A diet for a fat dog seems like a no-brainer. If a dog is overweight, its owner is simply feeding the dog too much food or too many treats.
It’s important to feed your dog the correct serving amount whether it’s overweight or not. Dog food companies are notorious for putting serving sizes that are too large on their bags of dry dog food. To determine the correct portion to serve your pet, you may want to ask your veterinarian how much and how often your dog should be fed.
Dog food manufacturers are no different than the companies that make human products. Consider shampoos: almost every shampoo has on its label “shampoo, rinse, and shampoo again.” How many people ever bother to shampoo their hair twice when showering or taking a bath? Dog food manufacturers use the same tactic to get you to feed more dog food than your dog needs at mealtime. The end result is exactly what they want you to do – buy more dog food.
If you have a fat dog and it really needs to lose weight, you’ll have to put it on a diet. First, keep track of everything you feed it each day, including treats and snacks.
You don’t have to completely eliminate treats when putting your dog on a diet. Instead choose healthy alternatives like raw vegetables or rice cakes. At the beginning of each day decide how many treats you will give your dog that day and stick to it no matter how much begging it does.
To be successful in establishing a diet for fat dogs requires a reduction of the amount of daily portions you feed your dog. Begin by cutting back the amount of food by 15% to 20%. In approximately six to eight weeks you’ll start seeing results. You can also check with your veterinarian on how to calculate the exact amount of calories your pet needs per day in order to lose weight. The vet will consider your dog’s size, ideal body weight, energy level, and general health.
It’s possible that your overweight dog will whine or cry for more food while on a diet but you need to be firm and not give in by feeding it more than the correct amount. Dogs are very adept at whining if they know the end result is more food or treats.
For assured weight loss in your overweight dog, make Winston’s Digest All the cornerstone of its weight loss program. Overweight dogs usually lose an average of five pounds within the first two to three months when put on a daily regimen of Digest All.
And finally, don’t forget the importance of exercise as a part of a diet for fat dogs. Daily exercise is important in losing weight. 10-15 minutes of activity several times per day will help your dog burn calories and lose that fat.
