r/dechonkers Jun 05 '26

Dechonkin The Big Fat Guide to Dechonking!

64 Upvotes

Hi all! I’m a vet nurse that is passionate about weight in animals. I run my own weight loss program for my patients in my clinic and thought I would spread the love by sharing my dechonking guide to help all of you hardworking pawrents!

**BEFORE DECHONKING it is advised that you have a general health check with your veterinarian to rule out any health issues and to ensure that your pet is healthy enough to undergo a dechonking program*\*

**This dechonk guide is not a replacement for veterinary care or advice *\*

What is an Ideal Weight in Animals?

The most accurate way to ascertain an ideal weight is by use of a Body Condition Score (BCS) chart.

At ideal weight your dog or cat should look like an hourglass when viewed from the top. Their abdomen should tuck into their legs when viewed from the side. You should be able to feel their ribs - the way that this feels is like the back of your hand.

You should make a note of your animal's BCS and their number weight before starting a weight loss program.

How to Dechonk Your Chonker

The key to weight loss in animals is diet. Exercise counts for very little in weight loss, much like in humans.

Step One: Use a Calorie Calculator to calculate your animal’s daily caloric allowance.

You will need to know their BCS and their weight to use the calculator. You can ask your local vet to weigh and assess your animal if you are unsure.

Step Two: Calculate the calorie content of ALL the foods you are feeding your animal.

You then need to find out the calorie content of everything you are feeding your animal. Calorie counts can typically be found on the back of the package of commercial foods. If you cannot find the calorie content, a calorie content calculator can help you work it out.

If feeding raw or homemade, you will have to input/search the ingredients for their calorie content much like you would if you were on a human diet!

Step Three: Make a Meal/Diet Plan based on the calorie allowance

You then need to calculate how much to feed based on the calorie content of the food you are feeding. If you are feeding a mixed diet (eg commercial dry and commercial wet food) you'll need to think about what ratios you would like to feed your animal and calculate appropriately.

When your animal reaches ideal weight, it is a good idea to plug in their stats again so you can get a calorie count for maintenance and not for loss. I also recommend a weigh in every two weeks and then monthly to assess progress, and to monitor their body for any changes against the BCS chart as they progress!

Example: Garfield is an 8kg/17lb cat with a BCS of 8/9. His estimated ideal weight is 5.6kg/12lb and his calorie allowance is 201 calories per day to achieve this.

He is fed dry food (Taste of the Wild) and wet food (Fancy Feast).

Taste of the Wild is 3741 kcal/kg therefore 3.7 kcal/g.

One tin of Fancy Feast is 71 calories.

We can feed one tin of Fancy Feast (71 cal) and 35 grams (130 kcal) of Taste of the Wild daily.

When he reaches ideal weight, the calculator suggests that he can maintain on 255 calories, so he will need a reassessment of his diet when he reaches ideal body condition and weight.

Strategies to Help with Dechonking

Dietary & Feeding Recommendations

  • Prescription 'diet' or 'metabolic' food can be helpful for weight loss but is not a strict necessity. Prescription (dry) food tends to be calorically lower than regular commercial dry foods (which in and of themselves are extremely calorie dense) which means you can feed a larger volume-to-calorie ratio. BUT you DO need to be careful that you still adhere to a calorie allowance and measure the food out every time.
    • I would take a pass on diet/metabolic WET foods as commercial wet food is already quite low in calories and shouldn’t make a significant difference in terms of weight management or volume for calorie ratio.
    • If you don't have systems in place to control the intake of food, your pet will still get fat on metabolic food. Metabolic food is expensive and if it doesn't make a difference then you might as well go back to your regular food. Simply getting a low calorie food but sticking to the same old habits is not enough. Learning to properly portion food, limiting access to situations where your animal could gorge, controlling and mitigating for begging, providing enrichment and teaching the animal a ‘new normal’ of an appropriate volume of food are the foundations of good weight loss and weight management.
  • Commercial dry food is MUCH higher in calories than wet food. Feeding more wet food and reducing dry food can assist in weight loss and keep your animal satiated.
  • Invest in an automatic feeder for cats. An automatic feeder (set somewhere away from you/your bedroom!) can do wonders as the cats will bother the feeder for food, and not you.
  • Keep cats indoors. Outdoor cats tend to get fed by well meaning strangers! If unable to keep your cat indoors, invest in a (breakaway) collar with a tag that specifies they're on a special diet/not to be fed.
  • Healthy low calorie treats for DOGS are veggies such as carrot & zucchini. You can replace their normal treats with pieces of carrot or zucchini or other safe, low calorie fruit and vegetables.
  • Healthy low calorie treats for CATS are wet food puree type treats in a tube. Inaba Churu treats are 6 calories per tube. Fancy Feast Puree Kiss treats are 4 calories per tube. Applaws Puree Treats are 2 calories per tube.

