Most pet owners would say that there are no limits to how much affection, praise, and pets they have for their cat. However, how much you treat and feed your cat is a different situation completely. Cats can quickly become overweight and even obese when overfed. An overweight cat is prone to several health conditions (i.e., diabetes, heart disease, arthritis, and even kidney disease). No matter if your cat is a picky eater, as a pet owner, it’s your responsibility to ensure your pet is getting a healthy, balanced, and nutritious diet, no matter how many complaints he or she has about what’s in the bowl.

You can start by consulting with your vet to find out what nutrients are necessary for a growing cat. In the meantime, here are some helpful tips and cat food and treats:

1. Minimize people food
People food, in other words, food meant for human consumption are not necessarily good for or even safe for your cat. For instance, most vet-recommended cat foods are made up of a balanced mix of protein, healthy fats, vitamins, minerals, and amino acids specified for a healthy feline diet. Certain people foods (i.e., garlic, onions, raisins, grapes, and fruit with pits) can be choking hazards or extremely toxic for cats due to the inability for a cat to digest them. So all in all, people food should be avoided.

2.  Treats aren’t love
While it may feel really good giving a purring cat a treat, what cats really need is praise, affection, a safe warm place to sleep, and a healthy balanced diet. Cats won’t tell you when they’ve had enough treats, so when you feed them by the handfuls, they just gobble it up. Many people mistake the joy cats get from food and treats as a loving bond, but you’re only exposing your cat to excess weight and associated health issues by overfeeding them.

3. Combine treats with exercise
Daily exercise is important to a growing cat, especially indoor only cats. While your cat might seem like he likes sleeping 23 hours a day, he’s likely up making his rounds and getting his daily physical fitness (i.e., chasing dust bunnies and jumping on countertops) when you’re sleeping. However, you can entice your cat to some daytime play using treats as an incentive. Place treats on cat towers to guide your kitty through a series of agility exercise. Or give a treat after a round of laser pointer play.

4. Make all natural treats
If you visit the pet store and read all the labels, and still haven’t found a suitable cat treat, you can make your own all-natural treats at home. Cats love lean protein, so dice up some liver or chicken and use a dehydrator to dry the bits as cat treats. Yum – meow!