Living a healthy life

I've been very worried about my cats lately, which is kinda silly, but not really. Since my cat Hunter was about nine months old, his nipples have shown and he has had a little pouch of fat ( I think it is either fat or just flabby skin.). At first it was just because he was growing and was a little chubby. But now his pouch has gotten bigger, and I'm afraid that I've been over feeding him. I don't want him to be so over weight that he gets diabetes or develops heart problems. My younger cat Douglas is also starting to get big too, not as much. Except I've done research on his species ( Himalayan Persian ) and it says that its easy for them to get over weight.

"My cat is getting fat. :( Hunter is not super overweight ,but hes fat enough to the point where I can see his nipples. When I pet him ,he has this flab of fat. Ha-ha. Hes my little fatty. :)" field-notes 10/8

http://fixit-foundation.org/articles/cat-obesity-and-exercise/?gclid=COP-0IX0qMECFVBffgodyCoAQA

So since I want my cats to stay healthy ,I have done some research. This article talks a lot about how cats are like humans when it comes to obesity. That they can get diabetes! Also, in some rare cases cats can develop a fatty liver. Which really doesn't sound good. The article also talks about how dry cat food is actually not healthy for cats. Dry cat food contains lots of carbohydrates which is not in a cats diet. Its hard for cats to process them since it is not naturally part of their diet. What is recommended instead of dry cat food is canned food. The wetness of the food helps hydrate the cat better, and helps send signals to the brain to stop eating when they are full. The last part of the article talks about getting your cat some exercise by using cat toys or other things that you have in the house.

Okay, so after reading this article I now know how to keep my cats healthy. Although neither one of my cats is over weight I want to make sure that they both live a healthy life. However, now I've ran into another problem ,wet cat food causes my cats poop to be runny. ( eewww!!!! ) If you have ever changed cat litter before, then you know that dealing with solid poop and the smell is bad enough. Dealing with runny poop is like a baby having diarrhea for the first time. It smells ten times worse, and looks like something you would find in your worst nightmares. So feeding my cats wet food is not going to work.
But maybe creating a playtime schedule for them will. A couple days a week I could spend extra time with them; playing with string or giving them catnip ( gotta go easy on the catnip though they got addicted and it made them really hyper). Or I can play Hunters favorite game with him, fetch. With Douglas I can get him to somehow use his scratcher more often. Its important that I get Doug to exercise because his species is known to have a sedentary life style. Hunter is active on his own, but maybe doing this will get him extra exercise. Making more time to play with my cats could also make them happier because I'm giving them attention and love. :) <3 ( Its actually proven that playing with your cats more often makes them happy and more active, I'm not just saying that. )

" I love it when I see my cat happy, his whiskers sticking out more than usual. It makes me smile. :) Then he rubs his face on my hand and meows/purs." field-notes 9/23
Well I will create a schedule to help get my cats extra playtime. ( time for a season of biggest loser!! ha-ha )

                                                            Picture of Douglas from 8/12

                                                              Picture of Hunter from 8/5