Polly Cakes, Polly Cakes, Polly all the waaaaaaayyyy!!!!

HAPPY HOLIDAYS from P-Cakes!

The year is winding down…we can't believe it. It always does that. It just tends to sneak up on you, right? 

Pollycakes has been such a wonderful store cat. She's been making lots of friends and has tons of fans rooting for her to drop some pounds. 

As of today she is 12.9lbs! She is actually sitting right behind me counting and meowing down the time until it's dinner. But of course, first some exercise.

What is her favorite toy in the whole store? A piece of string. Silly cats. It started off as the Da Bird, but that got shredded and this string has been her friend ever since. It's the toy that really gets her moving. 

Her second friend is her treat dispensing ball. 

Another good way to help her move about and still get to eat. Plus, it exercises her brain which is also important for kitties. 

Every day we're in the store she makes us laugh. We recently got in a shipment of catnip toys from From The Field. To say the least, she REALLY enjoyed that box.

Look at those eyes, I was considering adding some sparkle to those eyes in photoshop, but really, it wasn't neccesary. 

Take care and have a wonderful holiday season, and try your best to stay warm! We hear snuggling with your animal is a good way. 

-Nature's Pet Market

Polly Speaks in Tongues!

Polly's Weight: 12.9lbs! Hurray! Back under 13. 

If anyone knows how hard it is to diet and lose weight can understand the ups and downs of shedding those unhealthy extra pounds. We are in this for the long run, we want this cutie cat around for a long time. 

We also discovered Polly's secret spot. You know how talkative she can be, well watch this. It sounds like she's possessed. 

Our good friend Ron over at Nature's Variety sent us a bag of food to help in our weight loss regiment. It's kibble, but it also has some freeze dried raw bites in there as well. It's already a really good quality kibble, but that extra boost of freeze dried raw is a treat. 

We've been using the Healthy Weight food as her afternoon snack. We put it in a toy that helps her be active. 

For now, Pollycakes is happy. And so far, we have been able to keep away from eating more dog food. 

The little monkey. 

Happy Thanksgiving!

-Nature's Pet Market

Back to the Future!

Heeeerreeeee's Polly! 

Normally she's super cute. When she's peering at you through a crack in the kitchen door while you're making her food, you do feel a tingle down your spine. 

From our last post you heard about her adventures in thievery. The opened bags, there were multiple. The animal shelters around here are definitely cheering Pollycakes on. 

This was her after being confined for her transgressions. 

She did not take it standing up. It was a nuclear meltdown, there was crying, lashing out, spitting, hissing, clawing. We're kidding of course. She was her talkative self again. She reminded us every hour on the hour that dinner/snack/tea/elevensies/twelvsies time was near. If you weren't making my food, you better be at least thinking about it. 

Otherwise, this is what she does. Sulks. 

But we love her to death. She is a sweet cat. She loves to be held and hugged. She likes to be close by hanging out while working.

Weight wise, she was down to 12.6 at one point, ballooned back up to 13.6 her starting weight, and now is down to 13.1.

We love her, but these photos can't happen.

And no, it's not just a bad angle. 

Until next time!

-Nature's Pet Market

Sneaky Little Devil

We have been hoodwinked! 

Bamboozled, confuzzeled, made a fool of. 

Pollycakes has GAINED weight. Which is the opposite of what we're trying to do. We thought it might be one of two things. We recently switched to feeding her 3 times a day, much to Polly's delight. We figured we must not be measuring out the correct amount and feeding too many big portions. OR, she's been sneaking food somewhere. 

EXHIBIT A!

EXHIBIT B!

Do you see the smug look on her face? We were starting to wonder why she wasn't her usual talkative self after her play session. Well, because of her indiscretions. She is back to her starting weight. 

DOH! DOUGH! DOUGHBALL!

Sadly for the Cakes, this looks like she's going to have to be confined during night hours. 

But, who can resist this face? Not many. We'll be strong for her, because we want her to be healthy and  happy. Right now, she's really happy. 

Back to the drawing board. Starting weight AGAIN, 13.6 pounds. 

-Nature's Pet Market

Questions and Answers w/ Pollycakes

Pollycakes continues her weightloss streak!

Here she is modeling:

I mean look at that superfly cat. I'm not gonna lie, she wasn't too happy about the coat. I will put video up soon. It's too good not to share. 

