Recap:  My name is Shirley and I was rescued from the San Jose shelter because I was too fat to be put up for adoption.  Since November, I have been fostered by a caring human, and have been trying to lose weight.  My weight loss has been a challenging journey.  Read my previous posts here.

I’m excited.  It’s January and I’m scheduled to go back to Club Chub.  I’m really a different girl.  I am Shirley and I am a confident, happy, healthy tabby girl who is losing weight.
I spend my days grooming myself, looking out the window, climbing my cat tree and exploring the house.  

There’s a new 12 year old rescue kitty here and she doesn’t keep her tail out of my face when she sits on my favorite couch.  But I am being calm. I don’t hit her or hiss at her. I don’t even move.  I stare at her, but she stares at our foster mom. As long as her tail stays at least 2 inches from my nose, I’m OK.  I am becoming a better kitty. I know how to move if I don’t like it. I do not have to be cranky.  I wish I did not share this house with so many kitties. Isn’t there a forever home for me?

I must be getting smaller. I am enjoying sitting in my foster mom’s lap.  When I first got to the rescue house, I always felt like I was going to fall off her lap. Now, it seems that I fit.   I have been a good girl and have been sticking to my diet.   My foster mom didn’t.  She said its because they closed her Weight Watchers center and the new place is too far and has bad parking. That’s her excuse. I stick to my diet. I want to be thin. I want to be adopted. 

I hope my new weight is good.  Then I can tell everyone in this blog.  And then someone will know what a good girl I am.  And maybe someone will want to be my very own diet buddy.  Maybe you?

Wish me luck…

Update:  Shirley has met her target weight of 12.5 pounds!  She has officially graduated from Chub Club and is ready to start her new chapter in life!

Do you have a chubby pet?  Just like humans, overweight animals are at great risk for health problems.  Talk to your vet about a supervised weight loss program.

Special thanks to Pinnacle Animal Hospital, and Shirley's foster mom for their great care of Shirley!

If you’ve been following my postings, you know that I am Miss Shirley and I am a chubby cat.  If you missed the first installment of my weight loss adventure, read it here! 

When I first got to my foster home, my fur was greasy.  I wasn’t really taking care of it.  The Shelter cage was so small and it was hard to turn around in it—I am a big girl, you know. And I really wasn’t in the mood. I missed my family. I missed my chair.

My foster mom ignored my dirty fur for a while. I guess she was hoping I would get to it once I was out of cage.  I cleaned my front paws nicely, but I couldn’t twist very well to get the rest of me.  That’s because I’m fat.

So what happened?  I got a bath!!  So degrading!  I was a good kitty, I didn’t show my claws. I did talk a lot. A lot. And it kinda felt good. And it made it easier to clean myself.  I’m mean there wasn’t so much work.  All I had to do was straighten everything. Still I couldn’t quite reach all of me.  I’m thinking I will be able to when I become a thin kitty again.

Once I started cleaning my tummy regularly my bowels started to move more frequently.  They were still kinda tough, but with less inside I was more comfortable and more mobile. Climbing the cat tree wasn’t so hard.

Well, the first week of December was a big week for me.  I really wanted to show off how well I was doing on my diet.  We went to Pinnacle Animal Hospital and Dr. Forgy greeted me like an old friend.

Pictures were taken to show my progress.  I just knew I was doing well.  Dr. Forgy said I wasn’t dehydrated so I wasn’t to worry about my bowels.  As I got more active things would move better. Easy for her to say.  She gave me some hope.

Then I got weighed.  I’d lost only 0.2 pounds.  That’s just over 3 ounces!  I was so disappointed.  Dr. Forgy said, “That’s OK!  It’s just going to take longer.” Longer! I was looking forward to going back to my old life of open feeding and lounging all day.  

How was I going to find a forever home if I didn’t show that I could lose weight? Was I doomed to live in a rescue house forever?

Want a companion to lose weight with?  Adopt Shirley!

Happy New Year Everyone! 

I’m Miss Shirley and I am a chubby kitty.  This is the story of my search for my thin kitty within. I am hoping to find my permanent home and my forever diet buddy, too.

Once upon a time, I was a normal-sized kitty. I’m not a piggy. Sometimes I leave a little food in my bowl.  But I do like to lounge. I guess that was my downfall—no exercise.

When my family surrendered me to the shelter they were warned that some kitties don’t qualify for re-homing.  I guess we were in denial of what could happen to me.  The shelter staff told me I was too fat for their adoption program—even though I was a very friendly girl.  If I didn’t find a rescue group, I would be “put to sleep.”  I knew what that meant. Gulp!

So I talked to every worker and every volunteer.  I greeted them with a chirp and nuzzled against the cage seductively. “Rub my head. Scratch my ears.”  I have a very deep and gravelly voice and I tried to sound as sweet as I could. Some people say I sound like Lauren Bacall or Demi Moore. I say, “Who are they?”

My strategy worked! The St. Francis Rescue people took me to a foster home that San Jose Animal Advocates found. They arranged for my enrollment at Club Chub!  Pinnacle Animal Hospital in San Jose has specialists in weight reduction and I met my doctor.  Doctor Forgy was going to help me get thin so I could find a forever home! I learned that she donated her services to me because I was a rescue girl. I thought it was because of all the talking I did when we met.

First, she checked my blood work. All my enzymes and electrolytes were good. Even more important—my glucose level was good. I’m not diabetic or pre-diabetic!  Hooray!  That improves my chances of weight loss success AND it improves the chance that I will find my forever home.  

Next, she weighed me. I weighed 15.5 pounds. On my frame, that’s fat.  I’m about 30% overweight and that’s morbidly obese. She took photos.  No hiding the truth anymore.

Then, I was given my diet. Hill’s metabolic diet. M/D.  Only ¼ cup, two times per day. The local distributor for Hill’s knew I was a rescue kitty and donated my food! 

That was last November.  Check back here to read more of my story.