:21:13.458 --> 00:21:19.738
Dr. Kelly Cairns: So you can talk to your veterinarian and they can give you, here's the average amount of water your cat should be drinking.

00:21:20.058 --> 00:21:34.158
Dr. Kelly Cairns: So you know, again, usually they have plenty of free choice water around, but this is also really important when we look at conditions in cats, which we can talk about on another monthly podcast that do cause increased thirst and urination.

00:21:34.298 --> 00:21:38.118
Dr. Kelly Cairns: Because a lot of times folks say, my cat is drinking too much.

00:21:38.158 --> 00:21:53.698
Dr. Kelly Cairns: And we use those formulas to try to quantitate how much your kitty is actually drinking for us to tell you if their thirst is actually excessive when we're trying to evaluate for certain types of diseases like diabetes or kidney disease.

00:21:54.318 --> 00:21:55.958
Linda Hall: You talked about metabolism.

00:21:55.978 --> 00:21:58.218
Linda Hall: So sorry, Rita, I'm going to call her out.

00:21:58.238 --> 00:22:01.598
Linda Hall: Although I've got some big babies too, but Rita's got a couple of cats.

00:22:01.858 --> 00:22:05.238
Linda Hall: I call Gigi the manatee because she just is huge.

00:22:05.658 --> 00:22:06.898
Linda Hall: And they're not hawks.

00:22:06.958 --> 00:22:08.478
Linda Hall: They're not the first ones rushing.

00:22:08.498 --> 00:22:09.318
Linda Hall: They're not pigs.

00:22:09.678 --> 00:22:11.158
Linda Hall: Maybe they're a little too sedentary.

00:22:11.178 --> 00:22:16.658
Linda Hall: They're getting older, but it's like, you know, she said so many times, I don't get it.

00:22:16.658 --> 00:22:19.178
Linda Hall: And the vet has ruled out there's no medical issues.

00:22:19.298 --> 00:22:21.078
Rita Reimers: Yeah, peanut butter specifically.

00:22:21.138 --> 00:22:22.458
Rita Reimers: You know, there's nothing wrong with him.

00:22:22.538 --> 00:22:25.518
Rita Reimers: And I don't see him eating a lot, but he must be because he's big.

00:22:25.878 --> 00:22:26.158
Dr. Kelly Cairns: Yeah.

00:22:26.338 --> 00:22:26.858
Dr. Kelly Cairns: So, yeah.

00:22:26.878 --> 00:22:28.718
Dr. Kelly Cairns: So, and this is commonly encountered.

00:22:28.738 --> 00:22:34.098
Dr. Kelly Cairns: You know, my kitty is really overweight and I swear my kitty does not eat that much.

00:22:34.338 --> 00:22:48.018
Dr. Kelly Cairns: So the first thing I always recommend in situations like this is to actually do a caloric intake analysis, which again, I understand if a kitty is fed with many other kitties and you don't know, it can be hard to do that.

00:22:48.378 --> 00:22:54.038
Dr. Kelly Cairns: I would say in those cases, my almost uniform experience is that they're probably actually eating too much.

00:22:54.058 --> 00:22:55.118
Rita Reimers: Here's the manatee.

00:22:55.438 --> 00:23:00.498
Linda Hall: This is, I can't really see very well, but yes, she's the sweetest, but she's just huge.

00:23:00.718 --> 00:23:02.438
Linda Hall: But you know, that's what Rita said.

00:23:02.458 --> 00:23:07.338
Linda Hall: She said, maybe while I'm sleeping, maybe he's a midnight grazer or she's a midnight grazer.

00:23:07.598 --> 00:23:10.298
Linda Hall: We don't really know, but yeah.

00:23:10.318 --> 00:23:11.878
Rita Reimers: That was her, that wasn't Peanut.

00:23:11.898 --> 00:23:13.718
Rita Reimers: That was, that was Gigi.

