Hi, I have two cats (british shorthair) named Bonnie and Clyde. They are 3 years old. Bonnie is really really fat but Clyde isn't, even though they eat the same amount. Clyde often goes out and runs around the gardens, they have a lot of freedom and Clyde takes full advantage. Bonnie however rarely goes out even though she has the option. She stays in and follows us around the house. She is carried around, up and down the stairs a lot of the time and hates to be alone. She needs constant attention. It makes sense that Clyde is much thinner but we dont know why Bonnie isnt more active. She's young and has always been like this, just very dependent. Recently Clyde went missing for 3 days (he was trapped in an abandoned house) and Bonnie was very upset. She ate a lot more and as a result is at her fattest. We're worried that this is taking years off her life. Could there be a deeper problem than overfeeding, why wont she run around like Clyde? They are brother and sister so i dont think its likely to be a ganetic condition. If Bonnie goes on a diet it'll be so hard to control because i dont think Clyde would benefit from losing any weight at all and they are used to having meals together. Please help!!
Thanks Emma

Also, if it helps they are both nutered.

Hi, Emma,
Some cats are slow and fat. and some are active and lithe ( just like humans!) Neutering often has the effect of changing metabolism and fat storage. Are you sure that Bonnie is not eating Clyde's food too, even though you feed them at the same time? Does Clyde always eat his feed when it is put down for him? If not, Bonnie may be going back to it and finishing it off when you are not looking. Lastly, cats cannot open cans, so if Bonnie is getting too fat, you are maybe feeding her too well!
Walter

We watch them eat most of the time and if anything it's clyde taking bonnie's food! he tries to shove her out the way and finish hers. I know that she isn't eating HIS food.
they have pouches of cat food and on the box it reccomends they have three pouches a day. We used to give them 3 a day but have now cut Bonnie's down to two pouches a day and replaces the 3rd with a special lowfat cat crunchies, and clyde sometimes has an extra pouch if bonnie isnt around. We generally dont feed a whole pouch at a time as one meal. we Give bonnie smal amounts of food from the pouch to keep her quiet because she is always asking for it.
She difinitely isnt getting overfed! i'm more concerned about why she is so dopey, because that is obviously why she isnt burning off the calories. surely she should be running around a bit and not so dependant on us. we live on a long street and there are gardens next to each other and backing off for one another - she has a massive space to run about. she could be jumping over fences and climbing trees. she does some of that in the summer but doesnt usually leave our own back garden. She would rather follow us around in the house.
is it simply because we have given her too much f our time that she is so dependant and therefore isnt interested in normal cat type activities or could she have another problem. Our old cat was very slim and suffered from a (overactive)thyroid problem, could bonnie have a similar (underactive thyroid) problem? or is that very unlikely for such a young cat? (she's 3 years old)

Everyone I saw in practice with an overweight pet ASSURED me that they were not overfeeding! Only food makes animals fat, and only then if they are fed more than their requirements. When you have two cats, it is difficult to reduce the food for one and not the other. Bonnie may have an undractive thyroid - this is much rarer than an overactive one. Have you had her checked out by your vet? If not, that should be your nest step.
Walter

she has an appointment booked for tomorrow for her booster vaccinations anyway. They said that they would weigh her and give her a special diet but i havent got a clue how we are going to control it. i'm not worried about bonnie eating clyde's food - i'm worried about clyde eating bonnie's food. because bonnie is so dependant we know exactly what she's doing where she is the whole time, and if she tried to eat clyde's food we could stop it. but its impossible to keep an eye on clyde.
clyde is bugging me for attention now so i'll go!!
thanks for helping