We've gotten a few questions about the whole process of losing weight for Pollycakes, so I'd like to present those here. 

Question #1:  Isn't raw food dangerous for animals?

Answer: Raw food is not dangerous for animals with a strong healthy immune system. Raw food is processed for the purpose of being fed without being cooked. Most of the raw food you would buy for animals is processed very cleanly because they know it won't be cooked. Meat you would buy from a butcher or grocery store won't be as clean since it's meant to be cooked. Primal Pet Foods, which Pollycakes is eating, uses HPP (High Pressure Pasteurization), a method where water is used at a high pressure to "squeeze" any pathogens out. 

Question #2: Why is raw food a good method for helping pets lose weight? 

Answer: Short answer: raw food is what cats need in their diet and nothing extra. It's the extras that add the weight.  Long answer: especially for cats, high protein/low carb diets are, in our opinion, the best way to feed your cat. Cats are carnivores and naturally eat meat. Those cats you see outside running around are chasing birds and small rodents. Basically raw food is just meat. Primal Pet Foods is 93% meat, 7% fruits and vegetables. Since raw food is just what you need and there are not extras, it is much easier to determine how much food your cat or dog needs to eat per meal. Plus raw food is absorbed much easier by the body and the waste amount is very minimal. 

Question #3: What is the best way to transition an animal to raw? 

Answer: For the least disruptive method to your animal's digestive system, we recommend taking about 9 days to transition food. Especially if you've been feeding kibble for a while you will want to take it slow.  For the first 1-3 days, mix a quarter of the food with the current food for both meals and monitor the stools. If they are firm, for the next 3 days do one meal raw in the morning and kibble at night. If the stools are soft then take another couple days to transition. We would also recommend a probiotic to help with the transition. If all goes well, you'll notice smaller, more firm, less smelling stools. 

Thank you for the questions!!! 

Here's a bonus, behind the scenes of Pollycakes modeling shoot.

 

Until next time!

-Pollycakes and Nature's Pet Market

The Long Way Down....

Polly weighs 12.8lbs!

She's doing fantastic. She has been a great sport in all of this. She's even getting better at the weighing in process. At first, when we drop her in a shopping basket she would hop out like it was boiling water and now it's just a matter of keeping a hand in front of her face so she can't hop. Her energy is way up. She plays longer and with more agility and stamina. Though, I don't know if it's a good thing or not, we find ourselves running around the store more to get her to chase the toys. 

She also likes to contribute to daily operations of the store. Here she is getting the keyboard warmed up:

I'm sure that every cat owner that's ever worked on a laptop or computer has run into this little bit of work stoppage. As much as we appreciate a warm and hairy computer keyboard, it is very challenging to figure out which keys you're pressing. I did find an interesting picture online on how to combat this  very serious detriment to work productivity.

I mean, who doesn't have a spare keyboard laying around?

Well, that's it for the Pollyblog this week. It's been a busy one. On our next adventure, we're actually going to be answering a few questions we've gotten since we started this little journal. 

Until then, take care!

-Nature's Pet Market

13.1 - Racing down!

13.1 pounds!!!!!

We are so incredibly proud of her. She's down 4 ounces since we started this endeavor. I know 4 ounces doesn't sound like a lot, but let's put it this way, that would be the equivalent of a 200 pound person losing 7 pounds. Now THAT sounds pretty good. So our little Pollycakes has lost a good chunk so far.

How do we do it?

First, we are taking it slow. We want the weight to come off easily and with minimal stress on her body. She's still getting enough food, enough vitamins, nutrients, protein to keep her a well energized and happy. She is still loving her Primal food and her Weruva BFF canned food. 

Second, EXERCISE!!! We run this cat up and down cat trees, make her chase us around with Da Bird, around displays. Make her do some cat sit ups. 

Here she is after running up the cat tree and catching her prize, The Cat Charmer. The Cat Charmers are awesome because they only cost about $5 bucks and are super strong, and boy can Pollycakes yank on this poor defenseless toy. 

I know it's silly, but that's what we call sit-ups. It actually works though, she is moving, and using those abdominal muscles, and she's breathing hard after doing some. 

We've noticed a lot more energy from her; she is actually RUNNING! That video will come much later. 

 If you have any questions feel free to ask! Thanks for following. 

-Nature's Pet Market

Polly Wanna Cracker?

How's Polly doing? How is she getting along on her adventure? Has she turned on every employee in the store and started eating their lunches? 

