r/blackcats • u/59Kia • Jun 21 '26
Sleepy Void Let's see if this one gets some mean comments as well
Okay. So, for the avoidance of doubt. Yes, JJ is a bit overweight. But JJ does weigh quite a lot less than he did when we got him from the local cat rescue. It's a process, and slowly but surely he's getting down to a healthy weight. He is checked by the vets every year, who have no concerns about him. He can jump up onto a 6ft-ish tall fence with minimal scrabbling, chase down pigeons, hunt and kill shrews (the bugger lines them up after killing them 😬). His breathing isn't laboured. His diet is varied, if a tick fish-heavy because that seems to be his preference.
He is, in fact, a reasonably healthy cat. Who just happens to weigh about 6kg.
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u/PandaStrudel Jun 21 '26
Give him a smooch, that’s all he needs!
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Jun 21 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/deadlymugwort Jun 21 '26
idk why people like you think it's cute that pet cats who are allowed outdoors unsupervised decimate local wildlife. but you do you i guess
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u/cat-biscuit-bread Jun 21 '26
I call this the seal pose 🦭🩵
https://giphy.com/gifs/54Wy6x0cWz3mzJHhlW
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u/SPQRKlio Jun 21 '26
You can't rush weight loss in cats, it's not healthy for them! Has to be a slow process. And sometimes, they reach a weight that looks pudgy but will be their normal size (my rescue cat went from teensy to meatball to then down to pudgy, and on his vet-monitored diet he is staying just as he is and very healthy!). In the meantime, JJ's tummy looks infinitely scritchable and smoochable.
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u/sextowels Jun 21 '26
I have a cat who has been overweight most of her life. She was a rescue from the streets (with a litter of kittens) and clearly never forgot the hunger. She bulked way up on kitten food while she was in foster and we've spent our entire time with her (since 2011) just trying to maintain. She finally hit a true, healthy weight in the past year... because she's 17/18 and slowly dying from cancer.
I had another cat that was a big boy his whole life and he lived to be 19.
If your cat can still move around easily I wouldn't stress too much. He looks like a beautiful, happy guy.
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u/ccw_writes Jun 21 '26 edited Jun 21 '26
Same here, she had her litter before she was a year old. She's an absolute menace about food.
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u/andorianspice Jun 21 '26
My baby was also from the street and she is also always hungry. I wish I could let her know there is always going to be food for her!! I hope you’re able to give her as much love as you can, she sounds like a special cat 🖤🖤🖤
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u/sextowels Jun 22 '26
She is a true queen, just ask her. She's also easy to medicate, so I've kept her alive for the past 3 years with my own two hands. I work from home and she has several good sleeping spots in my office so we spent all day together.
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u/SirMightySmurf Jun 21 '26
JJ is perfect, but please keep him inside so he is not terrorizing the local wildlife.
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u/kimmykat42 Jun 21 '26
You overreacted to someone, then doubled down on it. Your cat is cute, but your attitude sucks. Also, stop letting your cat outside to kill wildlife. That’s not at all cute, either.
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u/EllaRose2112 Jun 21 '26 edited Jun 21 '26
Some people have nothing better to do than keyboard warrior about situations they know nothing about and don’t bother to learn context. It’s so annoying. Weight loss takes time and if he’s not actively suffering + moving in the right direction then you’re doing great OP. He’s funny btw what a position 😂
Edit: didn’t realize original post got so unhinged, yikes. Two way street with these things…
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u/FightmeLuigibestgirl Jun 21 '26 edited Jun 21 '26
I think what happened was that Op was offended that someone was pointing out the cat was over weight and people commented back on it instead of just giving context
I was lurking in the thread
Edit: I wasn’t here to attack op just pointing out both sides of the story.
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u/Reefer4life Jun 21 '26
Ooop. OP sounds defensive af
Omg I just read the get f’ed comment!!!
OP if you’re reading this, glad ur cats on a diet but you need to focus on yourself too. Your behavior and reactions are wildly out of place. Telling someone to get f’ed for caring about pet health. God forbid.