00:23:13.738 --> 00:23:24.478
Dr. Kelly Cairns: I mean, I will tell you ladies though, I know from my own experience with lots of cats, but I'm actually dealing with this right now with Oshie Cairns, my amazingly sweet, 12 year old gigantic orange buddy.

00:23:25.058 --> 00:23:30.998
Dr. Kelly Cairns: And he, cause I have, he's a single cat in the house right now, unfortunately for me, cause I've had some older ones pass away.

00:23:31.438 --> 00:23:33.178
Dr. Kelly Cairns: And so I know exactly what he's eating.

00:23:33.458 --> 00:23:40.518
Dr. Kelly Cairns: And I will tell you that he requires almost no calories to maintain weight.

00:23:40.778 --> 00:23:43.398
Dr. Kelly Cairns: And it's really hard for me to get him to lose weight.

00:23:43.418 --> 00:23:46.698
Dr. Kelly Cairns: So here's kind of the kitty owner, pet parent toolkit.

00:23:47.038 --> 00:23:54.018
Dr. Kelly Cairns: You need to kind of understand how much calories they're taking in to figure out, maybe they're really still getting more calories than they need metabolically.

00:23:54.398 --> 00:23:59.718
Dr. Kelly Cairns: But there are some things your vet will want to do to just make sure there's no underlying health conditions.

00:23:59.878 --> 00:24:04.138
Rita Reimers: This is peanut, by the way, the big green thing there, that's peanut butter.

00:24:05.418 --> 00:24:05.838
Dr. Kelly Cairns: Aw, yeah.

00:24:06.098 --> 00:24:12.298
Dr. Kelly Cairns: I mean, there are a couple metabolic conditions kitties can get where they can develop a low metabolism and fail to lose weight.

00:24:12.558 --> 00:24:14.918
Dr. Kelly Cairns: Those are much less common than dogs.

00:24:14.938 --> 00:24:19.078
Dr. Kelly Cairns: Like in dogs, hypothyroidism, and in people, very common.

00:24:19.318 --> 00:24:22.018
Dr. Kelly Cairns: That condition is really uncommon in cats.

00:24:22.018 --> 00:24:24.458
Dr. Kelly Cairns: Usually they get hyper or high functioning.

00:24:24.458 --> 00:24:25.478
Linda Hall: I'm so jealous.

00:24:25.878 --> 00:24:26.838
Rita Reimers: I know, right?

00:24:27.138 --> 00:24:28.618
Dr. Kelly Cairns: Let's call a spade a spade though, right?

00:24:28.638 --> 00:24:32.738
Dr. Kelly Cairns: The average middle-aged to older kitty is gonna have a slow metabolism.

00:24:33.218 --> 00:24:38.818
Dr. Kelly Cairns: And if they're the average indoor kitty, they are very sedentary.

00:24:38.958 --> 00:24:41.878
Dr. Kelly Cairns: They don't get a lot of exercise, right?

00:24:42.218 --> 00:24:45.298
Dr. Kelly Cairns: And that can lead to obesity despite them not eating very much.

00:24:45.318 --> 00:24:50.298
Dr. Kelly Cairns: I will tell you, my kitty is eating, and this is for targeted weight loss.

00:24:50.318 --> 00:24:57.578
Dr. Kelly Cairns: I calculated he's literally eating one half cup, measuring cup of the dry food he gets.

00:24:57.978 --> 00:25:01.658
Dr. Kelly Cairns: And he's getting one tablespoon of wet food a day.

00:25:01.678 --> 00:25:04.758
Dr. Kelly Cairns: And that seems like nothing, right?

00:25:04.778 --> 00:25:08.098
Linda Hall: I was gonna say, if you're a client and tell me you're feeding your cat that, I'd be like, wait a minute.

00:25:08.878 --> 00:25:10.458
Rita Reimers: Does he seem hungry though?

00:25:10.518 --> 00:25:11.878
Rita Reimers: Is he satisfied with that?

00:25:12.058 --> 00:25:13.598
Dr. Kelly Cairns: He does wanna eat more.

