Overweight dog

[kimpton]

Hi there.  My dog is about 10% lbs overweight.  She only eats about 3/4 of the amount recommended for her size & she's not losing.  Has anyone else experienced this?  Her thyroid is fine.  She is on a strict diet for various reasons & she can only go for 2 short walks a day because of bad hips.  

[ginger899]

Hi,
When you mentioned that your dog has bad hips, did you mean arthritis? If so, as an additional 'boost' for her wellbeing, and possibly some relief for the hip condition, (so hopefully she might be able to exercise) you could definitely start her on Glucosamine and Chondroitin supplements.

My dog had a broken leg about 6-7 years ago. The vet said she was almost certain to develop arthritis in that leg. On and off she did 'hitch' that back leg, or even limp a little....if she had run too hard and too fast for too long, or if the weather turned chill and damp. I started her on Glucosamine and Chondroitin, and could hardly believe it when it had such a marked effect, and very quickly too! I expected hardly any response, and for that to take some weeks. But no, she stopped 'hitching' with that back leg within a matter of 4 or 5 days! That was about 4 months ago.
She weighs 28lbs so the dose for her is 500mg Glucosamine, with 200mg Chondroitin. Depending on your dog's weight you'd have to adjust the dose. But it does work!

[Thomas Dock, CVJ, Vet. Technician]

Ghilly has provided you with some excellent advice, especially about swimming your dog.   Swimming is a superb way for arthritic and older dogs to shed some pounds without stressing their joints.   You might also look for a rehab center near your town that offers underwater treadmills for dogs.

The only other comment I would add is ask what testing your DVM did with respect to the thyroid.   Often, many docs rely on a single T4 measurement which is notoriously unreliable for ruling in or ruling out hypothyroidism.  Complete thyroid panels are more effective for that type of diagnosis.

You might stop by the expert pet forums here and repost your question to the veterinarians to get their take on your pet's condition.   And, as Ghilly said...keep us posted!

[Ghilly]

The guidelines on the food bags are really just that - basic guidelines.  They are very generalized based on how much a dog should need each day to maintain its body in good weight.  What they don't (or can't really) take into consideration is how each dog is different.  Some are easy keepers, needing very little food to maintain their body weight, while others might need almost twice the recommended daily ration to stay in good weight.  The best way to gauge what your dog really needs for its own individual requirements is to feed what the bag recommends for a period of time, and then evaluate the dog and see how it's doing.  Is it overweight?  Is it underweight?  Does the coat look healthy or is it rough and patchy looking?  

The bottom line is this.  There is no one set amount that dogs between the weights of X and Y should be fed every day to keep them healthy.  Some need much less, others need much more.  Even two dogs from the same litter can have dramatically different nutritional requirements.  

Are you CERTAIN that your dog isn't getting any other food from anywhere else while you're not looking?  Every little bit counts.  If your dog sees 10 people each day, and each person gives the dog even one cookie, the dog is getting a lot more then you think she's getting.  If she counter surfs or helps herself to things when people aren't looking, she is getting a lot more than you are aware of.  If kids are slipping her goodies under the table she's getting more than you are aware of.  If you have a cat, she might be helping herself to cat food, which will add considerably to her caloric intake.  

If you are positive she is not getting any extra rations from anywhere, she might need to be cut down to almost nothing in order for her to lose weight.  If she's getting three cups a day, for instance, she might only need ONE cup a day.  The fact that she is so limited as to how much exercise she can have is hindering her ability to lose weight, and it's hindering it a lot.  So while three cups with a good amount of exercise MIGHT make her lose weight, three cups and only two short walks a day isn't making her lose anything at all.  So cut her down to about half of what you are giving her, even for a week or two, to see if that makes a difference.  If you see her losing weight, then keep her on those rations until you get her down to where you want her weight to be, and then adjust her intake so that she just maintains that weight and does not lose any more, but doesn't GAIN any either.  It's going to be a trial and error thing, but you will eventually discover just how much she needs for a maintenance diet after you get the weight off of her.  

As far as exercise goes, do you have a pool?  If you do, or if you have access to a lake or a bay where she can swim, this is EXCELLENT exercise for dogs with bad hips because it's zero impact exercise.  She's not putting any strain at all on her hips because her weight is being buoyed up by the water, but it's a great cardio workout for her and it will burn LOADS of calories.  It's worth it to have to skim some stray hairs off the surface of the pool to let her paddle around the shallow end, with you helping her by holding your hands under her belly so she doesn't have to work as hard.  The more weight you can knock off of her, the better off her hips will be.  She might even be able to do more once you get the weight off in spite of the hips because they won't cause her as much pain if they're not supporting as much weight.

Please keep us posted as to how she does.  

Ghilly