Dog getting too fat?

HollisGrant

Oooh, cute dog.... yes, she's a bit fat.

How to slim down your dog:

(1) Find out what she should weigh - talk to the vet
(2) Buy a good quality dog food - talk to the vet again or go to a good pet store
(3) Read the label on the side of the bag that tells you X amount of food per day = a dog that weighs X pounds. If you have any questions, call the dog food company (the bag will have an 1-800 number) or call the vet.
(4) Measure out the dog food by using a measuring cup.
(5) No snacks, unless you factor that into the amount of cups per day.
(6) No people food. No Oreos (chocolate can be fatal to dogs).

Good luck. Your dog should lose at the rate of 1-2 pounds a month if you follow this.... it's the method I used to take some pounds off my collie.

Thank you! Is there anyway to calculate her macros? Specifically I'm concerned about her losing lean body mass and slowing down her metabolic rate. Does anyone know how much protein,carbs, and fat a 30 kilogram (66lb) Labrador may need? Or calorie intake? Is there a site like this for dogs?

Buy a good brand of dog food (not the brands you can get in a grocery store). The research people for the dog food company will have already found the answers to all your questions about exactly what should be in the dog food and in what proportion. If you have any questions about the ingredients and the proportions, there will be an 800 number on the bag.

HollisGrant

Thank you! My dog gets about an hour to two hours a day of walking/ running. She just got spayed so her activity is down a bit.

What kind of cookies do you give your dog? I've heard chocolate is bad for them so I tend to give Peggy peanut butter or oatmeal raisin.

Raisins can be fatal to dogs.

Alison12121

Why why would humans want to inflict their ethics onto animals? Changing the physiology of an animal to fit into your ethics just blows my mind away. Cat's are obligate carnivores! To not eat meat is death for them. Sorry tangent but this just scares me that someone would inflict their beliefs onto animals.

I agree with you. If a pet has a specific medical condition or allergies that prevents it from digesting animal protein, and a vet advised the owners to feed it a vegetarian diet, then that's understandable. However, I wouldn't recommend that for other dogs.

(My dog is actually allergic to chicken, and he would get sick when we fed him a higher quality dog food with more protein. Once the vet and I figured out that chicken was the problem, and we switched him over to lamb, he has been perfectly healthy). However, I think it's selfish when some people feed an animal a vegetarian or vegan diet just because they are.

Quest529

Your dog will not get a complex from you not letting her eat junk and she won't damage her self-image from people telling you she's overweight. Dogs do have emotions/feelings, but they aren't that complex. The easiest thing for you to do to get her on track is to feed her appropriately.

Oooh, cute dog.... yes, she's a bit fat.

How to slim down your dog:

(1) Find out what she should weigh - talk to the vet
(2) Buy a good quality dog food - talk to the vet again or go to a good pet store
(3) Read the label on the side of the bag that tells you X amount of food per day = a dog that weighs X pounds. If you have any questions, call the dog food company (the bag will have an 1-800 number) or call the vet.
(4) Measure out the dog food by using a measuring cup.
(5) No snacks, unless you factor that into the amount of cups per day.
(6) No people food. No Oreos (chocolate can be fatal to dogs).

I agree with most of this. Except, going by what the bag tells you. Those numbers are highly inflated. They are a good starting point, but you still need to be aware of your dog's body condition.

Here is a body contition scoring sheet: http://www.beagles.co.za/www/users/beaglec/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/weight.png

You want to keep her between thin and ideal, as labs are prone to joint issues. You're helping her in the long run.

Don't forget gentle exercise until she rebuilds her muscles. Swimming would be great!

A great resource for dog questions is Dogforum.com. The members give great advice and have tons of experience.

Cr01502

I agree with most of this. Except, going by what the bag tells you. Those numbers are highly inflated. They are a good starting point, but you still need to be aware of your dog's body condition.

Here is a body contition scoring sheet: http://www.beagles.co.za/www/users/beaglec/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/weight.png

You want to keep her between thin and ideal, as labs are prone to joint issues. You're helping her in the long run.

Don't forget gentle exercise until she rebuilds her muscles. Swimming would be great!

A great resource for dog questions is Dogforum.com. The members give great advice and have tons of experience.

