Hello OH Members,

A recent study has found that American dogs and cats are facing an obesity epidemic of their own.  OH Magazine would like to hear from you.  Is your pet Obese?  If so, are you guilty of feeding your favorite companion table scraps and treats on a regular basis?  Would you like to see nutritional labels with caloric information on the packaging of the foods you buy for your pet?   Do you have any tips for getting your pet healthy?  Share your stories and photos (if you like) of your pets here.   Your responses may publish in OH Magazine or on ObesityHelp.com.

 

You may also your responses and photos to me at Tammy@ObesityHelp.com

My dog is not obese.

We adopted her at about 9 months of age, and she has maintained her weight within 3 pounds for the last 6 1/2 years.,

She eats lots of treats, and probably more than her share of people scraps, but she also exercises for 30 - 90 minutes twice a day.

She actually has contributed to my weight loss, because she demands to be walked morning and evening.  My husband takes her out most mornings for 30 - 40 minutes.
I take her for an hour or more each evening.

We walk her in a location that allows her to run off her leash and chase rabbits and lizards and anything else that moves.  She gives them a real aerobic workout!

I did not have pets growing up, so I have learned alot from this active girl.  I will never live without an active pet again, that is certain.
She inspires me and gets me moving, even on the days I don't want to.
Her delight in walking and running and a 'good sniff' remind me how simple joyful the simple things in life really are.

Hi Kath!

Thanks so much for sharing your insights and experiences with your puppy!

Tammy

 Interesting question!! 

My 7 y/o yorkie is naturally bigger than most yorkies (as some are) and his healthy weight is about 10-12 pounds. 2 years ago he was up to 15 and we started taking more care to his food and exercise and now he's down to 11 and fit as a fiddle! 

- Megan

We weigh our dog weekly to make sure he stays above 19 lbs and below 20 lbs. If he gets too many treats one week, we cut him back slightly the following week.

Most of our family members have obese dogs so we refuse to let our little guy get fat.

I have two pets, a rescue kitty and a dog that belongs to my bf's family.  My kitty was overweight at one point but then got a complete bladder blockage and was put on a special diet for the rest of his life, he is back to being very lean.  My bf's dog is big, he weighs around 130lbs and gained weight as I lost weight.  He is a begger.  He got so bad he was having trouble walking, we scaled back on all table food and treats and give him Glucosamine daily.  He has lost weight and can walk a lot better.  My goal is to start taking him on daily walks to get him to lose even more weight.  He could probably lose another 10-20lbs and be okay.  I want to get him as thin as possible to get the weight off his joints.  The problem is now that hes feeling better hes back to begging again.  But we try very hard to only give him things that are healthy.

I have an obese cat.  She is only 4.5 years old and weighs 20 lbs (maybe a little more).  She does not get nor beg for table treats.  We also have a 20 yo and a 12 yo that are slender and they all get the same food.  Hard to know what to do with her??  Maybe a DS (as I'm not sure the other wls are powerful enough for her, lol).

Nope, not obese.  A perfect Collie!!

I have 4 Chihuahuas.  I've had the 2 older dogs for 11 and 12 years.  The boy has always been tiny, about 4 lbs, and the girl has always been bigger, about 15 lbs, but not overweight or obese.  She is very proportionate.
About 2 1/2 years ago she had puppies and we would up keeping 2 of them.  Well, we kept one, a girl and give one to my daughter and she had him for about a year and we have him now for about 1 1/2 years.  Up until July, 2010 they were both normal sized.  The girl was tiny, about 5 lbs and the boy was bigger, around 8 lbs.  After I had my  surgery that changed, mainly because we have a lot more leftovers now and I hate to throw things out so they get them.  I have always given them people food with no problems but it was a much smaller quantity.  Now, because my daughter and I don't eat the same any more there are always more leftovers because I'm not eating things like macaroni and cheese or hamburger helper so it goes to the dogs.  And I also give them the rest of my meals that I can't finish, plus anything we bring back from a restaurant that isn't eaten.  Plus their regular food.  They have turned into little pigs, always begging for food.
Now the little girl weighs about 12 lbs and the boy about 16 lbs.  Even  their mother has put on a few pounds.  Only my oldest dog, JJ, has stayed small.  I know I'm not doing them any favors but it is so hard to say no to them and I hate wasting food.

Here is Princess


This is Pepper

My cat is pear-shaped but not obese. At last weigh in she was 2 lbs over. We cut back to one treat every 2nd day. :)
She never eats people food, (she hates it! YES even tuna...)and we've also been more active with her, using a laser pointer to exercise her. She loves it!
I keep multiple sources of water for her, stemming from a little UTI she had. We were told cats are opertunistic drinkers, and "hid" 4 more containers of water near her favorite spots. She has been drinking much more and never had a UTI since :)

My cat is obese. 14 pounds and should be maybe 7-10. I feed her only dry catfood. I do not give her table scraps or people food at all. I switched her to "weight control" cat food and she gained more weight. I switched her to IAMS thinking better quality food might help. She loved it! and demanded more and gained weight. I tried cutting back and limiting her food to smaller amounts. She retaliated by peeing on the carpet and crying all night. Cat wins. Currently feeding her Purina Indoor cat formula food. She eats about 1 cup a day. I don't try to limit her to less any more.  She lost a little bit, and isn't gaining more.