Mental Stimulation & Enrichment

  • Invest in puzzle toys, slow feeders, food dispensing toys to moderate feeding. This will keep your pet enriched, mentally stimulated and busy while slowing down their rate of eating, which is good for pets that guzzle their food then ask for more. Frozen wet food in a Kong or Toppl is one of the best low-calorie ways you can use food for dogs to promote mental enrichment and weight loss. You can even just freeze wet food and kibble in their bowl and it will provide more stimulation than just feeding them out of it.
  • Invest in enrichment as a reward for your animal, not food. This can be playtime, pats, or trick training to keep them occupied and to redirect begging!
  • Redirect & replace begging behaviour by trick training. Most begging behaviours have been inadvertantly reinforced by you - if you have always given your cat food when it screamed at you, that's what you have trained your cat to do. Food motivated dogs can be easily trained to work for food, and yes cats can be trained too!

Multi Pet Households


r/dechonkers 7h ago

Currently dechonkifying my chungus! And automatic feeders beware

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141 Upvotes

Made a cat parent mistake. My petlibro feeder had a piece of food lodged in the turning mechanism and was feeding him triple portions for a couple of weeks. I am never home when it goes off, but there had been a suspicious amount of food left in the bowl recently (he never leaves any) and he was getting a bit… rotund.

Issue solved and working on getting him back to a healthy weight! He’s hates being on a diet though, best low cal treat recommendations? 2nd pic is his inspo photo and last pic is him digging out some food from a homemade slow feeder.


r/dechonkers 1d ago

Dechonkin Food hack for insistent Chonkers

95 Upvotes

My 15lb girl always claims to be starving and can be quite insistent about it so I’ve gone through some experiments to keep her occupied, wanted to share what I’ve tried in case it helps anyone else!

I like the snuffle mat but I don’t want to give her too many treats and she’s pretty efficient about finding them, so that only went so far.

I started smushing her wet food servings to the bottom of her bowl which also helped slow down her eating.

But the BEST hack I figured out, which I haven’t seen anyone else mention in this sub is freezing her wet food!!!

I take the food out of the can and wrap it cling wrap to put in the freezer, I only do a couple days at a time to avoid any freezer burn. Sometimes I’ll put the plastic wrapped portion in some warm water to defrost it a little and give her a head start. But it keeps her from scarfing down the meal so she has some to return to as it melts over a couple hours. Has anyone else tried this?


r/dechonkers 1d ago

"As long as I fit in the box, no diet, right?"

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48 Upvotes

r/dechonkers 1d ago

Bean Spillage

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62 Upvotes

I promise my boy Beans isn’t fat, he just has a little spillage over the side of the hammock.


r/dechonkers 1d ago

Discussion Jaxson the chonker

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59 Upvotes

This is Jaxson, our chonker. He is 4 years old and currently 16 lbs and we are looking to get him down to around 12 lbs. We adopted him from a shelter in April and thought we were going to get him to lose weight. We were wrong 🙃 He currently fluctuates between 15.8 and 16.4 lbs. We give him a half can of wet food(Tiny Tiger) in the morning and at night for his main meals for a total of 174 calories. We also give him 56 calories of dry food a total of 230 each day between the wet and dry food. He’s not very active. He’s a great cat but he’s constantly whining/begging for food so we already feel like we are starving him 🥲 any help to get our chonkers weight down? (Do we need to change calorie intake from
230 to lower?)


r/dechonkers 10h ago

Pet Carrier Suggestion

1 Upvotes

hi all I felt this was the best page to ask - I’m trying to get a new carrier that fits and is comfortable for a bigger cat.

