# Stop growing?



## Mhelmandollar (Dec 9, 2011)

At what age do cats stop growing? Is it breed specific? Or pretty much all breed are about the same?


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## marie73 (Jul 12, 2006)

It's very cat-specific. I've read that most cats stop at around 8 months, but that's a very general guideline. Like you said, some breeds, like Maine Coons, continue growing and can have growth spurts at 3 years old (I think). 

My girls are on the small side. The calibratz weighed their age until 8 months old (about 8 pounds). Their weight goes up and down during the year. Current weights: 

Cali: 7.5 lbs.
Charlee: 7.75 lbs.
Cleo (black kitty): 8.12 lbs.

But there are people here with calicos who have larger body types and weigh more. 

Even Cinderella was small for a Birman.

My former cat, Gigi, was tiny for a Himalayan (7 lbs.).


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## Mhelmandollar (Dec 9, 2011)

marie73 said:


> It's very cat-specific. I've read that most cats stop at around 8 months, but that's a very general guideline. Like you said, some breeds, like Maine Coons, continue growing and can have growth spurts at 3 years old (I think).
> 
> My girls are on the small side. The calibratz weighed their age until 8 months old (about 8 pounds). Their weight goes up and down during the year. Current weights:
> 
> ...


My Himalayan is 10lbs at 11-1/2 years old. 
My Savannah just turned 6 months old on Sundays and he is 11lbs. I was just courious how long he was going to continue to get bigger.


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## doodlebug (May 13, 2006)

In my experience, growth slows down significantly between 6-8 months but they still may grow until about a year...unless the cat is one of the breeds that doesn't mature until 3-4 years old (e.g. Maine Coons). By growth, I mean the size of their frame, not weight. They may still be working on filling out until 18-24 months...by filling out I mean adding muscle and getting rid of lankiness, not getting fat.


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## Mhelmandollar (Dec 9, 2011)

His breast bone sticks out quite far. Hopeing he will grow into that


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## shan841 (Jan 19, 2012)

F/3 said:


> His breast bone sticks out quite far. Hopeing he will grow into that


Banjo's breast bone sticks out far too, I was kind of wondering the same thing. Bigger breeds take longer to fully mature(siberian, maine ****, ragdoll) I'm not sure about savannahs though. How much does he weigh now?


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## hal1 (Jul 16, 2011)

F/3 said:


> My Himalayan is 10lbs at 11-1/2 years old.
> My Savannah just turned 6 months old on Sundays and he is 11lbs. I was just courious how long he was going to continue to get bigger.


I think Savannahs grow for about 3 years.


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## shan841 (Jan 19, 2012)

sorry, I just saw that you already posted his weight.


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## MowMow (Nov 6, 2010)

When you researched the breed (prior to buying) you didn't run across anything that told you their growth rate or ending size?

ALso, I'm kind of surprised your breeder didn't go over that with you... I figured they'd let you know how long they wold need extra food for growth...


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## Milky's Mammy (Oct 17, 2011)

F/3 said:


> At what age do cats stop growing? Is it breed specific? Or pretty much all breed are about the same?


Good question - something that I've recently started thinking about too since Milky is 1 next month.



marie73 said:


> It's very cat-specific. I've read that most cats stop at around 8 months, but that's a very general guideline.
> 
> My former cat, Gigi, was tiny for a Himalayan (7 lbs.).


Milky is a Himalayan too and is about 7lbs also. Any ideas what their general range is? I've seen photos on the internet of Himlayans that look quite big, in fact I would say huge, which makes Milky look underweight compared to them.


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## Mhelmandollar (Dec 9, 2011)

Milky's Mammy said:


> Milky is a Himalayan too and is about 7lbs also. Any ideas what their general range is? I've seen photos on the internet of Himlayans that look quite big, in fact I would say huge, which makes Milky look underweight compared to them.


I think Himalayan size is very deceiving. Everybody that comes over to my house says how huge my cat is but he is only 10 lbs. the fur makes him look a lot bigger.


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## marie73 (Jul 12, 2006)

I agree. In this "stalker" photo, Gigi looks HUGE, but at 7 lbs., she's smaller than each of the twinz.


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## Mhelmandollar (Dec 9, 2011)

marie73 said:


> I agree. In this "stalker" photo, Gigi looks HUGE, but at 7 lbs., she's smaller than each of the twinz.


he's beautiful,
simba and mocha both 10lbs


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## marie73 (Jul 12, 2006)

Gorgeous kitties!


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## librarychick (May 25, 2008)

I've found that many cats (not just large breeds) go through a growth spurt around 3 years old. Now that the boys are just over 3 I can definately tell the filled out a lot!

Muffin got this big, thick, boy-cat neck. He probably gained about a pound of muscle, and he looks like an adult.

Doran filled out a bit, but he also grew about a pound.

Last year when Torri turned three she gained about a pound (putting her at a 'huge' almost 7 lbs...She's back to 6.5 though since she was a bit tubby.)

Jitzu also gained a pound around 3 years to put her at about 8.5 as her healthy size.

My parent's cat also grew when he was about 3, he gained at least 2 pounds.

None of these cats are a special breed, just your average cat. I'm pretty sure most will go through a spurt at 3. Your boy, being a Savannah, will likely continue to grow steadily untik probably 2. He won't grow as much as he has up until this point, but he'll be growing. Maybe contact your breeder and see when his father stopped growing? That'll give you some idea of his probable adult size and when he'll be done growing.


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## Mhelmandollar (Dec 9, 2011)

Thanks for all the replies. Simba is already very strong. When I'm playing with him with his wand toy and he pulls I can hardly hold on to it.


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## Dave_ph (Jul 7, 2009)

Ragdolls and Ragamuffins take 3+ years to reach fulll size.

Fay the Ragdoll is 12 lbs at around 5 1/2 years old.

Mia the Colorpoint Siamese is a chubby 6.5 at 5 years old.

Buddy the Ragamuffin was 12 pounds the last time I weighed him and that was when I first brought him in. He had diarrhea, a tapeworm and was underfed at the time. He hasn't stopped eating since. I'd guess he's around 15 lbs with 2 more years to grow. Could be a bear masquerading as a cat.


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## OctoberinMaine (Sep 12, 2006)

Have you heard that it's common for cats to gain weight after they're adopted and in a home, rather than in a cage? We adopted Rookie when she was 1.5 years old and had been in the SPCA for 4 months, and she gained 2 pounds within the first few months she was home. We adopted Murphy when he was 1.5 years old and had been in the SPCA for 1 month, and he gained a couple pounds at home too. I refer to this as "happy weight."


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