Do you have a fat pet?

LorinaLynn

I saw some really disturbingly fat pets when I worked for a vet.

Like a dachshund who has "a rash on their stomach" that was from his belly hitting the ground when they walked.

A Boxer that weighed 175 lbs and was so obese that his little nubbin of a tail looked like an innie belly button. Big surprise when he developed heart failure. :frown:

A cat who was literally too fat to poop. The poor thing was so sedentary and out of shape that even the muscles to move food through the intestines were too weak to work, so she had frequent fecal impaction, despite being on laxatives full time.

A pair of 150 lb or so golden retrievers whose owners thought it was a good idea to buy them vanilla sheet cakes for their birthdays. Just for the dogs to eat.

KristyAnn81

I have 2 cats and a dog. My one cat is fat, but she had trauma to both her back legs as a kitten and doesn't walk/run very well. I think if it wasn't for that, she wouldn't be. She's not even that fat, she's just much more plump than her sister. My dog gets lots of exercise, she's good too.

MsEmmy

No, I work very hard at keeping them lean, which isn't easy with a food obsessed lab. My oldest GSD was diagnosed with arthritis on his knee a few years ago. He is 10 now and it is only affecting him slightly. My vet credits it to keeping him lean.

I also think that a lot of people don't even realize their dog is overweight, they don't know what lean looks like.



all three

Gorgeous dogs! Good to see a lab at a proper weight. So many labs are overweight that people think it's normal, and when they see a healthy one they think it's too skinny!

StarChanger

There we go! No fatness....just bigness!

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My Girls by Spinderella95, on Flickr


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BigGirl by Spinderella95, on Flickr

Curleycue0314

All of my Dogs are a nice Healthy Weight, but we have to watch the Choc Lab and feed them in seperate rooms otherwise she trys to steal food from the others. We were always able to free feed our Pit and Shepherd mix until we got the Lab. She is a gultin and will eat herself sick, but I've always had that issue with Labs! You have to watch them closely!

RilyRily65

My pomeranian Koda is in fact overweight but not for the lack of trying. It's my husband and kids that I blame. They feed him way too much. But I'm working on getting healthy and he's going with me! So I hope to help him lose some of that weight.

I'm sorry Im fairly new here so I don't know how to add a photo.

Tonnina

Yes... Well sort of. My Gerbils are both male and both are a touch over 3oz, the top of their healthy weight range. They get plenty of exercise though, they have ball time and run around on the couch... I don't know. I probably feed them too much or too many fatty treats. They are 3 years old though so they are doing just fine. My Beta fish has gotten larger since we got him, he eats all the time and begs for food. I don't feed him very much but I do feed him often.

My pit bull, when he was still alive, was 10lbs over weight... but he was also 13 years old so I think that's okay. His metabolism was slow and he had arthritis. He died because of complications with his arthritis medication.

BenchPressingCats

One of my kittehs was overweight when I got him from the shelter. I just restricted his food intake and he's lost all of his extra weight, right in time for bikini season!

Lissa_M

Baxter is my 4 year old mini dachshund (teenie weenie). We are supposed to keep him between 8-10 lbs as doxies have back problems. He's been right around 9 pounds for most of his adult life. He is not the most active dog, he would much prefer to spend the day in bed and is not happy at all when I take him out for anything longer than a quick walk around the yard.

MsEmmy

Yeah, I have a slightly overweight dog. It's been a challenge to get her underweight because she's food aggressive with her sister and lords over all the dog bowls. But we're working on it.

Try feeding them in separate rooms twice a day. Remove any food that isn't eaten in 20 minutes before you let them see each other again. Don't leave food out where they can fight over it My three aren't food aggressive over regular food, but I always feed them in separate rooms anyway.

sro2118

Yes. When my beagle mix was 5 she was pretty overweight. I knew she had gained weight, but did not realize how much. To me she did not look "big." People would comment that she was big, but I thought it was because the last time they had seen her she was a pup. Meanwhile, she started going to the bathroom in the house and drinking a lot of water. I thought it was a urinary tract infection. Its wasn't. It turned out to be diabetes. She is now dependent on 2 insulin shots a day (7am and 7pm), daily blood tests and vet checks every 3 months for the rest of her life. She eats a regulated amount of low fat food and can have broccoli for treats. If I could do it all over again I would of paid attention to her weight gain. She could have been predisposed to diabetes, but I am sure it did not help she was overweight. Either way if she was at her proper weight maybe she would have not gotten diabetes at 5 years old. She is now 7, but looks like she is an "old" dog with mild cataracts (from high blood sugar) and thinning fur. Doggie diabetes stinks for everyone. She is down 10lbs in about 2 years now. She looks better, but it breaks my heart sometimes.

pwnderosa

I've got 4 cats. 2 are the picture of health, one is a little underweight due to overactive thyroid but is getting better. But the poor little stray I picked up outside a cheap motel last year with severe digestive "issues" and underdeveloped back legs due to malnutrition as a baby....that boy has learned to EAT and is starting to get fat. And since he has stubby little legs, he's a lot slower than the other cats during playtime and doesn't care for jumping so it's tough to get him enough exercise, not sure how well I'll be able to get/keep him in shape for the years to come, but he is sure is worth the extra effort.

cloudj9

(crap.. how do you put a picture up.. lol)

thats my dog.. and my friends cat... my friends cat is fat though.

ThatSoundsHard

My guinea pig is HUGE

3dogsrunning

Because I am so helpful, here is a link to the tutorial to post photos (not really, I just like to see animal pics :happy: )

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/540392-posting-pictures-on-the-boards-tutorial

ETA - oh and thanks for the comments about my boys :flowerforyou:

youcandooeet

My pet is on the border of healthy and underweight My vet has me supplementing her healthy dogfood with chicken to try to help her gain a bit. (She's 9 pounds, and for her length he would like to see her around 12 to 14. That's a lot of weight at those low numbers!!)

cbart2818

Nope! Our dog depends on us to make sure he stays healthy. He is fed better than us lol and we make sure to exercise him to keep him fit.

Here is our boy Copper.

DrMAvDPhD

We have four pets. Both dogs are normal for their breed. One cat is overweight and the other is probably slightly underweight. I think the statistics sound about right.

1shauna1

@angeliams how adorable! So cute! I have two; both are normal weights. One is 15 lbs and the other 21. They are westie mixes, and one is two, the other four. Right now they are pretty active and living in an apartment I walk them several times a day. As they get older and less active, I will adjust their food for their activity level. I know having a pet at a healthy weight helps them live a longer and healthier life and I want to keep them around as long as possible!

EDIT: As to the free-feeding....I guess I do that. But I put out half of their recommended in the morning and the rest for dinner. They don't really try to eat each other's while I'm gone to work....it's still sitting there when I come home!

melinda200208

Nope! My dog goes for runs/walks with me almost every day! She loves it!!!! P.S. LOVE all the dog pics!!!