This is very helpful thank you. It looks like Peggy is going to have to make some changes.

odusgolp

Oooh, cute dog.... yes, she's a bit fat.

How to slim down your dog:

(1) Find out what she should weigh - talk to the vet
(2) Buy a good quality dog food - talk to the vet again or go to a good pet store
(3) Read the label on the side of the bag that tells you X amount of food per day = a dog that weighs X pounds. If you have any questions, call the dog food company (the bag will have an 1-800 number) or call the vet.
(4) Measure out the dog food by using a measuring cup.
(5) No snacks, unless you factor that into the amount of cups per day.
(6) No people food. No Oreos (chocolate can be fatal to dogs).

Good luck. Your dog should lose at the rate of 1-2 pounds a month if you follow this.... it's the method I used to take some pounds off my collie.

Thank you! Is there anyway to calculate her macros? Specifically I'm concerned about her losing lean body mass and slowing down her metabolic rate. Does anyone know how much protein,carbs, and fat a 30 kilogram (66lb) Labrador may need? Or calorie intake? Is there a site like this for dogs?

*swoon* I love it when you convert the metric system for me. So hot.

cbeckl

Merrick
Blue
Weruva
Wellness
Call of the Wild

are some high quality pet foods.
[/quote]

I have my dogs on Call of the Wild. Very high protein & all natural ingredients! We switched to Call of the Wild from Merrick, mainly because of cost and the fact that Merrick had a lot of variation between kibble in each bag. But my dogs have done wonderfully on both of them. Also if you feel the need to "treat" your dog, there are some very high quality dog treats that are good sources of lean protein, from Welness and Diamond (Call of the Wild)

rachey121

blue buffalo dog food lost my dog 14 pounds in 2 weeks along with walking that is and hes like your dog lives for food! but he loves the blue buffalo especially the fish flavored

rduhlir

My dog is actually allergic to corn and certain grains. If he eats too much of it he gets dry spots, starts losing fur and his coat loses it's shine. So while he can have -some- treats and be fine, his main diet is Blue Buffalo Chicken and Rice.

We had originally started Buster on Blue Buffalo. Then when we moved he decided he didn't like that food, so we had to switch and so went to Taste of the Wild. Then we ended up buying a bad batch of dog food that was tainted with salmanila poisoning we went right back to Blue Buffalo and have been with them ever since. Because of his sensitive stomach we keep him on the chicken and rice formula, and he is looking great. Yes it is a more expensive brand, but the feed store we buy it from does the buy 10 get 1 free, so every 11th bag is free. So once a year we get a free bag of dog food.

We dont' have to regulate his food, he does a good job at not pigging out and only eatting when hungry. But, he also runs an average of 9 miles a week with me.

cals83

If you are going to insist on feeding her table food, get a cookbook designed for dogs...that way your dog will still get the proper nutrition.

I know people who have fed their dogs nothing but table food and it was whatever they were eating. The problem is that a lot of the things they were eating were VERY bad for the dogs. Oreos are terrible! The ingredients in those are far worse (not to mention toxic to a dog) than the ingredients in a dry dog food. These dogs did not live very long lives as a result of the malnutrition. One of them had to have all of his teeth removed and ended up getting fatty liver disease and dying at the age of 9 where his breed is supposed to live 13-15 years.

You need to teach your dog to have a healthy relationship with food!

Carnivor0us

Great opportunity to exercise together! Walk, walk, walk and keep her off the people food. I'm sure you know this.

But all my dog eats is people food!!

I want her to be healthy and happy. I've looked at dog food and it lists a bunch of chemicals and things like 'ash' get put into it.