00:25:13.618 --> 00:25:16.638
Dr. Kelly Cairns: He is not losing weight.

00:25:16.818 --> 00:25:18.518
Dr. Kelly Cairns: He's got enough calories for him.

00:25:18.538 --> 00:25:23.798
Dr. Kelly Cairns: And when you look at the math on that, he's getting a couple hundred calories a day.

00:25:23.998 --> 00:25:28.318
Dr. Kelly Cairns: So here's where, again, I'm not making a recommendation for any one specific cat.

00:25:28.338 --> 00:25:31.118
Dr. Kelly Cairns: You need to talk to your veterinarian and have them give you a recommendation.

00:25:31.418 --> 00:25:42.938
Dr. Kelly Cairns: But the average eight pound to nine pound cat who's middle-aged with no health problems and doesn't do a lot of activity probably needs no more than 300 calories a day.

00:25:42.958 --> 00:25:46.198
Rita Reimers: It sounds like I might be overfeeding even the wet food.

00:25:46.218 --> 00:25:52.318
Rita Reimers: I only, like they each get like a third to a half a can twice a day, and then I have the free food out.

00:25:52.398 --> 00:25:53.418
Rita Reimers: You know, the little cans?

00:25:53.678 --> 00:25:53.978
Dr. Kelly Cairns: Yes.

00:25:54.318 --> 00:26:09.478
Dr. Kelly Cairns: So this is where, again, if you have a kitty that you say, boy, this kitty's really overweight, and I don't think this kitty's eating too much, kind of do a little bit of math, and your vet will just adore you when you can say to them, hey, can you do physical?

00:26:09.498 --> 00:26:10.838
Dr. Kelly Cairns: Can you give me a recommendation?

00:26:10.858 --> 00:26:11.678
Dr. Kelly Cairns: Make an evaluation.

00:26:12.018 --> 00:26:14.458
Dr. Kelly Cairns: Is there a test we should do right now to evaluate this?

00:26:14.618 --> 00:26:21.878
Dr. Kelly Cairns: But you also are able to come equipped with, this is what I'm feeding, how I'm feeding it, and the rough napkin map on those calories.

00:26:22.258 --> 00:26:25.778
Dr. Kelly Cairns: That'll be really important for your vet, and then they'll kind of let you know what to do.

00:26:26.038 --> 00:26:29.898
Dr. Kelly Cairns: I don't want anyone thinking they should just randomly cut calories in half.

00:26:30.278 --> 00:26:32.138
Dr. Kelly Cairns: Always partner with your veterinarian.

00:26:33.118 --> 00:26:39.038
Dr. Kelly Cairns: In terms of what I'm doing with my cat is calculated, and has been a part of a gradual weight loss plan.

00:26:39.058 --> 00:26:42.938
Dr. Kelly Cairns: So I'm not recommending anyone go and only feed their cat a half a cup of food.

00:26:43.178 --> 00:26:44.498
Dr. Kelly Cairns: I'm just sharing with you.

00:26:44.518 --> 00:26:46.538
Dr. Kelly Cairns: Yeah, sure.

00:26:46.678 --> 00:26:46.938
Dr. Kelly Cairns: Yeah.

00:26:47.338 --> 00:26:53.138
Rita Reimers: I had a pet's client cut down her cat's food because she wanted them to not eat dry anymore, and she wanted them to lose weight.

00:26:53.658 --> 00:26:56.498
Rita Reimers: And then she said, how come my cats aren't pooping anymore?

00:26:56.518 --> 00:26:58.158
Rita Reimers: I said, well, cause you're not feeding them enough.

00:26:58.178 --> 00:26:59.378
Rita Reimers: They have nothing to poop out.

00:27:00.178 --> 00:27:03.158
Rita Reimers: And so she went to her bed and put them on their way to poop.

00:27:03.178 --> 00:27:03.718
Linda Hall: Yeah, exactly.

00:27:03.738 --> 00:27:05.418
Linda Hall: Well, I was gonna say that could be a good matrix.

