Rowe E C, Browne W J, Casey R A, Gruffydd-Jones T J, Murray J K
School of Veterinary Science, University of Bristol, Langford House, Langford, North Somerset, UK.
Graduate School of Education and Centre for Multilevel Modelling, University of Bristol, 35 Berkeley Square, Bristol, UK.
Prev Vet Med. 2017 Aug 1;143:39-48. doi: 10.1016/j.prevetmed.2017.05.010. Epub 2017 May 16.
Obesity is considered the second most common health problem in pet cats in developed countries. This study used prospective data from a longitudinal study of pet cats ('C.L.A.W.S.', www.bristol.ac.uk/vetscience/claws) to identify early-life risk factors for feline overweight/obesity occurring at around two years of age. Data were collected via five owner-completed questionnaires (for cats aged two-six months, six months, 12 months, 18 months and two years respectively) completed between May 2011 and April 2015. Owner-reported body condition scores (BCS) of cats at age two years, assessed using images from the 9-point BCS system (Laflamme, 1997), were categorised into a dichotomous variable: overweight/obese (BCS 6-9) and not overweight (BCS 1-5) and used as the dependent variable. Of the 375 cats with owner-reported BCS, 25.3% were overweight or obese at two years of age. Multivariable logistic regression models were built using stepwise forward-selection. To account for potential hierarchical clustering due to multi-cat households two-level random intercept models were considered but clustering had no impact on the analysis. Models were compared using Wald tests. Six factors were significantly associated with overweight/obesity at two years of age: being overweight or obese at one year of age (OR=10.6, 95%CI 4.4-25.3); owner belief that BCS 7 was the ideal weight (OR=33.2, 95%CI 8.5-129.4), or that BCS represented overweight cats but they would not be concerned if their cat were classified in this category (OR=2.7, 95%CI 1.2-6.2), at questionnaire five completion; vets advising owners that the cat should lose weight, or making no comment on their weight, between one and two years of age (OR=12.1, 95%CI 3.2-44.9 and OR=3.9, 95%CI 1.5-10.3 respectively); owners giving their cat treats when they "felt happy" with them at 18 months of age (OR=2.7, 95%CI 1.0 - 7.3); feeding ≥250g wet food daily between two and six months of age (OR=2.7, 95%CI 1.2-5.9), and feeding dry food as the only or major part (>50%) of the diet at two years of age (OR=2.1, 95%CI 1.0-4.2). These findings have the potential to reduce the current high prevalence of a widespread problem by informing preventive advice, and as such improving the health and welfare of pet cats.
在发达国家，肥胖被认为是宠物猫中第二常见的健康问题。本研究使用了一项针对宠物猫的纵向研究（“C.L.A.W.S.”，www.bristol.ac.uk/vetscience/claws）中的前瞻性数据，以确定在大约两岁时出现的猫科动物超重/肥胖的早期风险因素。数据通过五份由主人填写的问卷收集（分别针对年龄为两至六个月、六个月、12个月、18个月和两岁的猫），收集时间为2011年5月至2015年4月。使用来自9分制身体状况评分系统（Laflamme，1997）的图像对两岁猫的主人报告的身体状况评分（BCS）进行评估，并将其分类为一个二分变量：超重/肥胖（BCS 6 - 9）和非超重（BCS 1 - 5），并用作因变量。在375只主人报告了BCS的猫中，25.3%在两岁时超重或肥胖。使用逐步向前选择构建多变量逻辑回归模型。为了考虑由于多猫家庭导致的潜在分层聚类，考虑了两级随机截距模型，但聚类对分析没有影响。使用Wald检验比较模型。六个因素与两岁时的超重/肥胖显著相关：一岁时超重或肥胖（OR = 10.6，95%CI 4.4 - 25.3）；主人认为BCS 7是理想体重（OR = 33.2，95%CI 8.5 - 129.4），或者认为BCS代表超重的猫，但如果他们的猫被归类为此类别，他们不会担心（OR = 2.7，95%CI 1.2 - 6.2），在完成问卷五时；兽医在猫一岁至两岁之间建议主人猫应该减肥，或者对其体重未作评论（分别为OR = 12.1，95%CI 3.2 - 44.9和OR = 3.9，95%CI 1.5 - 10.3）；主人在猫18个月大时“对它们感到满意”时给它们喂食零食（OR = 2.7，95%CI 1.0 - 7.3）；在两至六个月大时每天喂食≥250克湿粮（OR = 2.7，95%CI 1.2 - 5.9），以及在两岁时将干粮作为饮食的唯一或主要部分（>50%）（OR = 2.1，95%CI 1.0 - 4.2）。这些发现有可能通过提供预防性建议来降低当前普遍存在问题的高发生率，从而改善宠物猫的健康和福利。
