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Ever wonder why we carefully watch what our kids eat so they do not become over weight, yet we totally allow our dogs to blow up to balloon size without giving it a thought? Admit it, many of us do this, and when you need to get your pudgy pooch back to slim and trim condition it is time to man up and do what is best for the health of your dog no matter how much he begs or whines.
The top reason for helping a pudgy pooch back to slim and trim condition is health. Overweight dogs are far more prone to develop diabetes, suffer from painful back conditions, heart problems, and the eventually breaking down of hip and leg joints due to toting around all the extra weight. Generally speaking overweight dogs tend to be house dogs that eat table scraps and do not receive enough exercise. So this is a great place to start-cut off the table scrapes and put your dog on a daily walking plan. This will help reduce their weight as well as increase their level of energy.
Helping your pudgy pooch back to slim and trim can begin with the above two examples while reducing the amount of regular dog food you feed each day. Try switching to a well-balanced dog food based on meat as the main ingredient and do away with feeding twice a day. Once in the evening is sufficient, and never leave your dog’s food bowl full all day long. You may also want to consider switching to a diet dog food with fewer calories than what you currently feed the dog. If you go this route make the switch slowly over a period of a couple weeks so your dog has time to adjust to eating a different food.
When switching to a low calorie dog food your dog will probably turn their nose up at first and refuse to eat, but eventually they will become hungry enough to try the new food and will soon be eating as much as you put out. Here is a tip many dog owners do not know—a dog who has food in their bowl constantly will appear to nibble at the food during the day without eating much at the time. This is misleading as they never really have a chance to get really hungry and gain more weight. It is far better to see your dog eat once a day and eat all you put out.
Helping your pudgy pooch back to slim and trim get back into shape takes time but is well worth the effort.
How do you keep your dog’s weight down? Comments and advice are welcome below.
carla brown
Aug 5, 2013 at 6:59 pm
I take a cup (??) of my dog’s dog food (lite), add water to it and wait until it gets soft. I then take a fork and mush it as well as adding a pinch of garlic powder (NOT salt!). I make little blobs on a cookie sheet and bake for 10 minutes or so. Presto! A cookie but it is the one and same dog food – just in a different texture and my dog thinks he is getting a treat.
Stephanie
May 8, 2013 at 8:09 pm
We use the SlimDoggy.com app to track activity and feedings so we know precisely how much to feed our dogs. It is not enough to just cut back.. you should know how much you should feed based on your own dog’s exercise levels.
I also like the fact that there is an extensive set of dog food calorie counts and ingredient lists in this. It helps me account for both food and treats and the ingredients are used to rank foods. Very helpful and I found out that one of my kibble brands was full of filler and artificial items that are not very good for our dogs.
Lastly, we try and run our dogs 3 times per week. The dogs seem to love it!
ddemos
May 8, 2013 at 1:50 pm
I give my dog baby carrots, apples and green beans. He got sick from broccoli…threw up yet behaved fine otherwise. I have since found that broc. contains something that can upset the stomach lining in dogs, but many people have told me their dogs are fine w/ it. All in moderation and according to their body weight. I wouldn’t give my 12 lb dog a whole apple…
Come “like’ my page…help me get some shelter dogs adopted…
Janet
May 8, 2013 at 1:39 pm
What other doggy treats can I give besides a half a milk bone…..
Can they eat vegetables (such as carrots-raw or cooked) ???
My dog also likes to eat lettuce is that okay !!!
Ron Miller
May 10, 2013 at 11:03 am
Lettuce and carrots (either raw or cooked) are OK. Look for an article coming up on Monday (5/13) that will list several safe veggies!
Jim
Aug 16, 2013 at 6:59 pm
Janet,
I recently bought a dehydrator, cheap from Amazon, and use partly frozen (easier to slice), skinless chicken breasts, which I slice (1/8 inch) with an electric food slicer. The slices are placed into the dehydrator and within hours, turn out the most amazing chicken jerky treats. Just like store bought but much more natural without the additives and chemicals. He absolutely loves them and I feel more confident in feeding them to him. It might sound like a chore, but it really is quite a snap. Whatever minimal time I do spend in preparation (It really is nothing) I feel better in providing my pup with natural and safe treats and peace of mind. Anyone should try it as I am confident you will find it beneficial for you and your pet.