Okay, not sure if this has been mentioned yet in this thread but they do not put 'ash' in pet food. It's what's left over after the food has been 'burned' for a nutritional analysis. Basically 'ash' is anything that's not protein, fat, or fiber in pet food.

mckval

Interesting that you posted this. We just went to the vet this weekend and realized we were feeding our Siberian Huskies too much. (They are rescues, so we got them at about 1 1/2 years old. They are VERY active.) We figured since we run them 4-5 mi each morning and then walk them at night, they should get more "fuel" to supplement such an active lifestyle. You know, like we do.
No, no, no, said the vet. That is not how it works with dogs. It is all calories in. All diet. So we will go back to their normal, very small, portion. It is hard. And the vet flat out said, they will act as though they are starving all the time. But truly, I can tell you from pictures from last year to now: they are fatties! Ack!
(And you should never feed them people food. it is not good for them.)
Activity is good for them too, but it will not solve the overweight issue on its own. Diet, diet, diet.

tallieterp

my great dane put on 20 lbs after going on anti seizure medication and then we entered the world of fat panic which for danes is a big deal as their joints will go on them...

we now walk 3/4 mile every day to try and build her endurance up after some of the muscles have weakened after having the seizures... but since we've started walking and her table scraps have been banned we've only had a couple of episodes and they were so mild! and it holds me accountable as she expects a walk no matter what the weather most days...

rachey121

Quote

"But all my dog eats is people food!!""



I had a lab (labs do gain weight fast!!she was like 90 pounds when she should have been 60) when i was younger and all my dad would feed her was cheese and a bunch of junk people food...NOT to scare you but she died at age 5 people food is really bad for dogs unless its like chicken, rice, or some vegetables ....i would stick with dog food....

Carnivor0us

You're welcome! http://www.peta.org/living/companion-animals/vegetarian-cats-and-dogs.aspx

Why why would humans want to inflict their ethics onto animals? Changing the physiology of an animal to fit into your ethics just blows my mind away. Cat's are obligate carnivores! To not eat meat is death for them. Sorry tangent but this just scares me that someone would inflict their beliefs onto animals.

Oh, I'm not vegan. My vet recommended a vegan diet because they were so overweight. If you see the progress pics I posted on page 2, you can see how much of a difference it's made. Seeing their progress does make me consider trying it, but I really love meat.

Wow, I'm surprised a vet recommended a vegan diet for cats, but maybe theres new research out there. Or is the vet a vegan?

A dog can get away with a vegan diet, considering that they're technically omnivorous (although they have a carnivorous bias). With a cat? No. A vegan diet is animal abuse. It is completely out of the realm of what a healthy feline diet is, and I'd run away from any vet that recommended it.

HeidiCooksSupper

I've heard vegan diets are great for cats too.

A vegan diet will KILL a cat. Cats are obligate carnivores. The only thing they can survive on is meat.

Dogs, on the other hand, are omnivores and can digest both meat and vegetables.

The only way to make your dog healthy is to feed him a diet that is HEALTHY for DOGS. You, as the owner, are in charge of what your dog eats and are responsible for what he eats. Just as you would not let him poop on the carpet or lift his leg on a chair, even if it would make him happy, you cannot let him eat foods that are so bad for him as a regular diet.

BarackMeLikeAHurricane

My dog is a diabetic now and has been for the past four years. He used to eat tons of pizza, pasta, ice cream, cookies, etc. but it really affected him. He's now completely blind and needs insulin twice a day.

Look at his eyes, you can see the cloudiness.


Sometimes he gets lost just walking around the house. Yesterday he got lost under a chair in the kitchen. He didn't know how to get out.

bethlaf

Dog food is new. Feeding "people food"to dogs is not. What do you think they fed fluffy75 years ago

luan999

We have 2 black labrador girls and typical labs ...they would love to eat our food.....ours get 2 meals a day of steamed mixed veg (carrots, brocolli and cauliflower), along with measured quantities of low fat/calorie dried dog food and a spoon of wet low cal/fat dog food.( i added the veg to "bulk" up their meals a bit!
They have never had any joint issues and are exercised for 2-3 hours a day.....we go mountain biking with them (the 12 year old one has a dog buggy that attaches to our bike and she goes in that if she gets tired....and the young one runs next to it...checking the old one is ok!) we also go running (off road with them)
The best exercise by far that we all do together...open water swimming in our friends' lake...the weather in the UK is eventually getting warmer so this last week we have started swimming outside together and this is the first year that the young dog has been swimming and she absolutely loves it...it means that we all get a cardiovascular work out- and is non weight-bearing so ideal for exercising them ...and us!

JennaM222

GET SOME ROLLER BLADES!