00:27:05.438 --> 00:27:11.998
Rita Reimers: She just arbitrarily decided on her own, she was gonna give them each a half a can of fancy feast a day, and that's it.

00:27:12.258 --> 00:27:17.218
Dr. Kelly Cairns: The biggest thing, and you guys know I always beat this drum, but really it is the best thing to do.

00:27:17.238 --> 00:27:19.078
Dr. Kelly Cairns: We're here, your vet is here for you.

00:27:19.438 --> 00:27:24.258
Dr. Kelly Cairns: They're gonna want for this topic, like every other topic, to have a conversation.

00:27:24.278 --> 00:27:40.858
Dr. Kelly Cairns: Look at the body condition, show you how to palpate or feel those ribs and the tummy tuck, make an assessment, weigh your kitty, you know, and then make a recommendation for you, and then you partner if you need to have your kitty lose weight, you partner with your vet in a tailored weight loss plan.

00:27:41.198 --> 00:27:43.458
Dr. Kelly Cairns: And remember too, you can weigh your cat at home.

00:27:43.818 --> 00:27:48.798
Dr. Kelly Cairns: No, they may not want to hold still on your scale, but you know, I do this with my own cat.

00:27:48.898 --> 00:27:50.398
Dr. Kelly Cairns: I get on it, I weigh myself.

00:27:50.638 --> 00:27:54.538
Dr. Kelly Cairns: Then I tear the scale, I get on with my cat and I hold him.

00:27:54.698 --> 00:27:56.138
Rita Reimers: Yep, and do a little subtraction.

00:27:56.138 --> 00:27:56.778
Linda Hall: Exactly.

00:27:56.878 --> 00:28:01.418
Rita Reimers: If I could afford to have a chip feeder for every single cat I have, I would.

00:28:01.438 --> 00:28:02.218
Linda Hall: Oh, I know, right?

00:28:03.298 --> 00:28:04.638
Dr. Kelly Cairns: I need 18 chip feeders.

00:28:04.938 --> 00:28:07.418
Linda Hall: Well, and I, some of my cats will-

00:28:07.458 --> 00:28:08.858
Rita Reimers: Chip feeder manufacturer.

00:28:08.998 --> 00:28:10.358
Linda Hall: We need a bunch of them.

00:28:10.578 --> 00:28:18.018
Linda Hall: Some of my cats are really, some of my cats will just eat until the cows come home, but most of my cats are really good at kind of self-regulating themselves.

00:28:18.038 --> 00:28:21.138
Linda Hall: Like this cat will clean the bowl, this cat will walk away.

00:28:21.158 --> 00:28:21.398
Linda Hall: Yeah.

00:28:21.498 --> 00:28:24.758
Linda Hall: This cat will walk away after they've gotten their fill, even if there's some left.

00:28:24.778 --> 00:28:26.498
Linda Hall: And then usually that other cat will finish it up.

00:28:26.858 --> 00:28:30.478
Linda Hall: But what if my cat is stopping and is losing weight?

00:28:31.178 --> 00:28:33.278
Linda Hall: Should I, you know, this cat's being really picky.

00:28:33.298 --> 00:28:36.278
Linda Hall: It's not really liking this stuff and we're losing weight.

00:28:36.378 --> 00:28:37.418
Linda Hall: What do I need to do?

00:28:37.658 --> 00:28:38.538
Linda Hall: Should I be concerned?

00:28:38.958 --> 00:28:39.318
Dr. Kelly Cairns: Yeah.

00:28:39.338 --> 00:28:51.498
Dr. Kelly Cairns: Well, I think that's a situation where, again, start with that conversation with your veterinarian, because, you know, they're going to want to make sure they do some very simple things to rule out any obvious underlying health condition.

00:28:51.858 --> 00:29:01.138
Dr. Kelly Cairns: You know, with some simple blood and urine tests, they may recommend doing some imaging or, you know, looking internally, but just make sure we're not missing something that changes an action plan.

