There Are Now An Unusual Number Of Fat Cats In This Country

[Initech]

Both billionaires and actual fat cats:

Conducted by the Association for Pet Obesity Prevention, the National Pet Obesity Awareness Day Survey found that 58 percent of cats were reported to be overweight or obese by their veterinarians. That’s up 5 percent from the group’s 2010 survey.

Photo: Fat cat / Lori Adamski Peek/Getty ImagesBing: The world's fattest cats

The research also found that 53 percent of dogs are overweight or obese.

“Pet obesity remains the leading health threat to our nation’s pets,” said APOP founder and dvm360 contributor Ernie Ward, DVM. “We continue to see an escalation in the number of overweight cats and an explosion in the number of type 2 diabetes cases.”

More: Obese Dachshund drops 40 pounds

Now about 80 million cats and dogs in the United States are at increased risk for weight-related disorders like diabetes and many cancers, according to the study.

http://living.msn.com/family-parenting/pets/off-the-leash-blog-post?post=f332a542-3e98-460f-9bf6-5c2b9655db27

[Warren DeMontague]

1. Serious bit of fact, though- apparently even lab animals are getting fatter.

So there may be some unknown environmental factors driving this stuff; in people as well as other species.

[Curmudgeoness]

2. That was my first thought also.

It makes me wonder if it is that we are all feeding animals more than in the past, or if it is something used in foods today. I have a suspicion that it is not a change in the way people are feeding---there have always been some people who overfed, but I don't think there is an explosion in that.

But I do know that more people go out to eat than in the past generations, and whenever I go out, I am shocked at the size of the meals.....so maybe we are all being conditioned to think that small amounts are not enough, for us and our pets. When I started to measure pet food, I was surprised at how little it takes to feed the recommended amounts.