There’s a lot of Bronson to love. At just three years old, Bronson the cat weighed in at a massive 33lbs when he arrived at West Michigan Humane Society in May, following the death of his owner. He was more than double the weight of an average cat, and his tummy had a circumference of 32 inches.
As you might have guessed, that’s not a healthy weight for a cat, and he struggled to move around and play. Shelter volunteers reckon he was overfed high-carb kibble multiple times a day by an elderly owner, leading to his huge weight gain. Thankfully shortly after Bronson arrived at the shelter, he was adopted by Mike Wilson and Megan Hannman, a couple who were dedicated to making sure the cat was in good health.
The couple, who design cat furniture, had planned to adopt a kitten, but when they spotted Bronson they fell in love – and knew they needed to help him shift the pounds. They’ve now put Bronson on a vet-recommended diet that restricts his food intake to 375 calories a day. In just a few months he’s already lost 1.5lbs and has overcome his addiction to kibble, now happily tucking in to wet, low-fat cat food. Great job, Bronson.
‘When we first saw Bronson we were shocked because we had never seen a cat his size,’ said Mike. ‘He was huge. He really needed help. ‘We went back to the humane society the following day to discuss the possibility of adopting him.
‘Luckily they thought we would be a good match for Bronson because of our experience with cats and also what we do for a living. ‘We don’t know a whole lot about Bronson’s past. The shelter thinks his owner might have been an elderly person who wasn’t very mobile themselves and overfed him.
‘His blood tests revealed that he didn’t have any health problems which would cause this weight gain, so it was just overindulgence. ‘We think that Bronson used to be on a diet of kibble, which is mostly carbs. We’re pretty sure he was fed every few hours before. ‘We’ve switched it up. He’s now on a wet food which is grain free and low fat. We add water to it so that it becomes sort of like a soup to fill him up. ‘He likes the food fine, but you can tell he just wants more. He wakes us up in the middle of the night meowing for a snack.’ We can relate.
Bronson still has some weight to lose, as he needs to be slim enough to have an operation for his broken tooth. He’s too heavy for anaesthetic to be used safely, and he’s limited to staying indoors as his health isn’t strong enough to take medications to protect him from fleas and ticks. He’ll need to drop a few more lbs before he can live life to the fullest.
‘Our vet discovered that one of his teeth is broken and it needs to be pulled but right now he’s to heavy for anesthetic to perform the operation safely,’ explains Mike. ‘So far he’s lost one and a half pounds but hopefully in a couple of months he can have that tooth pulled. ‘We think this time next year he will have a much better quality of life ‘Of course, he would like to be eating more. He’s not thrilled with the lifestyle changes but hopefully he’ll be happier when he can move around better in a few months.’