Banbury cat loses weight with 'very unusual' method

Nine-year-old Moses has been undergoing hydrotherapy treatment at Avonvale Veterinary Centres in Wellesbourne, Warwickshire.

Avonvale's veterinary hydrotherapist, Olivia Stokes, initially encountered resistance from Moses.

Moses with veterinary hydrotherapist Olivia Stokes (Image: Avonvale Veterinary Centres)

She said: "When he first came to us, Moses was nearly 10kg in weight.

"His owner said he had been on diets and been encouraged to exercise before but had still not able to lose weight.

"So, we decided to try a different approach with hydrotherapy. It’s a very unusual approach in caring for cats.

“I have been in the industry for five years and a qualified hydrotherapist for almost two years and I have never experienced hydro with a cat before.

“That is because cats don't usually like water and, sure enough, on his first taster session Moses was not impressed at all."

Ms Stokes had to gradually introduce Moses to the process, sometimes without water, to get him used to the treadmill.

But with time and patience, Moses started to accept, and respond to the therapy.

Moses undergoing hydrotherapy treatment (Image: Avonvale Veterinary Centres)

Ms Stokes continued: "Fast forward down the line and Moses now sits in the tank as I increase the water level, then knows exactly what to do.

"Once he has been walking for 13 minutes, I then lift him up, raise the water level further, and swim him for a couple of minutes to give him a full body workout."

Moses weighed 9.7kg at his heaviest, but came in at 9.1kg during his most recent weigh-in.

Ms Stokes said: “That’s a loss in body weight of almost four per cent in about six weeks, which is perfect as we don't want to lose the weight too quickly."

Moses undergoing hydrotherapy treatment (Image: Avonvale Veterinary Centres)

Moses’s owner, Jenna Joshi, who lives in Banbury and is a clinical nursing manager at Avonvale, said: "Moses has always been a big cat but had gained a lot of weight over the last three years.

"I'd been keeping him on a strict diet but this didn’t help at all.

"He just was not interested in going outside, exercising or playing with toys.

“I asked my colleagues at Avonvale whether we could try hydrotherapy to help with his mobility and, hopefully, help him lose some weight."

She continued: "I could see a difference almost straightaway.

"After his first hydro session he came through the cat flap, which he hadn’t done in a long time.

“We are still having regular weight checks, still doing hydrotherapy and making good progress.

"It was difficult at first but now he doesn’t complain and knows exactly what he needs to do."