# Winston needs more weight



## knitfreak (Jul 17, 2009)

So Winston is quite the runner. He runs 4-5 hours per night, and I have noticed that his sides are starting to become quite slim. I can also tell where his little hips are (if that makes sense, haha). Maybe he is a slender guy, but I am concerned about his gym-orexia  I think he used to be a straight bodied hedgie, but he is starting to get a bit of an hourglass and I want to beef him up a bit  I don't think the scale is helping much as he was a baby and is growing so the weight is going up, but his body type is changing, if that makes sense.

I want to add another food to his mix that is higher in fat. Currently he gets Wellness Indoor and Castor and Pollux Ultramix Indoor. Does anyone have a recommendation for a good fattening food to add to the mix? I will obviously monitor the weight/body shape and take it out if he starts getting chubby. Thanks in advance for any ideas!


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## smhufflepuff (Aug 28, 2008)

I'd either change out the indoor version of either food for the "regular" version or add something different to the mix like Solid Gold Katz-n-Flocken or Chicken Soup for the Cat Lover's Soul.


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## LizardGirl (Aug 25, 2008)

Inky also has trouble maintaining weight. I have him on a high-fat mix, and haven't had trouble lately. He hasn't gained much, but he isn't losing.

Inky's favorite food of all time is Before Grain Cat, you can get in in one pound bags at specialty pet shops. It has higher fat and apparently tastes good. :lol: 

You can try Halo Spot's Stew, it has higher fat but Inky would not eat it.

You can also try Royal Canin BabyCat as a treat, or more mealies, etc.


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## knitfreak (Jul 17, 2009)

Well, as I already have the less fat versions of wellness and ultramix, I might as well as a new one for the extra fat. I was thinking of getting csftcls, but I can't find it around here.

For the Before Grain, I read this about it: A slightly unique feature of Before Grain cat food is that it is made with freeze-dried fruts and vegetables that are added after the cooking process

Does that mean there are little bits that aren't kibble in it? I wonder if they would pose a chocking hazard or if you take them out? I think the Ultramix has something similar in it, too, but I always pick those bits out because I am paranoid :lol: If it is indeed little bits, is there a lot (if I am going to pick them out I wouldn't want it to be half the bag, haha!)

Forgot to add that I feed him 4-5 freeze dreind mealies a day, as well as 2-3 freeze dried crickets. He's still so skinny! (I think I want his metabolism!)


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## smhufflepuff (Aug 28, 2008)

knitfreak said:


> Forgot to add that I feed him 4-5 freeze dreind mealies a day, as well as 2-3 freeze dried crickets. He's still so skinny! (I think I want his metabolism!)


How about the non-freeze-dried ones? I wonder if live mealies might help more.


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## hedgielover (Oct 30, 2008)

I agree fresh mealies might have a bit more fat. I feed Quigley Felidae it has 20% fat and 30(ish)% protein. I've found it a good pair for the wellness healthy weight because wellness is so rich and causes soft poop for him. Felidae has more grains so is not so rich and really firms up his poop. Plus he loves it. It might be a bit high in fat though even for a runner.


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## silvercat (Oct 24, 2008)

Sylvie loves her Go! Natural Chicken, fruit & vegetable formula food. Crude fat is 20%. It actually smells pretty good too!


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## knitfreak (Jul 17, 2009)

I would try fresh mealies but I am totally grossed out by them. It's the squirming, I can't stand it. I feel bad because I would love to get him some "real" ones though. He actually likes crickets a lot more than mealies! But he loves cooked ground turkey the most 

That Felidae stuff sounds great, Winnie's poos can sometimes seem soft although they are quite robust :shock: And, I think the pet supply right by my house carries them! I will call to double check, but it would be nice to support a local business. As for the fat percentage, he really has no fat on him at all and you can see his hips through his quills :lol: You can even kind of see them in the profile pic I have of him for my avatar, and that was when he was a baby and had a nice little round belly, the cutie! He's just a tiny skinny guy. Sometimes I think he might even have worms!


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## LizardGirl (Aug 25, 2008)

Nope, the Before Grain is just kibble, no little fruit/veggie chunks. Here's a pic of the kibble next to a penny for size comparison.

[attachment=0:1j2heqwn]beforegraincat.jpg[/attachment:1j2heqwn]


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## hedgielover (Oct 30, 2008)

Good luck with the felidae. It worked out well for us so I hope Winston likes it too.