Does her story sound familiar :)

Yeap, my cats are 19 and 21 lbs.  Have switched them on Science diet a year ago doesn't make a difference.  My 1 cat constantly wants more food just like yours.  I don't give in but his quite manipulate.  Chews on wires when no food is in his bowl.   Now sure what to do.

Because they can and they think it makes them more attractive.

http://www.plasticsurgeryinsandiego.com

 I love the  cat retaliation !  My cat is  not fat thank God though he sure loves his raw meat .  Then again I feed him  practically no fat ...so he eats a strictly high protein diet .  Beef eye round  and skinless  chicken breast are his staples .  he eats WAY more meat than I do ! 

I feed him prescription kibble and prescription canned food sometimes but he seems to be healthier on the meat . 

I currently have a dog and a cat, but recently had three cats total.  Our dog has always been ideal weight, but just this year he has gained a few pounds.  I know it is because I can't eat as much since surgery and so have given him the extras that I can't eat.  He is still not overweight, but could be on his way, so no more table scraps:)  Otherwise, he seems to only eat his dog food when hungry and doesn't overeat.  He will just leave it if he's not hungry.

The cats are interesting.  They were all larger cats.  Two were brothers; one of which was very obese and the other was normal.  They were both fed the same things their whole lives, but the obese cat always ate more, wanted more, etc.  He would even become spiteful if he didn't have food in his dish!  At one point, the vet even suggested I start feeding the cats wet food because it is lower carb...so my boys were on a low carb diet and it did help the one lose weight.  Unfortunately, so did the other!

Our third cat was very unhappy moving in with the rest of us.  His weight would fluctuate from underweight to normal to overweight.  Now he is living with a friend and is much happier.  I always wondered if he might have some mental health issues as he would isolate for weeks and not eat, then overeat like crazy.  He is probably a little overweight now, but not much and has been that way for about a year.  Being the only pet there with 9 kids to look after has really helped.

Both my two cats are obese.  They are on a low fat diet and it doesn't even make a difference.  They are indoor cats.  And we only have 600 square feet so I guess they don't have enough room to get enough excersize. 
I thought maybe the could be sleeved with me.  lol Just kidding of course!

 I have a dog and she is not obessed and she is not getting any fat even she eat to much may be because she is too much active every. Every now and then she runs and jump in our back yard she really love to play and run and run and run........   she really run very fast  and she is really sweet too. 

My labrador retriever was a svelte 70 pounds when I rescued him from the local SPCA at 18 months old.  By ten years of age, he weighed 100 pounds.  The vet wasn't too concerned.  He wasn't "obese" but "could stand to lose a little weight."

I have always fed him only good dry dog food and measured it.  I cut back just a little on the measurements and he dropped about six pounds, initially. (I happened to take him back to the vet so got him weighed.)

Not a lot, but guess what.  He started bouncing around like a much younger dog instead of dragging himself around.  He lost most of that weight off his back hips (or so it appears) and even the neighbors have commented about how much spring he has in his step now.

He has continued to lose, not too much, but enough that I can tell by looking. He's due a checkup.

What this did to me was make me see how much difference a small amount of weight loss could make in how one feels and moves.  I do believe he was part of my inspiration to finally do something real about my weight, since I'm not going to switch to dry dog food.  ;-)

I have 4 cats and 2 dogs ( shelties)

I had my 2 cats one is HUGE . He's 22 lbs. The funny thing is he doesn't eat that much,He loves his temptation treats , but people food... meh... he doesn't seem to recognize it as food lol. He eats a mixture of wet and dry food. He is a BIG orange cat.  Very large in every way not just fat. He is taller than every other cat I've met.  Very sedentary. Loves to cuddle , isn't much of a runner or jumper.  

The little normal sized cat even thinks less of food. He totally eats as though it is just feul.  He is more active , running everywhere and being very squirrely.

My partners cats .. one is very sleepy and sedentary and could stand to lose a tiny bit. but probably would if he didn't sleep 20 hours a day lol.

The kitten ( although totally over a year now) is a weird mix. Never met such a food motivated cat. He will eat anything. Including salad covered in vinegar. He loves potato chips, meat , really anything . He will smell our breath when we come home to see what we ate lol. He will steal people food from anywhere and the dogs food.  He had a cold when we first got him and the vet was shocked at how sick he seemed but still eating the treats there lol... He is very active though and is perfect sized.

The dogs - both need more walks and are kind of lazy . Great quote I've heard
.
If your dogs are fat YOU aren't getting enough excercise

I Love  the  little  naughty kitten story - steals food  eut remains perfect size.  WISH  I did lol !