Overweight puppy

Re: Overweight puppy

Gemma Burden RVN — Fri, 18 Nov 2011 20:07:57 GMT

I've had a couple of cases like this before, and have found that its worth finding out how many treats they are giving, esp if they are going to training classes, as some of them will feed rediculous amounts, and simply getting rid of these makes a huge difference. I have also found that it is worth finding out how much exercise they are giving as well, as I have had 6 month old puppies in before that have been getting a 10 minute walk a day and the owner wonders why they are going mental. I know a lot of people are concerned about the amount of exercise a puppy gets, but I went to a Hills talk on obesity a few years ago, and the issue of fat puppies and exercise came up in the questions asked at the end. They advised that due to some of the mad things breeders tell the people that take on their puppies there are a lot of puppies that get a lot less exercise than they should, and that as long as the dog was not doing a lot of high impact exercise (such as chasing a ball constantly) and was not getting so much exercise that it was unable to do anything for the rest of the day then decent length walks would do them no harm.

Re: Overweight puppy

ginny — Fri, 18 Nov 2011 17:20:42 GMT

I had this situation with a portly kitten a few years ago. She would eat anything and we used to joke that she had crossed souls with a labrador when born!! She was 3kg at about 12 weeks and looked like a barrell.

I rang Hills for adv on their helpline and they suggested R/D but with a certain supplement and then to check the weight frequently - they were quite precise with regards to amount of both food and supplement. They were very helpful and I had to ring them quite a lot about her.

Re: Overweight puppy

SmegSlayer — Fri, 18 Nov 2011 17:05:51 GMT

Ditch the raw food diet? a complete puppy food to ensure correct levels of calcium and protein for a growing large breed pup?

Re: Overweight puppy

Gillian Mostyn — Fri, 18 Nov 2011 10:03:25 GMT

More gentle exercise (walking on lead etc) and put on appropriate amount of food for the age. If you leave it on that amount as it is growing, the weight will fall off. I don't think you should put that age of puppy on a weight loss diet as such - you need to make sure they are getting the correct nutrition.

Re: Overweight puppy

Julie-Anne Wilson — Fri, 18 Nov 2011 09:47:09 GMT

That's a weird one. I've never had a puppy that fat before so I don't have any tips. It'll be difficult though, you need to watch what they're going to be feeding it, ideally you'd still want it on puppy for the sake of it growing but puppy chocked full of calories. You could maybe phone the rep for whatever food you sell and ask their advice? I know our rep is always more than happy to help out with food choices we might have,