How to Tell If Your Dog is Overweight or Obese

Sometimes dogs and humans share the same problems. This is particularly true when it comes to pet obesity. Just as waistlines of humans are expanding due to poor dietary choices and lack of activity, our four-legged friends are experiencing their own battle with excess pounds. When it comes to overweight and fat dogs, there’s a tendency for a dog owner to attribute their pet’s obesity to being “pleasantly plump”. Unfortunately, being pleasantly plump in the dog world can lead to a dog being unpleasantly unhealthy.

How to Tell If Your Dog is Overweight

The first step in getting control of pet obesity is to determine if your dog weighs more than he should. How do you tell if your dog is overweight? Purina has designed a system that allows you to quickly and easily determine if your dog is overweight. This appears on the back of all Purina dog food packages. If you use Purina dog food, you can use this system as a guideline for determining pet obesity in your own dog.

Your dog is of ideal weight if his ribs aren’t visible but can still be felt by palpation. You should also be able to see a well defined waistline on your dog which is the area beneath the rib cage and the back end. If your dog is overweight, you probably won’t be able to feel the ribs and the waistline will not be visible when viewed from above. In a fat dog, the stomach appears oval in contour when you view it from the side position. Check these parameters from all positions carefully to determine if your dog is of appropriate weight.

To feel your dog’s ribs, place both thumbs on your dog’s spine in the middle of his body. Extend your hands around to each side and press lightly. If your dog isn’t overweight, you should be able to feel the ribs easily with your fingers. Performing a check like this is particularly important in dogs that have excess fur since it can be difficult to determine normal body proportions with excess hair covering the body.

What to Do if Your Dog is Overweight

If your dog fails the pet obesity test and you find you’re dealing with a fat dog, it’s time to take action. By helping your dog loose those excess pounds, you’ll help him feel more comfortable and, hopefully, keep him around a bit longer. Just as in humans, pet obesity can lead to premature death from diabetes and other medical conditions as well as contribute to your pet’s disability by increasing the risk of joint problems.

Start by taking stock of how much you’re feeding your dog, particularly how many snacks he gets throughout the day. Reassess how many walks he gets on a daily basis. Then, make an appointment with your vet to determine how overweight your dog actually is and whether you need to change dog foods. If your fat dog is older, he will require fewer calories than when he was young.

Once you’ve visited your vet, establish a meal schedule and walking plan to reduce caloric intake and burn more calories. Pet obesity is usually a less difficult problem to treat since dogs normally can’t access the refrigerator on their own. The hardest part is learning to not feel guilty when your dog begs for food. To circumvent this problem, make an effort to not snack when your dog is around. Be consistent and your fat dog will lose those excess pounds and you can both breathe easier. The reward will be a happier, healthier dog.

By Dr Kristie, reprinted by permission

Dogs and Obesity

Unfortunately, even dogs become overweight. This can be the direct result of overfeeding, improper diet, a lack of exercise, a health condition, or a combination of reasons. Obesity in a dog can have dire consequences for his overall health.

Obesity in our pets may creep up on them in such a gradual manner, that at first, we simply don’t notice it. Then, when it is no longer easy to ignore or pretend that our dog isn’t overweight, we simply cannot bring ourselves to change his diet. We believe that it will hurt his feelings, upset him, cause him to experience hunger pangs, and more.

Our love for our pet clouds the issue to the point that it may keep us from doing the right thing. Restricting our dog’s diet seems cruel and unnecessary. After all, lots of people are overweight, so why shouldn’t dogs be too? However, it really is in the dog’s best interest to lose some weight and get back to the ideal weight for his breed.

Fortunately, manufacturers of dog food have produced some ideal feeds for lowering a dog’s caloric intake. Instead of restricting the quantity of food as dog owners have had to do in the past, today’s owners of overweight dogs can substitute a special diet for their dog’s needs.

As with any change in diet, the special feed should be introduced gradually into your dog’s daily meals. Begin by substituting one third of your dog’s regular dog food with the new specially formulated dog food. Watch your dog for changes in his digestion and elimination processes.

If all goes well, gradually increase the amount of the special diet food and decrease the amount of the regular dog food that your dog usually enjoys. You should begin to notice your dog slimming down after a few weeks. If you don’t see a change in his weight, you may want to check into the possibility of his obtaining food elsewhere, like the cat’s dish.

The special diets are formulated to include the required nutrients to maintain a dog’s good health. The important difference is that the special diet contains fewer calories. The reduction in calories is obtained without sacrificing bulk. Your dog is able to partake of a diet that will satisfy his hunger while reducing his caloric intake.

Depending upon the severity of your dog’s obesity, the new diet may have to remain in place for a few weeks to a few months. Adding additional exercise to your dog’s daily routine will help to speed up the weight reduction process. You may want to consider consulting your dog’s veterinarian before incorporating any changes.

Ian White pet-sitters.biz ©2008

If you dont have time to exercize your dog - consider employing a local pet sitter/dog walker. This is a growing service in your area as families become time poor and animal lovers opt out of the rat race.