Porky Milo got stuck in his cat flap (From Cotswold Journal)

Porky Milo got stuck in his cat flap

2:00pm Thursday 1st November 2012 in News

A FAT cat which weighed as much as a toddler is now a streamline feline after he shed nearly half of his body weight.

Greedy Milo’s weight crept to a hefty 10.5kg – about 23lbs – from gorging on food left behind by his fellow moggies.

His owners Paul and Fiona Bearcroft decided it was time to take action when he could no longer fit through the cat flap and signed up the 10- year-old black and white tom to the Chub Club at De Montfort Veterinary Hospital in Merstow Green, Evesham.

With careful management of his diet and regular exercise, he has almost beaten his battle with the bulge and is now just a few hundred grams off his target weight of 6.5kg.

Mr Bearcroft, of Pershore, said: “Milo couldn’t actually go through the cat flap. He didn’t really do much.

He’d just like to lie around a lot. Quite often, he’d lie on his back with his legs akimbo because he was so heavy.

“When we took him to the vets they said he was massive.

“He goes out more now and he’s much more active.

“At night, he’s out through the cat flap and doing what cats do, which is bad news for the local mouse population.

“His weight loss means he’s going to have a much more satisfactory life.”

Mr Bearcroft added he and his wife were grateful for the help they had received from the vets, especially from veterinary nurse Sam Beer, who runs the club.

Miss Beer said there had been a rise in the number of obese pets coming through the surgery’s doors. She said: “When I first started seeing Milo his body would literally fill a whole chair. Obesity leads to so many other problems. With Milo, it’s nice to show what can be done with a bit of perseverance.”