Remedy for Feline Obesity Related to Emotional Eating

Flower Essences for Cats

Upon first encounter, my cat Star is a shiny, black cat with speckles of stray white fur, a few spots of white on her tummy with bright green/yellow eyes. Other than these obvious characteristics, what people also notice next (or first) is her round, protruding belly.

Starry spent the first year of her life in a 2' by 2' cage with her brother at the no-kill Humane Society in Menomonie, WI. When we adopted her she was quite small for her age. We soon noticed her desire to consume whatever food available. When her body stopped growing her belly continued to grow. She did and does not consume food all at once, but grazes regularly freely from the dish throughout the day.

We attempted timed feeding schedules, meant to mimic a cat's natural feast and fast schedule- allowing the digestive system to rest. What we found is that Star(ry) would become grumpy and would attack our other cat.

After a couple of years of alternately allowing free feeding and timed feeding we gave into free-feeding for the sake of the well-being of our other dear kitty, Madjie.

After some time we noticed that Star developed bad breath and other issues due to poor digestion. This prompted me to once again attempt timed feeding, but in order to save the mental and emotional health of our other cat, I employed another tactic.

I began to add flower essences to the water meant to aid Starry in becoming less emotionally attached to food. For the beginning part of her life she fought for space and sustenance with her brother, causing a type of emotional attachment to the scarce amount of food provided to them. This was her soul source of security.

Flower essences are similar to an herbal tincture, except that they are made in water. Flower essences tend to work on the emotional level, leading to an affect on the physical level, unlike tinctures, that tend to work directly on the physical and emotional level, to a certain degree, depending on the remedy. I chose to use flower essences for a few reasons: it is one of my favored remedies as essential oils are generally much too strong to use for cats, I had the Bach flower essences readily available at home, the remedy would not adversely affect our other cat, the flower essences are meant to work on the emotional level which Star needed and I was beginning to become concerned about Star's long-term health and other methods were not working (raw diet, etc. because she still had the emotional issues- I am a fan of raw food).

I prepared a small brown bottle (diluted- directions are on the bottle) of the Emotional Eating Support combination of Bach Flower essences of which I add 1-3 drop to their small water dish. Flower essences only help, and do not alter a life (animal, human, plant) unless it is in need of the aid that that particular flower essence provides; unlike the indiscriminate ways of pharmaceuticals. Therefor, our other cat, Madjie, was not adversely affected.

The changes I noticed in Starry progressed over the next week. She became even more loving and cuddly in her ways towards me in this time- seeming to release her attachment of food and gaining the need and desire of loving feeling through our relationship rather than through food. Although this increased desire for attention was inconvenient at times, (having to type with one hand while on the computer) she no longer begs for food at or before feeding time. Within a week of beginning this routine of adding flower essences to the water and feeding them only 2 times per day, there was even food left in the dish at the time that I usually would add more! (For two cats I serve 1/2 cup 2 times a day, morning and dinner time.)

She has been much more emotionally stable and generally more loving and open as well as shedding some extra weight. This is very nice to experience in such a manner as it was difficult in the past to withhold food from her when she obviously had an emotional attachment and would meow in a pleading manner or would misbehave to get attention.

I have been very satisfied and even delighted at the results. Starry can look forward to a longer, healthier life and our other kitty can experience more peace in the home as she does not need to look over her should as much due to the possessive and protective nature that Starry used to have over food.

I am a big fan of the transformational and non-disruptive qualities of flower essences.