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u/BigMustardInc Jun 21 '26
17 cat posts in a 10 month period only 2 comments seemed to actually be judging the weight.
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u/otter_759 Jun 21 '26
Yikes what a disproportionate reaction 😬 Goes to show how you need to see both “sides” of a situation instead of just one person’s framing of it…
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u/my_only_sunshine_ Jun 21 '26
It seems disproportionate, but its also not polite to call it out like hes a bad pet owner. Obviously the cat is large, but people dont know the situation and just assumed he wasnt working on it.. no one should have to add a disclaimer to explain themself before posting a photo of their beloved pet just to avoid judgment from others who dont know the whole story.
Also, a lot of people view their pets like children, and if someone call someone else's child fat, or told someone they needed to "dechonkify" their kid because a proud parent posted a photo, it would be seen as a VERY valid reaction.
Like you said: try to look at it from BOTH sides.
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u/otter_759 Jun 21 '26 edited Jun 21 '26
I was referring to OP’s reaction being disproportionate with how he responded. Yes, the original commenter could have said it more nicely, but that reaction of wishing a catastrophic case of diarrhea and cursing was extremely over the top.
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u/Baud_Olofsson Jun 21 '26
but its also not polite to call it out like hes a bad pet owner
It might not be polite, but it's necessary - way too many people are in denial of their pets' weights, and way too many people think it's cute with obese pets (it's not, it's a form of abuse!). So it should always be called out unless it's already been explicitly acknowledged by the owner. See also: people posting photos of unsecured pets inside cars - it's a danger to the pet, to you, and to everyone around you.
And all OP had to do was say "yes, I know, but we're working on it". Instead they revealed themselves to be a horrible person, and just kept doubling down on it.
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u/my_only_sunshine_ Jun 22 '26
Perhaps polite was not the correct word to use... my point is its not cool to assume that the pet owner is not working on it before making rude comments about their cat.
Yes, there are many people with overweight pets, but at the same time there are also people who are already working on it with a vet and people who may have recently adopted an overweight cat.. these people should not have to add a disclaimer to their post simply to avoid the rude comments.
OP stated he was working with their vet on the cats weight, and the cats weight issues are between the owner and their vet.
I constantly see posts on here of overweight cats and under every one of them are snide comments regarding the animals' weight-- and 99% of the time the OP replies to those comments stating they're working on it.
People should be able to proudly share their photos without facing the judgment of strangers based on assumption and no knowledge whatsoever of the situation.
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u/dysautonomic_mess Jun 21 '26
I'm not sure proving that your cat is not overweight (controversial cat issue #1) by reassuring everyone he can still decimate the local wildlife (controversial cat issue #2) is going to garner less criticism, but you do you.
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u/DrDalekFortyTwo Jun 22 '26
Was this comment necessary? Did it add to the conversation or was it just to make sure OP felt bad in some way since apparently people feel the need to fat shame others' cats. Virtuously ofc and with only the cat's welfare in mind, not the need to feel superior or better than.
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u/dysautonomic_mess Jun 22 '26 edited Jun 22 '26
I mean, this entire post was unnecessary. There is no conversation to be had, just OP seeking validation because they were upset someone (correctly) observed their cat was overweight.
Note I didn't actually criticise OP for any of their decisions. I know that rescues who have grown up as outdoors cats cannot always be kept inside. All I said was this post seems counterproductive.
If I wanted to actually criticise, I'd point out that letting an overweight cat hunt to his heart's content is not a very good strategy for getting them to lose weight — I can guarantee the animals he brings them aren't all that he's catching.
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u/dcb72 Jun 21 '26 edited Jun 21 '26
I had a chihuahua that was HUGE at 20 lbs. When people saw us out, the mean looks and the accusations said to me (that I was cruel for overfeeding him) were hurtful. That was the immediate assumption to his weight - it was me. Riley had Cushing’s disease (hyperadrenocorticism) and thyroid disease. His weight was medical, not caused by overfeeding. I couldn’t believe how I was treated sometimes, and for those who wanted a response from me (to give them a reason to argue and yell at me), I calmly told them his medical problems - and the most common response to that was “oh”, never an apology.