00:29:01.158 --> 00:29:06.638
Dr. Kelly Cairns: And then once your vet gives you that green light, you know, to say, ooh, okay, we, you know, no worries.

00:29:06.818 --> 00:29:11.258
Dr. Kelly Cairns: You know, then it may be that you do have a cat that is finicky or picky.

00:29:11.498 --> 00:29:13.418
Dr. Kelly Cairns: You know, cats are discriminant eaters.

00:29:13.438 --> 00:29:15.318
Dr. Kelly Cairns: Some cats can be more picky than others.

00:29:15.398 --> 00:29:20.158
Dr. Kelly Cairns: I did have a cat that would just periodically lose interest in what we were feeding.

00:29:20.178 --> 00:29:22.658
Dr. Kelly Cairns: And like, trust me, there was nothing medically happening there.

00:29:22.678 --> 00:29:24.018
Dr. Kelly Cairns: I mean, you could bet you're biffy, right?

00:29:24.038 --> 00:29:25.278
Dr. Kelly Cairns: I did the full workout.

00:29:25.738 --> 00:29:35.398
Dr. Kelly Cairns: And you know, that kitty, you know, sometimes we say, oh boy, you know, you need to never change their diet because changing an animal's diet can result in, you know, tummy upset if you make a rapid change.

00:29:35.418 --> 00:29:37.218
Dr. Kelly Cairns: But boy, you know, I don't know.

00:29:37.238 --> 00:29:38.198
Dr. Kelly Cairns: We don't eat the same thing.

00:29:38.218 --> 00:29:40.438
Dr. Kelly Cairns: Again, talk to your veterinarian, get that green light.

00:29:40.458 --> 00:29:50.338
Dr. Kelly Cairns: But for some cats, it may be that you do need to cycle through and maybe they enjoy a variety of foods for when they're just getting bored of that one.

00:29:51.838 --> 00:29:56.478
Rita Reimers: I vary the flavors because otherwise there's something like, there's a term for that.

00:29:56.498 --> 00:29:57.038
Rita Reimers: And I read it.

00:29:57.058 --> 00:29:58.298
Rita Reimers: I can't remember what it's called.

00:29:58.318 --> 00:29:59.058
Linda Hall: Kind of the boredom.

00:29:59.358 --> 00:30:01.178
Linda Hall: I know we're running short, but I have one more question.

00:30:01.198 --> 00:30:02.098
Linda Hall: I have to get in.

00:30:02.858 --> 00:30:09.018
Linda Hall: So I do not feed my cat's table scraps because I like to season everything and this and that.

00:30:09.038 --> 00:30:10.578
Linda Hall: And there's 11 of them, yada yada.

00:30:11.058 --> 00:30:18.898
Linda Hall: But if I was feeding my cats a little bit, safe foods, of course, if I'm feeding them table scraps every time I eat, they get a little bit and I'm giving them treats.

00:30:18.918 --> 00:30:20.598
Linda Hall: I've got treat balls out and yada yada.

00:30:21.018 --> 00:30:30.658
Linda Hall: Is there a point where a cat is going to get full enough off those table scraps and snacks that it doesn't want to eat the right food like people do?

00:30:30.978 --> 00:30:35.298
Dr. Kelly Cairns: So again, some of this is really cat based, right?

00:30:35.318 --> 00:30:36.658
Dr. Kelly Cairns: Cat personality based.

00:30:36.958 --> 00:30:46.938
Dr. Kelly Cairns: There are some kitties where if you feed, you know, look, here's that with table scraps and treats and things like this, as long as we know it's stuff that, you know, is not going to be toxic to them or really unhealthy for them.

00:30:47.398 --> 00:30:50.558
Dr. Kelly Cairns: Generally, it's okay to give a little bit of treats.

00:30:50.578 --> 00:31:03.438
Dr. Kelly Cairns: We tend to say like no more than 10 to 15% their total caloric intake and make sure that the cat food that you're giving them, that you're modifying the amount so that you're not doing what I call over-gross reosis, right?

