Dogs are the man’s best friend. They make the best companion in life. They symbolize happiness, hope, and love.
They also make the best therapists. That’s why people more likely to choose dogs to be their companions throughout the treatment process.
Dogs love to play and to eat. However, giving them too much food can lead to obesity. In the United States, 56% of dogs are considered obese.
With this, dogs were put on the line wherein their health can be at risk of losing weight is not done.
If your dog is included in this 56% of obese dogs, you need to take action immediately. In this way, you can save and prolong the life of your pet.
Given that, let us take a look at some tips to help your dog lose weight properly effectively.
1. Food Factor
Both human beings and dogs utilize food and exercise as the primary keys to lose weight.
And so, as a dog owner, you can start by reducing the food intake of your dogs. Start by reducing an ample amount of their food.
Besides, Ernie Ward, the Association for Pet Obesity Prevention (APOP) founder, stated that the dogs’ weight loss depends at the start and end of their food bowl.
He suggested that for a dog to lose weight, it needs to have 60-70%, and the remaining 30% will go into exercise.
Moreover, those dog owners who uphold an active lifestyle need to make adjustments depending on their dogs’ capabilities.
They need to have a proper guideline about the calorie intake of their dogs.
2. Break up the Meals
Next, you can try breaking up or dividing the meals of your dogs. Start the process by letting them get used to smaller portions of food.
It is well-recommended that you make a daily ration with approximately six portions for clarity and better vision.
Besides, it relies on how you give ration to your dogs but better keep it little.
It is also recommended that you make multiple small meals that are guaranteed easy to burn calories, digest, and other else.
Furthermore, giving the dogs a smaller ration of food helps to keep their insulin levels stable.
This then leads to an effective appetite spike that’ll keep him feel full most of the time.
3. Be Specific about the Amount of Ration
As previously mentioned, rations are the food provided to the dogs. Given that, being specific about the amount of it for each dog is a must.
It will help the dogs to feel full all the time. It can also be observed that the dog feed packs include a feeding guideline mostly at its back.
If you thought that it is great, then you’re wrong. Some of the feeding guidelines for dog foods do not work most of the time.
This is because of the factors that need to be considered when feeding the dogs with packed food.
The factors include the breed, dietary needs, activity level, size if neutered or sprayed, and so much more.
Besides, a bag of dog food does not appear and works the same way with other brands.
So, not getting familiar with it can lead to further problems.
Also, in terms of the dogs’ calorie intake, some factors must be considered: lifestyle, muscle condition score, current medical condition, and body condition score.
These factors can help them in determining the proper amount of calories to give to the dogs.
Moreover, there are other alternatives in terms of the dogs’ rations. One of those is by signing up for a fresh-food plan.
This is the plan wherein the determination of the compatible amount of caloric intake is studied properly.
In this way, specific requirements and adjustments can be made right away properly.
This tip makes it one of the best as it effectively helped many obese dogs go back to their normal weight.
4. Quality of Food
Not just calorie counting, dogs also need to have the best food quality to support their successful weight loss journey.
To be specific, this high-quality food must include whole, low carb, and fresh ingredients.
Most of the processed dog foods nowadays are filled with carb-based fillers. Another thing, observe the label, and you can see that the ingredient is mostly carbohydrates.
This is good, yet having too much of it leads to obesity. In contrast, the experts suggested that dogs must be fed quality food with protein, fiber, and even moisture.
All of these can make the dogs the happiest beings!
5. Rule Out the Medical Conditions
If your dogs have managed to stay and establish profound caloric boundaries, yet weight loss seems to not happen, then you no other choice but to seek medical help.
Veterinarians who are the professionals in this field of work will be your companion to help your dogs be back at their normal weights.
Besides, lethargy and weight gain have been the symptoms of other severe diseases such as Cushing’s Syndrome and hypothyroidism.
Aside from that, there are cases wherein hyperadrenocorticism happens most of the old dogs who have lost their strength, urinates frequently, and have hair loss.
6. Always Count the Treats
The next thing you can do to help your dogs lose weight is by cutting off or counting the treat more often.
This can help the dogs become fit and healthy as they are taken away from their sources of obesity.
No one wants his dogs to become obese or even too much of it. However, dogs make it the best training and therapy aids.
That’s why treats for them are the best rewards for hard work. However, giving too many treats can make the dogs unhealthy and obese when the only recommended amount is only $10.
The problem here is when visitors and the children have decided to play with the dogs.
As they play, treats have been the favorite. Since children love to interact with animals, especially dogs, obesity of dogs is not far from reality.
Given that, as the dog owner, you need to keep an eye on every treat being eaten by your dog. If you saw that it’s too much, then you need to stop it.
However, there are greater alternatives when it comes to giving your pet dog with their favorite treats.
First, the fruits and veggies include green beans, broccoli, celery, baby carrots, bananas, apples, blueberries, and cucumbers.
These mentioned organic plans are all made with love and compassion. That’s why each of them is proven effective.
On the other hand, you can also try giving them peanut butter. Did you know that for every spoon of it, 100 calories are being eaten?
Also, avoid buying peanut butter products with Xylitol as it is harmful to the dogs’ health.
7. Increase Exercise Routines Safely and Everyday
Yes, food and proper diet may be the keys to weight loss effectively, yet we all can’t stand aside from the exercises.
These refer to both the outdoor and inner activities that allow dogs and their owner to become involved in different physical activities.
These activities will then help both obese dogs and human beings to make greater changes this time.
We all know that the most important, obvious, and effective way to lose weight is exercising.
With that, let us prepare a long walk for the dogs. Did you know that walking the dogs out improves their mental stability and intuition?
Walking even for an hour can also help the dogs become familiar with the place and increase the stimulation powers.
Moreover, the most recommended minimum amount of daily exercise is 20 minutes.
This can be done twice a day, apparently during the morning and afternoon.
Another thing, the exercise depends on the breed. If the breed is large dogs, then 20 minutes isn’t enough.
These are the breeds taught to attack and become the protectors. On the other hand, small breeds can have 20 minutes already for weight loss.
They can walk, run, or just typical play with other breeds at the park.
After all, losing the dogs’ weights must be done properly by properly planning and safety protocols.
8. Weight Loss is a Long Game
Losing weight is not an easy task that even human beings get injured, broken, and hurt while making the best gym efforts.
It is indeed a long game that requires hard work, patience, and hope.
You have finally realized that weight loss can’t be helped out if eating like a pig is the hobby.
In simple words, it will not happen if the same hobbies last year were seen on the screen.
Talk with the best and trusted veterinarian in town. This will help you to be updated and be aware of some facts in growing dogs.
Above all, dogs have the chance to lose weight, yet cooperation is needed both of them and their owners.
Also, always settle for the best and long-lasting weight loss partnerships with the dogs.
