Eliot - How thin is too thin??

[sirrahbed]

Our Eliot has always been a very active and very thin cat. Lately, we are starting to be concerned that he is too thin. He acts like he always does - very active. We see him eating, drinking and using his litter box. He does not eat any treats and never has.

His ribs and bones are easily felt through his fur - in fact - on close examination, he really has very little muscle.

He will go to the vet for a check-up tomorrow - November 18th. Everytime I start to make him an apointment - I change my mind and decide I am being too neurotic. Now I feel worried.

All of our cats had blood testing as babies, have had their vaccinations and seem to be very healthy....except for Eliot looking so thin. He is almost three years old.

So, how thin is too thin??

About six months ago...

Recent....

[Kirsten]

Hard to tell, I think. When Lily was younger, she used to be somewhat skinny, you could even feel her breastbone and her spine. Now she has gained a little more weight.

When I read about Eliot, I thought that hyerthyreoidism might be an option. As you probably know, it's not a rare thing in cats. But let's wait for what your vet says, maybe Eliot is just fine the way he is!

Best wishes to him,
Kirsten

[Jessika]

I woulsd wait to see what your vet says, but typically when my cats or pups started getting thin and I could rule out the possibility of a parasite or worms, I would just feed them a little more

[Grace]

Have you weighed him recently?

[catland]

One guideline that I once read was "if you can feel the ribs but not see the ribs, then the weight is ok".

Cat weight can vary so much by breed. If Elliot has some siamese/oriental shorthair in him, then he will always be a naturally thin cat.

I know that neurotic feeling sometimes regarding vet visits. But I usually find that my peace of mind is worth the cost.

Good luck to you and Elliot.

[Barbara]

In the pictures he looks like a healthy and slim young cat. No pouch. What does he weigh? Anything between 7 and 15 can be normal depending on how big he is. Only very big cats should weigh more. Have you looked at him from above when he walks. His sides can rather be concave, not convexe

[Laura's Babies]

His background could have left him with the genes to be skinny. Then, I don't believe Samantha will ever be a fat cat due to how starved she was most of her life, up until I got her.

BUT, I would bring it up at the vets and if he is holding his own and not loosing any, I wouldn't worry.

[may51380]

My sister has cat that looks just like Eliot, her name is Destiny and she has always been thin too. She weighs about 5 1/2 - 6 lbs. Her vet said that she is healthy, some cats are just smaller than others. My Lulu is very tiny too - couldn't tell by looking, all that fur is decieving. Hope everything goes well at the vets.

Janine
Beth
Lulu
Joey

[Alycat]

I had the same concern with my 7 month old Abigayle. She is a siamese mix. When I took her to the vet this week to get fixed, I asked about her weight. She is 5 lbs 4 ounces. The vet said that was normal for a siamese cat. She said she was healthy and as long as she eats well there is no reason to be concerned.

[catmandu]

As the Previous threads have said Some Cats are going to be on the thin side.
My Precious,Diane,and Rocca are all about 7 Pounds.
You could try Eliot on some Kitten Food,to see if that helps.

[Cataholic]

Debbie,
Is there any news on Eliot?

[krazyaboutkatz]

Debbie, I think that he looks very healthy and like others have said he may have some siamese in him so he'll continue to be on the slender side.

My Sunny is an Aby mix so he'll always be slender and he's very healthy 5 year old. Starr is almost 8 months old and he still only weighs a little over 6lbs. The vet told me that this is normal for him. Hopefully Eliot is fine but a vet check up sure won't hurt him. Please keep us updated.

[shais_mom]

I wouldn't know anything about having a cat that's too thin.
I hope Eliot had a good visit with the vet.
{{hugs}}

[jenluckenbach]

Elliot sounds like Jasper. My vet says "Some cats LIVE to eat while others eat to live." (just like people).

It always pays to be CERTAIN and visiting the vet is a fine idea, but try not to worry so much, it may just be his genes.

[catfamily]

My Marshall is just like Eliot.I was very concerned.Still am sometimes but the vet reassured me he's a bit thin but is fine.It may be from being bottlefed though.Some cats are just more active that others because of their metabolism.