Five minutes on the same date every month, 5 checks in a fixed order, and 1 number written down: that is the whole system, and it catches most of what a cat hides for 3 to 6 months. Cats mask weight loss until it reaches 10%, and a 5 kg cat that drops 100 g a month looks identical to itself for 12 weeks. It costs 0 money and replaces the guesswork owners bring to a clinic. What it cannot do is diagnose, so every check carries a threshold that sends you to a vet instead of a search engine.
The 5 checks, in order, 230 seconds
Do it on a hard floor, same room, same hour, before the evening meal. Weigh first, because a cat that has just eaten carries 30 to 60 g of food. Then work head to tail in the same order every month, so a skipped step is obvious.
| Check | Seconds | Normal | Book a visit if |
|---|---|---|---|
| Weight on a baby scale | 20 | within 1% week to week | 2% down in 30 days, or 5% in 90 |
| Body condition, ribs and spine | 45 | 4-5 on a 9-point scale | 1 full point in 6 months |
| Coat, skin, 6 grooming spots | 45 | no flakes, no scabs | 3 or more scabs, or a bald patch 1 cm |
| Eyes, ears, gums, teeth | 60 | gum refill under 2 s, pink | tartar at the gumline, 1 pupil larger |
| Lumps, lymph nodes, belly | 60 | nodes under 5 mm, soft belly | a lump over 1 cm, or one that grew in 30 days |
Point 1, the weight curve
Use a kitchen scale with a towel, or a baby scale, and weigh in grams, not by feel. Log 1 number a month in 3 columns: date, grams, note. Plot after 6 points, because a single weight is noise and 6 are a trend. The thresholds are small: 2% in 30 days is 100 g on a 5 kg cat, 5% in 90 days is 250 g, and a senior losing 10% over 6 months is a 500 g drop that owners report as the cat looking fine. A gain of 5% in 30 days on an unchanged ration points at fluid, not fat.
Point 2, body condition in 45 seconds
Run both palms along the ribcage with light pressure: ribs should feel like the back of your hand, not knuckles and not a palm. Look from above for a waist behind the last rib, and from the side for a belly tuck. Score 1 to 9, where 4 to 5 is ideal, 6 to 7 overweight and 8 to 9 obese. One point on that scale is about 0.4 to 0.5 kg on a 5 kg cat, so moving 7 to 8 is a 10% gain. Write the number, not the word: a bit chubby cannot be trended.
Point 3, coat and skin at 6 spots
Part the fur at the spine, both flanks, the base of the tail, behind both ears and under the chin. Six spots, 7 seconds each. Look for flakes, grease, 2 mm scabs, flea dirt that turns red on a wet paper towel, and any patch thinner than the mirror-image spot on the other side. A cat that stops grooming its lower back is showing pain, not laziness: 60% of cats over 6 have arthritis on X-ray. Over 3 scabs, or 1 bald patch of 1 cm, is the line for a visit.
Point 4, eyes, ears, mouth
Lift the lip and look at the gum above the canine: pink, and refilling within 2 seconds of a press. Yellow gums, pale gums or a refill over 2 seconds are same-day findings. Check for tartar at the gumline, a broken tooth, and breath that smells like rot rather than food. Compare the 2 pupils in normal light; 1 larger than the other is a same-week visit, and with a drooping eyelid it is a today visit. Ears get 10 seconds: no smell, no dark discharge, no head tilt over 10°.
Point 5, hands on the body
Feel under the jaw, in front of both shoulders, behind both knees, and along both sides of the belly. Lymph nodes should be under 5 mm and soft, like a small bean. Press the belly gently and let it spring back; a firm or painful abdomen, or a cat that flinches at 1 spot twice, is a finding. Then run fingers down all 4 legs and count claws: an overgrown claw is a 10-second fix now and a 2-week limp if missed.
The 3 records that make the difference
1. Weight, with the date. One line a month, in grams. 2. Photos, 5 angles. Front, both sides, top down, belly, in the same light, monthly; a lump photographed beside a coin beats 10 descriptions. 3. An exception log. Date, body part, size in mm, and what changed, written the day you notice. Together they turn a vague concern into a 10-minute appointment instead of a 40-minute workup.
How often, by age
The monthly check is the floor, not the ceiling. Kittens under 6 months change fast enough to weigh weekly. Adults 1 to 7 do the 5 points monthly and a vet exam every 12 months. Cats 7 to 10 get the check every 2 weeks and a vet exam every 6 to 12 months with bloodwork, since 1 in 10 over 10 is hyperthyroid. Cats with kidney disease, diabetes or heart disease weigh weekly, because 2% of body weight is a dose change.
What not to do
- Do not weigh by holding the cat on a bathroom scale. The error is 200 to 500 g, or 4% to 10% of a cat.
- Do not diagnose from 1 reading. A single 100 g drop is water, food and timing; 3 in a row is a trend.
- Do not squeeze a lump to see what it is. Note the mm, photograph it, let a vet needle it.
- Do not judge hydration by skin tent alone. In a thin older cat the skin tents when hydration is normal.
- Do not check the mouth of a cat that is eating less and drooling; that cat needs a clinic, and a finger in a painful mouth gets bitten.
- Do not start a supplement or medication on your own. Every class here is chosen by a vet, on a prescription, from the numbers you wrote.
Five steps for the first of the month
- Put a reminder on the 1st at the same hour, and keep the scale in the same spot.
- Weigh first, in grams, and write the number down before anything else happens.
- Do the 4 hands-on points in order, saying each finding out loud.
- Photograph 5 angles and log any exception with a date and a size in mm.
- Compare with last month; if the weight moved 2% or a lump is new, book the visit with the 3 records. The skin version is in the monthly skin check, the household hazards in the safe plants check, and a full panel plus X-ray is real money, so price it with the cost tool.
Terms mentioned in this article
Frequently asked
How much weight loss is a problem in a cat?
Two percent in 30 days, 5% in 90 days, or 10% over 6 months. On a 5 kg cat those are 100 g, 250 g and 500 g, all small enough that the eye misses them. Weigh in grams monthly, plot 6 points before reading a trend, and bring the numbers to the visit.
Can I do this check without a scale?
No, and a bathroom scale is not a substitute. Holding the cat adds 200 to 500 g of error, which is 4% to 10% of body weight, more than the signal you are looking for. A kitchen scale with a towel or a baby scale reads to 5 g, costs little, and is the one tool the whole routine depends on.
What should I write down each month?
Three things: weight in grams with the date, 5 photos at fixed angles, and an exception log with date, body part and size in mm. That set turns a vague concern into a 10-minute appointment, and it is the first thing a specialist asks for when a lump or a slow decline needs a workup.