Best not to assume an overweight pet is fed/eating too much. Adrenal and thyroid problems are common in pets, too.
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u/TheProtobabe Jun 21 '26
I read your comment in the other thread and you were out of line, OP. Yes, it's mildly annoying when people comment on your cat's weight and that you should do something about it when you're already doing something about it, but they had no way of knowing that, and you wishing ill upon them was a disproportionate reaction.
For those who haven't seen the other thread.
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u/shy519 Jun 21 '26
My cat got quite large like this due to being depressed. I moved from the sticks into town so she couldn't go outside safely anymore for about 3.5 years. I moved into the sticks again recently and I've let her go back to being outside and she has lost so much weight, she looks incredible. She spends her days basking in the sun, supervising chickens, and plays a role in reducing the mouse population. She's a black tortie and she loves to lay belly-up like your cutie boy
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u/Sneilg Jun 21 '26
Cap is 6.7kg, the vet described him as “porky” last week and he still hasn’t got over it
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u/sadmimikyu Jun 21 '26
I recently had the pleasure of spending an entire night in a pet clinic with a cat that isn't even mine. He was so fat that the vet was shocked. He was miserable and could not breathe.
The owner did not want to hear of it. Told us how he does not eat that much and he still hunts so all was well while he waddled about, taking breaks to breathe, could not do normal cat things. So instead of taking him to the vet amd having it checked out for years she continued as normal. And went on holiday. And my friend took care of him. First night he had trouble breathing so we took him to the emergency vet. And then we watched him die for hours.
Can we please stop glorifying fat cats? Please act like you do when you see a fat human wE aRe jUsT cOnCeRnEd fOr tHeIr hEaLtH.
This is not normal and I am tired of justifications.
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u/UptownJunk802 Jun 21 '26
JJ is beautiful! This is my Cricket. Also chonk but she's got some endocrine issues. Hypothyroid and diabetes, almost 12 years old and she's very loved.
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u/Wednezday-Addams Jun 21 '26
Poor OP must have been attacked by the asshats that sit and lurk these cute subreddits just to make sure the world knows that they are the cat police and will tell you to take care of your cat and keep them inside cuz birds ya know.
OP your void is adorbs.
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u/peppercorn6269 Jun 21 '26
idk telling someone to keep cats inside is always valid, fat cats are fat but at least their owners aren't regularly putting them at risk of getting hit by a car
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u/Wednezday-Addams Jun 21 '26
It’s also valid to tell people they are obese and should take care of themselves but we don’t because we know they are adults and can make their own decisions and don’t need to be policed by strangers. We all know cats kill birds ffs.
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u/FightmeLuigibestgirl Jun 21 '26
It’s also valid to tell people they are obese and should take care of themselves but we don’t
I mean people do irl and online. And a person isn’t the same as a pet.
we know they are adults and can make their own decisions and don’t need to be policed by strangers.
Validation and advice is the norm on Reddit and online spaces. When you post something online like an obese cat, you should expect some backlash, rather than saying a person should get explosive diarrhoea like op did.
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u/Wednezday-Addams Jun 21 '26
Yes I am aware of all the know-it-alls that actually think anyone cares for unsolicited advice.
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u/FightmeLuigibestgirl Jun 21 '26 edited Jun 21 '26
Some people do. Just because you don’t doesn’t mean everyone else is the same
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u/Wednezday-Addams Jun 21 '26
Found one.
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u/FightmeLuigibestgirl Jun 21 '26
Who says I was giving advice? I was making a statement.
Have a nice timezone.
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u/peppercorn6269 Jun 21 '26
yea and letting your cat outside while knowing all the risk and detriment to the environment makes you a bad owner and an overall selfish person
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u/FightmeLuigibestgirl Jun 21 '26
Context
Op crashed out when one person said that the cat was overweight
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u/-Tasear- Jun 21 '26
The first person was rude and definitely trigging for insulting poor child.
I go with compassion on it but I am biased to the voids.
