WASHINGTON, Aug. 1 -- A morbidly obese cat more than double the weight of an average feline and dubbed Garfield after the well-fed cartoon cat, is now doing what movie stars and models do. Dieting.

"When we first saw Bronson, we were shocked because we had never seen a cat his size. He was huge. He really needed help," said Mike Wilson, 35, who designs cat furniture with his partner Megan Hanneman, 29, and now has designs on Bronson.

The couple adopted the 3-year-old tabby, who weighed about 15 kg, from a shelter run by the West Michigan Humane Society in May, following the death of his owner.

"We don't know a whole lot about Bronson's past," Wilson said, adding that the shelter believed he was overfed several times a day by his owner with high-carb kibble, cat food pellets.

The future looks leaner for Bronson who is now on a tough vet-recommended diet that restricts his food intake to 375 calories a day.

"He's now on a wet food which is grain free and low fat. We add water to it so that it becomes sort of like a soup to fill him up," Wilson said.

They also plan to try hydrotherapy to help Bronson get back to a healthy weight in the next few weeks.

Thanks to the strict fat-busting diet, Bronson has already lost nearly 1 kg since May and has overcome his addiction to kibble.

"We think this time next year he will have a much better quality of life," Wilson predicted.