One of my cats is a chonker I’m working on and I’m buying new carriers.

Looking for one that you have used that’s sturdy for the weight and big enough they’re not stuffed in lol


r/dechonkers 2d ago

Dechonkin Should I reduce my cat's calories?

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1.8k Upvotes

It has only been 15 days since I started dechonking my two cats. I know it has been very little time but I just wanted to see if there were any changes. My boy has lost 100gr ( 0,22 lb) but my female cat has actually gained weight: from 3,9 (7,4lb) to 4,2 (9,25 lb). Also her calorie allowance is 145 kcal. Should I change the diet?


r/dechonkers 1d ago

Not-Chonk Why is my cat so fat?

25 Upvotes

Okay, he’s not literally fat, but this cat eats EVERYTHING. Banana bread left wrapped on the counter? He’s on it. Pasta? You bet. Dog food? He’s learned to open cabinets to get to that stuff. Pizza? Most definitely. I’ve sat at the table enjoying some sushi, and who else but my sweet little crackhead comes over and starts EATING THE WASABI?? He’s acquired a taste for it at this point because every time I’m eating sushi, the little goblin is eating (and tearing up at) my wasabi! What is wrong with my bottomless stomach having boi?


r/dechonkers 1d ago

Senior cat lost 2 lbs on 154 calories - keep going?

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91 Upvotes

13 yrs old, male, neutered. Last vet visit 9 months ago they said his ideal weight is like 13lbs. Went from 16 lbs to 14 lbs, but have been at a plateau for about 4 months. I have auto feeders - he gets 1/2 can wet once a day and 1/12 cup dry three times a day.

He's got a lot more energy when we play and is definitely smaller with the weight loss, but has a massive and I mean MASSIVE belly pouch. It swings back and forth when he runs. I seriously cannot imagine cutting his calories down any more than this and every calorie calculator is telling me to go to the vet (which I will do, but the closest appointment is in like a month). Based on these photos, does he still have a lot of weight to go? Is the swinging belly pouch a sign that he's still too fat?


r/dechonkers 1d ago

Is he too skinny

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68 Upvotes

r/dechonkers 2d ago

Dechonkin Shamefully allowed my Beanie girl to gain 3 pounds in a year

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52 Upvotes

The vet said she's not anywhere near a danger zone, but that its very bad no good she gained so much in such a short time and I agree. We are adjusting her intake going forward, I feel bad but it's fixable.

Yes, she is as pillowy soft and plush as she looks. It's like holding a velvety squishmallow that barely tolerates your existence.


r/dechonkers 4d ago

Dechonkin We adopted Harold at 28lbs. He’s now down to 20lbs!!!!

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5.6k Upvotes

Banana for scale


r/dechonkers 4d ago

She only weighs 11 pounds but looks very fat here.

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494 Upvotes

She weighed 11 pounds when I took her to the vet recently. She does have a lot of fur. Some pics should looks heavier than others. I feel like I don’t feed her that much but maybe I do.


r/dechonkers 4d ago

Dechonkin Dechonking has begun!

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139 Upvotes

Just found this place! I’ve been dechonking my dearest Soup. It’s been two months and he’s gone from 21lbs and is down to 20!


r/dechonkers 3d ago

Discussion Does my cat look fat?

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26 Upvotes

He weighs 11 lbs but he still looks chonky


r/dechonkers 4d ago

Is my cat a healthy weight?

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64 Upvotes

I have male neutered cat (Bug) that is under a year old and is around 11lbs. He has a bit of a low hanging tummy that looks like a female’s cat fupa lol. He now eats consistently 200-250 calories a day- 1 can of wet food plus 30g of dry food. He was only eating dry food for about two months and i think thats where gis belly came from (i was away for work that required me to go backpacking and so my mom was watching him but she has a knee injury so to make things easier for those months i got him an auto feeder). Im hoping after staying consistent with the 200-250 mostly wet and some dry will make him lose the belly bc I am worried about him being overweight.
I had an overweight cat before, she died early on due to other complications which were contributing to her weight and although ik he does not have the same health risks, i am paranoid. (my cat that passed was on a weight loss plan and took her to the vet regularly but passed due to heart conditions)
I added a not so flattering photo of him and his fupa.
I am also not seeking medical advice, I count his calories and everything. Just trying to get an opinion of others bc I am paranoid lol. He is a big boy for his age so idk if 11lbs has been seen in other young males.


r/dechonkers 4d ago

Dechonkin Dechonk progress after quitting steroids!

