Pudgy Pets Putting On Pounds, hefty hounds and corpulent cats, Tubby Tabbies, Portly Pooches. The press, or the headline writers at least, are having a fun time with the National Research Council’s “New Dietary Guidelines” for cats and dogs. The Subcommittee on Dog and Cat Nutrition issued a 450-page report stating that one out of every four cats and dogs in the U.S. is overweight. Scientists, pet-food manufacturers, and veterinarians are the intended audience of the report, however pet owners may benefit from the updated guidelines for nutrients, feeding and watering, and how to recognize when your pet is overweight. On that last point, the report states “If a cat looks overweight, it is.”