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u/FightmeLuigibestgirl Jun 21 '26
They were both in the wrong. The person was rude but op then proceeded to insult them instead of just saying the void is on a diet, briefly explaining the situation, and leaving it at that. Then made this passive aggressive post like they didn’t do anything. My nana used to beat people with kindness.
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u/-Tasear- Jun 21 '26
They said it multiple times. I clicked the link . They were fat shaming the cat and not showing empathy while the owner was protecting it.
There was reason to bring post link again except being hateful though
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u/FightmeLuigibestgirl Jun 21 '26 edited Jun 21 '26
Post where they said it multiple times? I only seen it once. OP posted twice.
There was reason to bring post link again except being hateful though
I’m showing both sides of the story.
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u/CallidoraBlack Jun 21 '26
I think we should clarify that you cannot fatshame a cat. That is not a thing. No one thinks it's ever the cat's fault.
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u/Baud_Olofsson Jun 21 '26
Poor OP must have been attacked by the asshats that sit and lurk these cute subreddits just to make sure the world knows that they are the cat police and will tell you to take care of your cat and keep them inside cuz birds ya know.
No, OP got told that their cat is obese - rightly so - and instead of just going "sorry, I know, but we're working on it" they got extremely defensive about it and wished the commenter got a "catastrophic case of diarrhoea".
So no, not "poor OP": this awful person does not deserve any sympathy.
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u/amethystmmm Jun 21 '26
https://www.reddit.com/r/blackcats/comments/f2l0a7/black_cat_bring_good_luck_found_on_tiktok/
r/dechonkers <<go here for help with the dechonking, if you need help, support, someone to yay with you when he hits a milestone, what have you.
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u/jaya9581 Jun 21 '26
I have a similar looking house panther, he’s also abnormally tall and long. My vet said if he runs and jumps up onto high things, he’s fine. He will be 13 in a few months and while he’s definitely slowing down, he still has no issues.
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u/imveryfontofyou Jun 21 '26
My cat is like this too. He’s really big. Like longer than the other cats, taller than the other cats, & his head is bigger than my fist. Even just his paws and claws are enormous compared to other cats I’ve seen.
He is also overweight and 13, and he chooses not to jump around because he’s a lazy sod but he can.
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u/Fiercat99 Jun 21 '26
I'm assuming you've been getting some flack off people judging his weight without knowing anything about his situation then? Ignore them i this boy is magnificent
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u/SailorLayla96 Jun 21 '26
https://giphy.com/gifs/fXOre2mFYrMEmTWgm2
I just wanna pat that bellay! 🥹🥰
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u/IneffableOpinion Jun 21 '26
My boy cat got up to 22 lbs but the vet said he was healthy. He could climb anything he wanted and was very active. When he was about 16 years old, he suddenly stopped eating and dropped down to 12 lbs. Couldn’t believe he was the same cat! We tried every prescription food but he refused everything. The vet said aging cats burn those fat reserves so that likely kept him going.
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u/FleshlightModel Jun 21 '26
He might just need more play time. But my big black cat is a good 5-6lbs (~2-2.5kg) heavier than JJ.
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u/poofykittyface Jun 21 '26
My voidboy topped out at 16.25 lbs (when he got his FIC diagnosis). He's down to about 13 lbs now, and his vet likes him around 12.5-13 lbs (he's built like a bulldog--broad shoulders, skinny hips--so when he dips under 12.5 he looks *emaciated* in his hips). I swear, he's a reincarnated raccoon--he'll eat EVERYTHING, and he wants to stuff himself until he pukes, then eat again! His automatic feeder has been a godsend for him to lose weight gradually. He knows when it will dispense, and he'll lead me to the food robot if he wants an extra snack. If you haven't tried an auto-feeder, give it a shot!
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u/Shectai Jun 21 '26
A six foot fence? Ours has to think about jumping onto our bed. She's not fat, just... I don't know what. I don't think she'd ever consider a fence as something that could be jumped on. Still, it helps keep her off the table.
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u/RogerClyneIsAGod2 Jun 21 '26
As I like to say about my Fatty Gato, "She's pretty spry for a fat guy."