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## smhufflepuff (Aug 28, 2008)

hedgielover said:


> I agree fresh mealies might have a bit more fat. I feed Quigley Felidae it has 20% fat and 30(ish)% protein. I've found it a good pair for the wellness healthy weight because wellness is so rich and causes soft poop for him. Felidae has more grains so is not so rich and really firms up his poop. Plus he loves it. It might be a bit high in fat though even for a runner.


"Mmmm," says Satin; "I want more of that!"

She really loved Felidae, but it's too high in fat for her (she's a big girl). Perhaps another nice choice for your little running man 



knitfreak said:


> I would try fresh mealies but I am totally grossed out by them. It's the squirming, I can't stand it. I feel bad because I would love to get him some "real" ones though.


Tweezers help a lot


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## Zalea (Sep 12, 2008)

knitfreak said:


> Forgot to add that I feed him 4-5 freeze dreind mealies a day, as well as 2-3 freeze dried crickets. He's still so skinny! (I think I want his metabolism!)


I always recommend against freeze dried insects, especially for daily feeding. They have been reported to cause intestinal impaction that led to death when fed on a regular basis and I don't feel the risk is worth it; in addition to that, they are less liked by most hedgies because they are dry and have little smell. For the people who don't like to do live (which you truly get used to after awhile when it comes to mealworms; I didn't like touching them at first now I don't even think twice about it...still don't like the beetles though :lol: ), I usually recommend canned mealworms. These are found in the reptile section and need to be refrigerated after opening, but they are much smellier and are moist, which hedgies go crazy over. Live is always best (you can use tweezers as smhufflepuff suggested, or a plastic spoon if you'd rather), but if you don't do live canned is a much better alternative to freeze dried. You can also get canned crickets.


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## hedgielover (Oct 30, 2008)

Zalea said:


> I always recommend against freeze dried insects, especially for daily feeding. They have been reported to cause intestinal impaction that led to death when fed on a regular basis and I don't feel the risk is worth it; in addition to that, they are less liked by most hedgies because they are dry and have little smell. For the people who don't like to do live (which you truly get used to after awhile when it comes to mealworms; I didn't like touching them at first now I don't even think twice about it...still don't like the beetles though :lol: ), I usually recommend canned mealworms. These are found in the reptile section and need to be refrigerated after opening, but they are much smellier and are moist, which hedgies go crazy over. Live is always best (you can use tweezers as smhufflepuff suggested, or a plastic spoon if you'd rather), but if you don't do live canned is a much better alternative to freeze dried. You can also get canned crickets.


The great thing about canned (meal worms or crickets) is that after you open them you can freeze them and then only thaw as much as you need for about a week. That way they don't go bad before you finish the can. Other thing you can do is just buy live insects and then freeze them to kill them before you feed them. Quigley won't eat live crickets so that is what I do with them.


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## knitfreak (Jul 17, 2009)

I have heard about the intestinal impaction issues with the freeze dried bugs, so I watch his poops like a hawk :lol: It doesn't seem like he has a problem with them so far! Lots of nice, big poops! Hahah! I like the idea of freezing live bugs and giving him those instead. 

I was thinking about it, and I don't see how something dried can have less fat... it takes out the water, not the content. So I think they have the same amount of fat, just no moisture. And Winston can definitely smell them!

I actually just weighed him yesterday, and I think he may have lost weight since his vet visit. Not much, but shouldn't he be gaining as he is still a baby? I have to call the vet and get the exact numbers. If he wasn't so active and healthy I would worry about him. 

Should I bring him back to the vet for a small weight loss in what I would assume to be his growing years, or should I just put him on more fatty food and hope he starts to gain?


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## knitfreak (Jul 17, 2009)

So it's been over two weeks and he has not put on any weight. He did quit losing though!

Right now he is on a three-food mix, two low fat and one high fat (20%). I am going to add a fourth food slowly to the mix, it's 18% fat, and see if he gets some meat on his bones from that. I do know that he ABSOLUTELY LOVES his delicious new fatty foods, hehe. 

My boyfriend was up late the other night and said Winston ran straight from 11 at night to 5 in the morning, at which time my boyfriend went to bed. He probably ran for longer after that, what a nut! 

I will keep you all updated on his weight, thanks for all the previous input!


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