Top UK veterinary charity PDSA announced the dogs, cats, and rabbits that are finalists for its 2014 weight-loss competition, which is supposed to raise awareness about pet obesity. Below, NewsFeed rounds-up the fat cats and pudgy pooches that have gone viral throughout the years.
This 39-Pound Cat Ate Hog Dogs
NBCUniversal Media / Getty Images The hot dog-eating cat that wound up in a Santa Fe shelter was "interviewed" by Anderson Cooper and the TODAY anchors. It passed away from lung failure on May 7, 2012.
The Garfield That Can't Eat Lasagna
Janet Ciminelli of North Shore Animal League of America holds Garfield at Long Island on June 4, 2012 in New York City. Laurentiu Garofeanu / Barcroft USA / Barcoft Media / Getty Images This 40-pound cat went viral in 2012 when it was at a Long Island shelter. For exercise, it would get picked up by someone, moved to another spot, and the feline would have to walk back.
SpongeBob Can't-Fit-Into SquarePants
Laurentiu Garofeanu / Barcroft USA /Barcoft Media / Getty Images This 33-pound feline chased lasers for exercise. In August 2012, about two months after it was adopted, it passed away after a large mass was found around its heart.
The Pet Version of The Biggest Loser
CBS Photo Archive / Getty Images New York City "dog guru" Justin Silver helped Rosie, an obese Bernese Mountain Dog, start a weight-loss regiment on Dogs in the City, a CBS reality show about what it's like to be a dog in The Big Apple.
The 131-Pound Lab
Alfie, the labrador is pictured at 59.5kg at the Leybourne Animal Centre in Kent, England, Nov. 1, 2006 Barcroft Media /Barcoft Media via Getty Images This dog weighed more than 170 pounds when it was rescued because his previous owner fed him every time he barked.
The 187-Pound Black Lab
Sampson, the 187-pound labrador, at the Animal Aid vet in Yarra Glen, Victoria, June 21, 2011. Mike Keating / Newspix / Getty Images Too many leftover pizza, pasta, and scraps from roasts explain why this Australian dog named Sampson was called a "lardy labrador" with a frame "the size of a small heifer" when he went viral in 2011.
Tiddles
Chris Moorhouse / Evening Standard / Getty Images During the 1970s, this tabby was known as the only male allowed in the ladies room at Paddington Station.