A picture speaks a thousand words. 

She is actually doing great! She's not constantly meowing for food or following us around the store pointing out our flaws. She's being extra cute and playing a lot. 

Toys: Currently, she is loving the Cat Charmer as pictured above. She also likes the Da Bird, the Mouse Catcher, and of course laser pointers. 

This is Polly's good angle. She also loves this feathery toy as well. 

The good news! She's lost weight. She is now at 13.3 pounds. It is only a slight drop from the 13.4. But it is right on track for what we want to achieve; the diet and exercise are working!

Why Raw? Here are a few reasons:

- Smaller, less stinky stools

- Super soft and shiny skin and coat

- Clean bright teeth

- Clear Eyes

- Strong Digestive Tract

- Strong Urinary Tract
- Strong Immune system

Besides those points, it is also a super healthy way of keeping a cat or dog at their optimal weight. When feeding raw, you feed just enough with no extra carbs, no fillers, and generally no hormones or antibiotics in the meats. 

We're glad that Polly likes her Primal! 

Next Post: Cat Exercises

STAY TUNED!

-Nature's Pet Market

The Weigh In

Ding Ding Ding! In tonight's corner!!

Pollycakessssssssss!

Today, we got the starting weight for Pollycakes.

Why is she in a basket you ask? There is a method to our madness. We have a tiny scale that Pollycakes won't stand still on, so-- we have some baskets and she can't jump out of... too quickly.

The Starting Weight: 13.4lbs

Our goal: 10 pounds in 3 months. Wait, let's clarify, not to lose 10 pounds in 3 months. That would be the weight of a kitten! That's ridiculous. We mean for her to be about 10 pounds when we're all done with the diet. We'll adjust in case she really IS big boned. 

Here is what Pollycakes has to say about this nonsense:

Transition: 

The transition is going well. We are at 2 Primal Nuggets, and half a can of Best.Feline.Friend(BFF)! 

We will detail why the Primal and the BFF are great choices for Feline Diets in a later post. If you have any questions, feel free to shoot us a message.

We mash those all together and she is in love. She scarfs it down like we're starving her, which we are definitely not. We just adjusted how much food she's been taking in. Then of course there's the exercise. But, we'll save that for next time. Thanks for following! 

Question:

What foods or exercises do you do when slimming a cat OR dog down?

We would love to hear your answers in the comments! 

-Nature's Pet Market

Pollycakes Can't Weight to Eat

Hello! This blog will tell of the adventures with Pollycakes trimming those soft doughy rolls of fluff.

Pollycakes: She is a 5 year old female. She has a meow that can only be described as a 1940's gangster. Oh don't worry, there will be video. ESPECIALLY right before feeding time when she is intensely vocal. 

Pollycakes was an inmate at the Nature's Pet Murrayhill location for a few months, and then moved over to Petbarn in Hillsboro. From there, she was adopted, and returned. During her short adoption it seemed she gained a bit of weight...maybe more than a little. When she was returned, she, and the CHS, were surprised to find there were no store locations or fosters that could house her. This is where we land today, at Nature's Pet Market Portland. 

We first started her in the bathroom locked up for her safety. But, after some good behavior we decided we'd let her out and roam a bit and see how it would go. She's been doing great, friendly with customers, managing to get to the highest point on every cat tree in the store, and generally avoiding the canine customers.

                            DIET TIME!!

We will be using a consistent diet of RAW pet food and of course exercise.

Primal pet foods has generously agreed to donate the food needed to help Pollycakes shed that winter coat from 2 years ago.

QUESTION:

 Does anyone else have an overweight cat? 

Are you struggling to help your cat lose weight? Litter box problems, behavioral issues, urinary tract? Diet plays a major factor in health. 

If you'd like to treat your cat naturally, without chemicals, pesticides, hormones, antibiotics, then message me and lets's see what we can come up with. We can work out a program for other people that want to join Pollycakes and Nature's Pet on this weight loss journey. 

Where do we begin? 

We are going to slowly transition her to the raw food. She loves wet food so we don't think it's going to be a hard switch for her, plus, she LOVES food. We will also be using a digestive probiotic to help with the transition. 

 We will get an official weight and then the adventure will begin! Stay tuned. Also, this would be our first blog, so please comment and join us on this adventure. AND, if you live in the Portland area, come in and meet this sweet girl. 

-Nature's Pet Portland