First, is your dog overweight? Ask your veterinarian to evaluate your dog’s size at every check-up. In between visits, as a rule of thumb, you can conduct the “chub pup” test. This is a simple test to tell if your pet has put on a few pounds too many. First, gently feel around your dog’s rib cage. If you are unable to locate the rib cage with just a thin layer of fat separating it from the skin, then you have an overweight dog. There should be a thin layer of fat in between the ribcage and skin. If you have a difficult time locating the bones, then you have an overweight dog.
Putting your pooch on a diet After you’ve verified that your pet needs to slim down, consider his daily calorie intake. This means taking into consideration all the nibbles and treats your pet consumes throughout the day. If you need to scale back on portions, simply follow an allotment routine. First, decide at the beginning of each day exactly how many treats your pooch is allotted: put this amount in a bowl, and when it’s empty, that’s it. Also consider switching out their treats with healthier alternatives, such as green beans or sweet potatoes. This allotment technique can also be used to reduce the overall portions of meals your pet consumes.
Start by cutting your dog’s daily food intake a little less than a quarter for a few weeks, then assess the results. If you prefer, you can enlist the help of your veterinarian over your pet’s food consumption; he will be able to calculate the exact amount of calories your pet needs per day in order to lose those excess pounds.
Get your canine into cardio It’s always a good idea to start your dog off with a low-impact warm up, like a walk, before moving into cardio. After your dog gets accustomed to his warm-ups; you can begin adding some cardio to your dog’s routine. This might be a more brisk walk following the light warm-up. Fetch is another great option for your canine’s cardio training. Generally most dogs run fairly fast for a thrown object, so it is important to keep this in mind, as this automatically makes fetch comparable with the intensity of sprinting. Dogs with joint problems should stick to low-impact activities like swimming or leash walking.
Extra tips to lose extra pounds
Your overweight pet may whine and cry for more food, but aim to only serve him the correct portion. Remember that giving in to the whining will only deter your pet from reaching a healthy size. You may decide to use diet dog food for your pet’s weight loss journey. Just be sure to use a nutritional variety of diet dog food and make the switch slowly, by mixing the diet dog food with your pet’s original dog food. During cardio training rounds of fetch you can use a ball launcher if you’d like to increase the distance your dog sprints.
You can enroll your pet in a specialized doggy fitness center. Here are two to try:
Courteous Canine, Inc
414 Melissa Country Way,
Lutz, FL 33559
813-949-1465
9am-8pm
Barking Dog Fitness
240 N Harbor City Blvd, Melbourne, FL 32935
321-622-8971
7am-7pm