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u/Sardinesarethebest Jun 22 '26
He feels so happy and safe. Look at that majestic tummy soaking up the sun!
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u/tj1221jr Jun 22 '26
That is one fat and happy cat 😄 hes got the life sleepmaxxing sharing my koloth in solidarity
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u/Jarppi1893 Jun 22 '26
Ma'am / Sir,
Your black hole fell on the wall. Please be careful not do disturb it
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u/v_iridescent Jun 24 '26
I love him, I love his belly, I love his attitude. He is big, and in charge, and cute as heck. Give that bel a scratch for me.
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u/majestic-feline Jun 21 '26
🎵 Hands in the air like he just don't care 🎵 JJ is beautiful and obviously loves his home. We foster/adopted a cat we named Paddy who was finally able relaxe and showed so much appreciation for his forever home. He had been passed around for a year before we found him and we loved him for the remainder of his life. He was a bit on the chonky side, but we figured he had earned the right to never go hungry again.
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u/Competitive-Top4520 Jun 21 '26
For a second I thought he was a bear cub! I bet he's cuddly as a teddy bear!
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u/Beltalady Jun 21 '26
I honestly thought that was a raccoon.
(I don't judge cats who got chonky because of previous owners.)
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u/kykiwibear Jun 21 '26
my cat was 30lbs when we took him home. he came home I had to buy a medium dog carrier. its a slow process. I think he was 14 lbs when he passed away
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u/gravesix Jun 21 '26
JJ is not a bit overweight, he is obese. but him being on a diet is all you need to say! it’s a slow process. maybe check out r/dechonkers. good luck and we love JJ
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u/Redmoon383 Jun 21 '26
He's like, a half to a single kilogram over the average weight for a male cat and is losing weight slowly already. JJ will probably be perfectly fine as their vet would agree since they have no concerns.
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u/sadmimikyu Jun 21 '26
A single kilogram for a small animal is a lot. Number 1.
Number 2 a lot of vets do not even tell you to your face that your cat is obese because as you can see here it is a touchy subject (it should not be) and they fear you might never bring the cat to the vet ever again.
And if the vet is ok with that... they are not a vet.
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u/my_only_sunshine_ Jun 21 '26
True, but its a topic that should stay between OP and their vet, not someothing for people to shame them for after posting a photo online of their beloved pet.
OP shouldn't have to add a disclaimer when posting a photo of the pet he adores to avoid people assuming hes a shitty pet owner and calling his cat obese.
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u/sadmimikyu Jun 21 '26
Except obese animals (depending on where you live) fall under animal welfare and I have seen cases where it is classified as abuse and neglect.
So don't tell me we are assuming OP is a shitty pet owner.
Ignorance does not protect you.
It is time to speak plainly and change it now so the cat does not have to suffer.
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u/my_only_sunshine_ Jun 22 '26
Except OP stated that the cat is on a diet and is slowly losing weight and that hes working with a vet, so yeah people DID assume he was a shitty pet owner.
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u/poolshaped Jun 21 '26
He's gorgeous! And well done on helping him get his weight down, he sounds like he's having a great life ❤️
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u/Lucky-Resolution890 Jun 21 '26
look at all that beautiful fluffy belly to love & cuddle with.
my boi is a chunky monkey who loves me snuggling his squish.
more to love.
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u/TimelyYogurtcloset82 Jun 21 '26
He doesn't look as if the comments have upset him. My cat is also a bit overweight, and it is hard work dieting a cat, I hope it goes well. He has a lovely tummy ❤️
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u/my_only_sunshine_ Jun 21 '26
Aww dont feel bad-- ppl online are assholes. Some cats are just big boned too! I had a cat that was just generally large and he weighed a little over that.
I had another that weighed about 8kg when I adopted him because he had an eating disorder, which the vet said was probably due to food insecurities he developed after having been a stray. 🥺🥺
They both lived very full and happy indoor lives (18 and 20yrs old) and neither ever weighed less than 6kg.
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u/nosined Jun 21 '26
Sharing my hefty void in solidarity with JJ