Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

Overweight cat Sox bids for place in pet slimming contest

Sox the cat is more than double his ideal weight (Sandy Young Photography/PDSA/PA)
Sox the cat is more than double his ideal weight (Sandy Young Photography/PDSA/PA)

A cat more than double its ideal weight is among the animals competing for a place in a pet slimming contest.

Ten-year-old Sox, from Dundee, tips the scales at 11kg (24lb), well above his ideal weight of 5kg (11lb), and now struggles to get up the stairs.

He is among the contenders for a place in vet charity PDSA’s Pet Fit Club competition, which sees up to 20 overweight pets including dogs, cats, rabbits and rats chosen to participate.

Selected pets are placed on a six-month diet and exercise programme, individually tailored to their needs and overseen by vets and nurses at their local PDSA pet hospital.

Sox the cat
Sox needs to lose almost a stone (6.3kg) to reach his ideal weight (Sandy Young Photography/PDSA/PA)

Sox’s owner Stephanie Cowan adopted him from a rescue centre when he was just a few weeks old.

She said: “Sox doesn’t have a massive appetite but his weight has gradually crept up over the years.

“When you see them every day it’s difficult to notice when they’re getting bigger, but we know that he’s a lot slower and less energetic than he was this time last year.

“Sox is an indoor cat and doesn’t get out much, so he doesn’t get much exercise and I am concerned about his increasing weight.

“We have another cat named Finn who has a massive appetite, but Finn weighs much less than Sox. I always measure their food portions out and try not to overfeed them, but I am worried and just want Sox to be healthy.

“Sox is such a huge part of our family. He has helped my daughter through some very difficult times in her life and we would be lost without him. I want to help him lose weight so he can spend many more years enjoying life.”

PDSA vet Theodora Stefanou said: “Sox is quite a way off his ideal weight so we are obviously concerned about his health. It’s good that Stephanie recognises that he needs to lose weight and we are pleased that she has already made changes to his diet.

“She is committed to helping him and with the right support and choices, I’m confident that he will reach a healthy weight.”

Up to half of UK pets – 46% of dogs, 34% of cats and 30% of rabbits – are believed to be overweight or obese, according to PDSA figures.

The most common reasons for pets being overweight include owners not recognising their pet’s weight is an issue, feeding them too many treats or human food, and inappropriate portion sizes.

PDSA vet nurse Nina Downing said: “Pet obesity has been a huge problem in the UK for many years and sadly there is no sign of improvement, with nearly one in every two pets seen by vets and vet nurses overweight or obese.

“This is a serious health issue, one of the biggest currently threatening pet wellbeing across the UK.

“Pets who are overweight or obese are much more likely to develop health problems such as arthritis and diabetes. Being overweight can also seriously aggravate other health problems, such as heart disease.

“Prevention is always better than cure, but it is never too late to make a change.

“With the right advice, a good diet, suitable exercise and a bit of willpower, owners have the ability to make a real difference to their pet’s lives.”