Feline obesity affects an estimated 40-45% of adult pet cats in the UK, causing chronic welfare suffering through joint pain, diabetes, and reduced quality of life, with prevention far more effective than treatment.
Feline obesity causes chronic welfare suffering through joint pain that limits normal movement and reduces quality of life, metabolic disease, and increased surgical and anaesthetic risk. Obese cats often cannot groom themselves properly, causing skin problems and reducing their ability to perform a fundamental self-maintenance behavior. The welfare impact is substantial yet largely invisible to owners who perceive overweight cats as normal or simply well-fed. Prevention through appropriate portion control and activity enrichment is far easier than treating established obesity, which requires careful veterinary-supervised weight loss.