Today marks Pet Obesity Awareness Day and with one in 14 dogs considered overweight it is important to know how to stop your pouch putting on the pounds.
Healthy eating and exercise are just as important for your pets, so experts have revealed how obesity can affect our animals and what you can do to prevent it.
Being overweight can have lasting consequences for your dog and can even be fatal.
Experts at tails.com have shared their top tips to help you help your dog trim down the healthy way and maintain an appropriate weight.
How to reduce your dogs weight the healthy way
As a nation of dog lovers, we cant help but indulge our pups.
But with pet obesity on the rise, a little snack here and there soon adds up, and, if were not careful, all those sneaky treats can lead to a podgy pooch.
While many owners use food as a way to shower their dogs with love, it could be doing more harm than good, because overweight dogs are more prone to illnesses and dont live as long as dogs at an ideal weight.
So if you think its time your porky pup lost a few pounds, here is how you can do it in a healthy way.
How to tell if a dog is overweight?
All breeds have standard weight guidelines. And, while this is a good place to start, every individual dog is different.
Rather than the numbers on the scale, what you should really pay attention to is the amount of extra coverage on your dogs body.
To understand if your dog is under, ideal or overweight, vets often use the body condition score (BCS) test.
The test is measured either on a nine point or five point scale, and assesses your dogs fat levels across your dogs ribs, tummy and waist.
Your dog should have an hourglass figure when viewed overhead and even breeds like bulldogs where many people believe they will be more rounded should have a waist.
You should be able to feel the ribs through a little fat covering and they may even be slightly visible in places.
And the tummy should tuck up from the rib cage, rather than being a straight line across.
If your pooch is more barrel shaped and you cant feel their ribs easily without applying a lot of pressure, then your dog is likely overweight.
If youre unsure, your vet or vet nurse will be able to help you and even show you exactly what to look for when it comes to your dog.
Health implications for overweight dogs
Not only does the lifespan of an overweight dog decrease, but it can seriously impact your pups quality of life.
The extra weight can put added pressure on bones and joints, potentially leading to arthritis in later years.
But, it can also put your dogs life at risk, contributing to breathing difficulties, heart problems and diabetes.
Top tips to reduce your dogs weight
There are three key areas to consider when managing your dogs weight loss in a healthy way.
Dog diet food Feeding the right diet for your dog is the first important step.
Balanced meals packed with nutrients, slow release carbohydrates and beneficial fibre will help your dog feel fuller for longer.
Its also important to control portion sizes and feed the exact amount your dog needs to lose weight steadily, and eventually maintain a healthy weight.
Regular exercise Exercising your dog every day will help burn off excess calories and keep their body healthy.
Alongside the right nutrition and portion sizes, a regular exercise routine will help bring your dogs weight down steadily and predictably.
It also gives your dog something else to focus on during the day, by providing mental stimulation dogs are a bit like humans, they get peckish when theyre bored!
Limiting treats We know its difficult, but cutting out treats altogether is the best approach for healthy dog weight loss.
Or at the very least, limit the number of treats and offer healthier options that arent high in fat, sugar or calories.
Raw vegetables like carrots and cucumber are a good alternative to unhealthy human food or shop bought treats.
But there could be a medical cause for your dogs weight gain too.
Hormonal disorders, like hypothyroidism, slow a dogs metabolism down so theyre no longer burning calories as quickly as they should.
Cushings disease and other metabolic conditions can also cause weight gain. If your dog is not losing weight or is still gaining despite diet changes, always share your concerns with the vet.
Breeds prone to weight gain
Some breeds are typically more prone to being overweight than others.
And sometimes its not just a case of a greedy pooch!
About a quarter of Labradors have a mutation of a gene called pro-opiomelanocortin (POMC) which controls appetite, meaning they can still feel hungry even after eating a big meal.
With breeds prone to being overweight, its important to pay closer attention to your dogs diet and find the right nutrients and quantities to help them maintain their ideal weight.
A few breeds prone to obesity include:
Weight management in puppies
Puppies go through rapid growth spurts which means their calorie needs can change over time.
Which is why regular weigh-ins are so important during this stage.
For very young pups that are less than four months old, you should try to get them weighed every two weeks as theyre growing so rapidly.
For older pups, monthly weigh-ins are a good rule of thumb.
Since they grow so quickly its essential we feed our pups the right ingredients in the right quantities so they grow into a happy and healthy adult dog.
If a puppy carries excess weight, it can impact their bones as they grow.
This can increase your pups risk of developing bone problems like hip dysplasia and arthritis as adults.
Especially in larger breeds like Newfoundlands, great Danes, Dobermans, Rottweilers, Saint Bernards and mastiffs.
Sometimes senior dogs can have an obesity problem.
Theyre slowing down, and playing and moving less, so they tend to put on more weight.
This can create a negative cycle where your dog moves less and needs fewer calories, but if we dont adjust the quantities they gain more weight.
Then when they put weight on they dont want to move as much, so they burn fewer calories and therefore gain more weight and the cycle continues.
In which case its important to adapt your dogs daily calorie allowance to account for the drop in exercise.
But its important to note that there are other reasons your dog could be slowing down.
If its pain related that can be treated, which would allow your dog to be more active than they would otherwise.
So slowing down shouldnt be dismissed as hes just getting old. Always check if theres an underlying cause.
Excess weight can be tough on an older dogs joints, which can make stiffness and arthritic pain worse.
Senior dogs still need regular, gentle exercise and this can be a great help to loosen stiff muscles and joints.
If youre trying to help your senior dog lose weight and they always seem hungry, try a higher fibre diets to keep them feeling full while controlling their calorie intake.
Visit link:
Pet Obesity Awareness Day: The dogs prone to being overweight and how to manage it - Newbury Today
