Is my cat fat?

[Smirkitty]

Originally Posted by saitenyo

Here's something I was wondering...what exactly causes the baggy belly when they're not actually fat? Is that just loose skin from previous weight?

Saggy, baggy, sway belly, etc, is not an indication of an overweight or even formerly overweight cat. It's just something that naturally happens in many cats, but seems more predominant in cats who have been spayed or neutered. The view from the top is really the one to go with. If the cat has a defined waist, I would not think you would need to restrict his diet.

[InsufficientData]

There's a special name for that flap of skin they get- you see it a lot on big cats, too. Internet indicates that it's called the Greater Omentum (although if you search for "greater omentum cat" you just get a lot of results of dissections :/ ) I swear there was another name, too, but I can't remember it.
Anyway, it seems to be pretty normal and not really an indicator of whether kitty is too tubby. There doesn't seem to be a consensus on what it means, as far as my exhaustive research (read: a five minute search on Google) showed.

[saitenyo]

Good to know! Both my cats look nice and lean from the top, their sides taper nicely, and their ribs are findable (but not too prominent). They just seem to have a whole bunch of extra skin floating around their bellies.