00:31:03.458 --> 00:31:06.458
Dr. Kelly Cairns: Or you're giving them way too much because of those treats.

00:31:06.698 --> 00:31:12.858
Dr. Kelly Cairns: Some cats are going to be pretty bomb proof where they're never going to reject their food because they know they're also getting treats.

00:31:13.258 --> 00:31:23.618
Dr. Kelly Cairns: Other cats, you're going to be in big trouble because now they are probably because of their personality, going to not want to eat their food because they're holding off for the treat that you're going to get them.

00:31:23.838 --> 00:31:24.798
Dr. Kelly Cairns: The good stuff.

00:31:25.098 --> 00:31:29.858
Dr. Kelly Cairns: And I will give, again, I know a lot of our friends also may have dogs in the family.

00:31:29.878 --> 00:31:32.358
Dr. Kelly Cairns: I'll just share an example of my dog, Winston.

00:31:32.758 --> 00:31:41.658
Dr. Kelly Cairns: If he gets a treat, if he gets a jerky or he gets any sort of wet food, he will starve himself for three days with his dry food.

00:31:42.898 --> 00:31:44.038
Dr. Kelly Cairns: He is so stubborn.

00:31:44.198 --> 00:31:53.038
Dr. Kelly Cairns: So I think you have to kind of know your cat and you have to make sure, again, first and foremost, you're not feeding too many treats, that they're getting too many calories on top of their regular food.

00:31:53.378 --> 00:31:54.198
Dr. Kelly Cairns: Make sure, right?

00:31:54.298 --> 00:31:55.278
Dr. Kelly Cairns: Because that's not good.

00:31:55.498 --> 00:31:59.498
Dr. Kelly Cairns: And then you have to kind of play it by ear with the behavior and the pattern you're in with your cat.

00:32:00.258 --> 00:32:01.118
Linda Hall: Well, and that makes sense.

00:32:01.138 --> 00:32:04.058
Linda Hall: I didn't think about like accounting for that, you know.

00:32:04.398 --> 00:32:06.498
Linda Hall: Rita and I met because we worked for Richard Simmons.

00:32:06.518 --> 00:32:08.818
Linda Hall: So calories should be kind of ingrained in us.

00:32:09.098 --> 00:32:13.678
Linda Hall: But yeah, when you're filling out your food journal, you don't just include breakfast, lunch and supper, right?

00:32:13.698 --> 00:32:14.998
Linda Hall: You include those snacks.

00:32:15.398 --> 00:32:23.398
Linda Hall: And I think that was a big lesson for me in my weight loss journey was all the little tastes while I was cooking and that those things actually do have calories.

00:32:23.418 --> 00:32:26.158
Rita Reimers: Hey, by the way, visit my website, thedietspot.com.

00:32:27.218 --> 00:32:28.698
Rita Reimers: I'm sharing my weight loss journey.

00:32:28.718 --> 00:32:30.958
Rita Reimers: And we're probably going to be starting a new podcast about that.

00:32:30.978 --> 00:32:33.078
Linda Hall: But yes, to the cat.

00:32:33.878 --> 00:32:38.138
Dr. Kelly Cairns: Real quick, let me share what you're talking about when we talk about changing up the diet.

00:32:38.158 --> 00:32:43.298
Dr. Kelly Cairns: A lot of folks will call it like a food rotation diet or a mixed feeding plan.

00:32:43.558 --> 00:32:47.698
Dr. Kelly Cairns: And there are some really good resources out there on the internet.

00:32:47.718 --> 00:32:51.958
Dr. Kelly Cairns: You always have to look at the source and just make sure, you know, look at the backing of that source.

00:32:51.978 --> 00:33:01.978
Dr. Kelly Cairns: But again, as long as you've talked to your vet and you make sure you're not missing anything medically and there's no underlying health conditions, or doing that would be not a great thing.

