Advice Sought for Thinning a Fat Dog!

[ThornyRidge]

Ok so my dog is a little heavier than she should be.. pure bred English Lab who weighed today 86 lbs! Yikes.. she has put on several pounds! Vet would like to get at least 10 lbs off of her.. she went in for a lump I found on her chest wall.. turns out vet thinks it is fatty tumor! watching it now but double yikes! Anyway I can't really verbally put my dog down or be too insensitive cause I really need to lose lbs too! Have already told her when weather breaks here we are on a walking routine daily! at least a mile! may have to work up to that.. but will incorporate some hilly terrain to make it worthwile! as far as her current diet she is fed TOTW Prairie.. the buffalo/venison one. I have only given her about a cup total each meal (2Xday) my father was giving her her 1.5 cups each meal. Will stick to the 1 cup rule for now and limited freebie human food.. she really does not get much in terms of human food unless you count the snacking we do and throwing a few here and there to her.. that is now cut out. she loves bagels so no more bagel bites! any other suggestions or food quotas to help her get some lbs off.. She will be 7 in May.. hips were scored good/excellent and no signs of joint issues yet!

 

[Hillbilly Hen]

Can you get a tredmill for her?

 

[Beekissed]

Limit food rations and exercise is the only way I know. The best exercise in the world for dogs is playing with other dogs....they can self regulate their activity level, work every muscle in their body and it puts less stress on the joints than running along side a bike.

Can you arrange play dates with a rambunctious pup of the same size? Did wonders for keeping my older lab in fit condition far past what age should have allowed by giving her a lab pup for Christmas one year.

 

[Lesa]

Sounds like you are on the right track. I suspect those human food goodies, are adding up. If you really want to give her a little something, try carrot pieces. Of course, exercise would help too! Spring will be here soon!

 

[WoodlandWoman]

Cutting out high calorie snacks and making sure you aren't over-feeding the main meal is a great place to start. I usually add more walking, too.

If you can't walk her as much right now, will she fetch a little for you every day? I toss the ball down a hallway for mine. Or from one room to the next.

My dogs like vegetables, so I will let them have bites of lower calorie non-starchy types as a treat. They love broccoli, asparagus, carrots, summer squash, green beans, etc. Even cucumber!

 

[MustLoveHens]

Quote:
I have this problem with my two Aussies. To help them lose weight I have them on a green bean diet. 1 cup of kibble and 1 cup of no salt added green beans (2Xday). You can add more green beans if she acts hungry and replace the extra half a cup she was getting from your dad.
Rice cakes are a great dog diet snack. Limit her intake of these treats too. If this is hard to do because of house hold members falling for her sweet face, then replace her treats with low cal treats. Charlie Bear dog treats are only 3 calories and a little round cookie like treat. These are a huge hit in our house and easy to limit. I set out the daily treat rations. Once they are gone, no more until the next day. I hide the treats from dh who likes to over treat the dogs.
Also replace her TOTW Prairie food with the lower protein and lower fat Pacific Stream -TOTW's salmon formula. As she ages and becomes less active especially in winter, a higher fat and higher protein food will lead to her getting fatter. Unused protein turns to fat. The Prairie formula is 32% protein and 18% fat vs. the Pacific formula at 25% protein and 15% fat.
You are feeding a good quality food so the lower protein percentage will not matter in terms of nutrition and it will help keep her feeling full and help to loose weight because her protein intake is less.
Also, increase her play. While you cant go for long walks due to the weather, find a nice spot and toss a ball or toy. Or start the walk habit now and go for small walks around that yard or house and as the weather gets better increase the distance. This keeps things positive and fun for you and for her so when it is time to increase the walk distance you are ready with out becoming overwhelmed. A few 10 minute walks a day are just as effective as a long walk that you might skip because time gets away from you or your schedule gets packed.

 

[RareBreedFancier]

Quote:
It's a Lab, aren't they all permanently starving? (I know mine is, just ask her!

)

I was going to suggest a change to diet food though I wasn't familiar with the brand. 32% protein and 18% fat is very high, not what you need to be feeding while trying to get weight off. 25% protein and 15% fat sounds like a much better option for her.

My old lady Lab weighed 130 pounds when I rescued her. She's now down to around 75 pounds which the vet is super happy with. She also has fatty tumors, lots of them, which the vet says are probably attributable to having been so massively over weight.

I got the weight off by ditching the el'cheapo garbage food they'd been feeding her ad lib and putting her on a carefully measured amount of high quality feed.

And exercise. She'd been living in a yard the size of a single car parking spot all by herself. I had 1/3 acre and another younger bouncy Lab to play with.

 

[2cool4you]

I'm going to second the green bean diet. My sister's italian greyhound had to go on prednisone and it made her think she was starving all the time. She was eating and gaining weight like crazy. To the point the vet was worried her legs would snap from her weight if she jumped down off the couch. So they put her on a premium grain free diet (Blue Buffalo) and replaced half her normal serving with canned sodium free green beans. If she was hungry she got green beans and carrots as a snack. The vet said they can eat as many green beans as they want and it won't cause weight gain. She slimmed right down and was almost back to her slim figure in a few months.

 

[~*Sweet Cheeks*~]

I agree with others, that you're on the right track BUT I would not give any treats or people foods.

I feed my 3 herding dogs TOTW also. If they get a little padding over ribs, I cut back the food a little. If they get too ribby (an aussie currently) I add a little more. My 5 yr old ACD gets 1 cup twice daily, 1 1/2 yr old little man red heeler/shihszu mix gets 1/2 cup twice daily, and 4 yr old hyper Aussie is getting over-flowing 1 cup twice daily.

I add hot water to their kibble and let it soak up to make a gravy because they inhale their food even though I use the special bowls with pegs in them.

They get grain-free dog cookies - 3-4 small in their kongs and dog bones with peanut butter smeared in them in the morning in their crates when I go to work.

NO people food at all. They don't miss something they don't get. They don't sit in front of me begging for food with sad eyes because they don't get any.

I give them lovins instead.

My sister on the other hand is killing her 2 labs slowly. They are so obese, it is sickening. I am so surprised they haven't developed diabetes.

 

[Gypsy07]

RareBreedFancierIt's a Lab, aren't they all permanently [i :

starving[/i]? (I know mine is, just ask her!

LMAO! Too true! My dog (<<<---- in avatar pic) is only half Lab, but he's 100% greedy big lump. He was fairly skinny as a pup but then my boyfriend started giving him treats and titbits and leftovers and just ruined him. He has turned into a champion beggar and is SUPER persistent. He'll sit staring at you for an hour just to get a few crumbs of cheese.

I don't feed him other than at doggy dinnertime but I can't get my boyfriend to stop giving him snacks. I think the trick is just to make yourself strongwilled NOT to give snacks, and to give the dog as much exercise as possible. I agree that other doggy playmates are the best. Some lazy dogs don't have much motivation for balls or frisbees, but they usually LOVE to put a cheeky young pup in it's place.​