Baxter (pictured here) is half way to his weight loss goal. His veterinarian put him on a diet: In August, he weighed 18 pounds. He has been eating diet cat food, and is now a slimmer 15 pounds. (We went to the vet on Friday.) He still has 3 pounds to go; the vet says 12 pounds would be healthy for a cat his size (big boned).
For those who are interested, he has been on the cat version of the Atkins diet. It actually works for cats because they are carnivores and their bodies aren't made to process grains. Most cat food, the vet told us, are made mostly of corn or wheat grain, and since cats can't process corn and grain, they gain weight. The "diet" cat food is made from meat stuff, which cats' bodies can process, so they lose weight. Interesting, huh.
This has an interesting lesson: Diet by eating foods that are appropriate for your body and your metabolism, instead of jumping on dieting fads or weirdo diet pills.
On the other hand, Beatrice (pictured above) has gained 2 pounds since we moved here. She is also eating the diet cat food, but doesn't get as much exercise as she used to. In our Provo house, we had stairs and lots of space for her to run and jump and do cat stuff. This apartment is too small for running and jumping. She is also bored now and gets into lots of trouble. She opens cupboards and takes the stuff out. She scratches the furniture. She pushes stuff off shelves.
This has two valuable lessons:
1. Diet alone isn't good enough. Combine diet with exercise.
2. Boredom = Mischief. True with cats. True with Ben. Probably true for everyone.
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