00:33:02.358 --> 00:33:08.338
Dr. Kelly Cairns: There's a lot of ways that you can do that safely for those cats that, you know, maybe respond to that.

00:33:08.638 --> 00:33:09.438
Rita Reimers: That's a good idea.

00:33:09.598 --> 00:33:18.298
Rita Reimers: I hate that we have to go because we could probably, I have a million questions and we could probably do a whole other podcast just about this, about food and the types of food.

00:33:18.318 --> 00:33:20.138
Rita Reimers: And I guess we should do one about that.

00:33:21.098 --> 00:33:26.798
Rita Reimers: I'd love to talk about raw and all the other diet options out there, but we'll have to do that another time.

00:33:26.798 --> 00:33:27.498
Rita Reimers: Darn it all.

00:33:28.078 --> 00:33:30.958
Rita Reimers: So, did you have any words of wisdom you want to leave us with, Dr.

00:33:30.978 --> 00:33:31.298
Rita Reimers: Kelly?

00:33:31.738 --> 00:33:37.278
Dr. Kelly Cairns: You know, I always love to leave our Kitty 11 friends with some final thoughts of an actionable toolkit.

00:33:37.298 --> 00:33:47.878
Dr. Kelly Cairns: And truly, when I think about proactive wellness care for your amazing beloved kitty family member, it is really there's, you know, four or five pillars really of things.

00:33:47.898 --> 00:33:51.778
Dr. Kelly Cairns: So it's of course a good physical exam and conversation with your vet.

00:33:52.058 --> 00:34:01.278
Dr. Kelly Cairns: And then those basic tests that we do, those blood, urine and fecal tests to make sure that there's nothing below the surface and we can catch anything that might be brewing quickly.

00:34:01.618 --> 00:34:06.558
Dr. Kelly Cairns: And of course, those vaccines, right, to prevent the preventable for things we do have.

00:34:06.798 --> 00:34:19.958
Dr. Kelly Cairns: But the fourth and the fifth, which are not less important, I'm just leaving them last because that's the topic we're talking about today, is looking at physical wellness and body condition and tied to nutrition.

00:34:20.258 --> 00:34:22.798
Dr. Kelly Cairns: Those are the fourth and fifth pillars of wellness.

00:34:22.818 --> 00:34:32.218
Dr. Kelly Cairns: So if you're not already talking to your vet about this, have that conversation next time you go see them so you can look at what's happening, look at what you're doing and be proactive with that.

00:34:32.238 --> 00:34:45.218
Dr. Kelly Cairns: So I'm grateful as always to you guys for the time to talk about cats and appetite because it does give a really rich fodder for discussion about what kitty families can do to be proactive for those cats they love so much.

00:34:45.878 --> 00:34:46.318
Rita Reimers: I love it.

00:34:46.338 --> 00:34:48.258
Rita Reimers: You have so much great information for us.

00:34:48.918 --> 00:34:52.638
Rita Reimers: Thank you so much for being here and being on this podcast.

00:34:52.658 --> 00:34:58.378
Rita Reimers: I have to dedicate to Missy Moo, who inspired this topic, but we lost her two days ago.

00:34:58.998 --> 00:35:00.118
Rita Reimers: We did our best, right?

00:35:00.138 --> 00:35:01.238
Rita Reimers: She had 20 good years.

00:35:01.258 --> 00:35:04.258
Rita Reimers: I have to be thankful I had her for five of those years.

00:35:04.318 --> 00:35:08.898
Rita Reimers: Now she's back with her human mom, her brother Rainbow Bird somewhere, and her brother Scooter.

00:35:09.098 --> 00:35:09.978
Rita Reimers: Now I'm going to cry.

00:35:10.858 --> 00:35:18.298
Rita Reimers: Linda, thank you as always for being my ride or die and Mark Winter for giving us this awesome platform for our podcast.

00:35:18.298 --> 00:35:22.618
Rita Reimers: And just remember, every day is Caturday, we'll see you next time.

00:35:23.518 --> 00:35:29.518
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