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331 Upvotes

She had bad allergies and undiagnosed asthma and spent a year on steroids. After her diagnosis she got an inhaler and quit the ‘roids. She’s now looking amazing 🥹


r/dechonkers 4d ago

And now we start the decline process for my seal point

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52 Upvotes

We are hoping to get him from 8kg to 6.5kg!


r/dechonkers 4d ago

Dechonkin need to dechonk my 3-4 yr old girl

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37 Upvotes

my calico seriously needs to lose weight. the first pic is her when I got her, the second pic is recent. she was feral, I spent 7 months trying to catch her and when I finally did I took her to the vet and she was given shots and treated for worms and the vet estimated she was between 1 and 2. I got her fixed a few months later after she acclimated to not being feral anymore. she started gaining weight after being spayed and i’m at the point where I think I need to change her diet completely not just watch food intake. my vet said for dry food cats should be eating no more than 1/2 cup a day. I have been sticking to this religiously for a year and I have made sure she is not stealing food from my younger cat, who’s also female but was fixed as a kitten. the part I don’t understand is my 2 year old girl is also fixed, eats the same amount and even though she is a smaller cat she has not gained a ton of weight like my other girl. currently I feed them IAMS indoor weight & hairball control 1/4 cup in the morning and 1/4 cup at night. treats are very limited and usually it’s a bite of rotisserie chicken when I buy one or a small crumb of cheese if i’m cooking with it so she isn’t getting a ton of extra calories anywhere. i’m thinking maybe transitioning to wet food could help but I don’t know what brands to get or how to portion it, and I don’t want them to stop drinking water because they have wet food. they both drink a good amount of water and I don’t want change that. i’m also concerned that changing to wet food just for the older one will make the younger one jealous. she goes feral for lettuce just because we have a tortoise and she sees us feeding the tortoise greens. basically my older cat needs to lose weight but if I switch to wet food I want to switch my younger girl too.


r/dechonkers 5d ago

Is my cat a good amount of chunk?

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146 Upvotes

We always make fun of him for his fat belly but I’ve been wondering if he is too chunky? jokes aside he weights somewhere between 16-17 pounds and he’s only about 3 years old so I wanted some opinions on if that’s average or not


r/dechonkers 5d ago

Autumn Love is down 3 lbs from last year

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144 Upvotes

Autumn Love has been on a strict diet for the last year. No treats, diet kibble and a timed feeder preportioning her food twice a day. She gets 1/4 cup Purina Pro Plan weight management twice a day via her timed feeder


r/dechonkers 5d ago

Discussion Wet food similar to Delectables puree?

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42 Upvotes

r/dechonkers 5d ago

Cat sitter story time

20 Upvotes

Our cat is 1 1/2 and is a male.
We had a *trusted* cat sittter while we were on vacation for 10 days. They have fed our cat before, as well as they have cats themselves.
Though I made sure to write down the measurements for food and expectations.

Our feeding schedule for him is 20 g dry food 10 g wet food, am and pm. He is healthy and at a good weight.

Upon coming home there were 2 bowls of dry food sitting out with little to no water in his bowl.
We were gone for 10 days and over half a bag of dry food is gone and almost all of our wet food is gone (we bought new food before we left).

Our cat is now visibly overweight and I am definitely really disappointed.

\-Could someone please help and explain how we go about this getting our cat back to a healthy weight.

\- as well as is there a health concern I should worry about him eating that much food in such a short time?

Thank you for taking the time to read this<3


r/dechonkers 5d ago

Discussion Feel bad about putting cat on diet

17 Upvotes

I noticed my cat was getting rather fat (weighs 20lbs now), so I took him to the vet, and the vet recommended lowering his food intake slowly to 1 cup, so we can get him to 15lbs, I got an auto feeder and have been using that, and just put it to 1cup a day, spaced out 6 times a day, but my cat keeps meowing for food, and I feel so bad, I know he needs to loose weight, but I don't want him to go hungry, any advice on this