how can i slim him down without starving him. he gets 1 tall can of canned dogfood + 1 equivilant can of weight control dry food mixed together every night + a chew rawhide or milkbone every now and then.
2006-10-04 20:13:52 · 13 answers · asked by Anonymous in Pets ➔ Dogs
Sorry your dog is suffering. Take him to the vet--have the vet check him for medical problems that may be causing or contributing to the obesity. Ask the vet for specific guidance for a weight loss plan. I don't know how many ounces or cups of food your dog is eating each day, but it's got to be too many if he's gained that much weight.
In addition to having him checked for health problems and putting him on a diet, get him to exercise more. If he's now so fat he can hardly get up, the exercise will need to be gentle and of short duration. Perhaps the vet can help you come up with an appropriate exercise plan.
Please don't feed him weight control food. Those pet foods (for weight control) in general are bad for the pets because the manufacturers take out protein ingredients and substitute carbohydrates instead. This usually results in the animal eating MORE of the food, and ingesting more calories than if you were feeding them regular dry food.
Perhaps the reason your dog will hardly get up and will lay and cry sometimes is not just the weight issue. He may have arthritis in his hips or back, or maybe he has hip dysplasia. I'm not a vet, so I don't know, but I do know some breeds are more prone to certain health problems than others and the Samoyed breed is one that is prone to hip dysplasia.
The Samoyed breed are highly intelligent work dogs--he may have become fat through a combination of boredom, too little exercise and too much food. Dogs can eat out of boredom, and become depressed from being bored also--just like us.
Good luck with the weight loss--hope your guy is up and running around soon!
2006-10-04 20:41:54 · answer #1 · answered by kim v 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
hi i would definitly take him to the vet but a note about the food try feeding twice a day in smaller quantities. like in stead of one can of wet one can of dry at bed time try half a can moist first thing in the morning and 1/2 can dry and then at 6 or 7 pm do the same routine and then slowly drop it down to 1/4 of each twice a day and then stick to just dry..moist has a lot of extra added calories that your dog doesnt really need. we have a kennel and the only time our dogs get moist food is when htey are pregnant(for the extra calories) and while nursing(also for extra calories) and occasionally if we have a new puppy that is extra small or from another home we will feed them moist just so that we can make sure they are eating and wont lose weight or anything. the crying is either due to pain, discomfort, depression(most likely from not getting up) walkes daily or a few times a day are highly reccomended these dogs especially need room to run and need to be walked. good luck and i hope this helps
2006-10-04 21:53:51 · answer #2 · answered by coffeebug_04 2 · 2⤊ 0⤋
First of all.....
If you are feeding as little as you say, this may be more than a typical obesity issue. You need to take your dog to the vet to be evaluated. Have your vet do a complete blood panel including a T-4. It has been recently found that Samoyed's have a predisposition to hypothyroidism and related autoimmune diseases. If your dog does suffer from hypothyroidism, a synthetic hormone can be supplied daily by mouth.
How's his coat? Does he have any bi-lateral hair loss? Sometimes small patches of hair loss in the undercoat can be undetected in a heavy coated breeds because the guard hairs can cover it up.
Is he neutered? Neutered males do become couch potatoes in their middle and old age.
As far as food.....As GitEmGang said.....no canned food. The vet can recommend a good quality dry kibble for your dog. No milk bones....if you want to give him a treat, offer him a baby carrot.
After taking care of possible medical issues....begin an exercise routine...begin taking him for short walks....gradually building up his muscles and strength.
I am going to include a link of hypothyroidism below.
2006-10-05 01:08:17 · answer #3 · answered by Free Bird 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Stick to just a weight control kibble (dry) He likes canned better, but will eat what he needs of the dry alone..Feed in the morning only..not at night, when he sleeps, instead of burning calories..If he is used to eating at night, just give a milkbone..you can reduce the night feeding gradually, until it is only a milkbone..
This is a great supplement and a reliable company, with fast shipping> http://springtimeinc.com/product/121/2
2006-10-04 20:46:16 · answer #4 · answered by Chetco 7 · 1⤊ 1⤋
Subistute green beans or canned pumkin (NOT the premixed pie filling, strait punkin) for half the food. They will provide some stomach fill with low calories.
Getting him checked for thyroid of joint problems is not a bad idea though.
2006-10-04 23:33:57 · answer #5 · answered by ragapple 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
first get him to a vet. then get him on a low cal premium quality food and take him for short walks. shame on you for letting that happen to your dog. you control what and how much the dog eats...and the exercise it gets. why would you let that happen?
2006-10-04 23:14:10 · answer #6 · answered by Stick to Pet Rocks 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
You need to take him to a vet and have him checked for thyroid disease,which can cause obesity.Also ,if he's crying he must be in pain.Just take him to a vet,that's all I can tell you.
2006-10-04 20:23:07 · answer #7 · answered by Dances With Woofs! 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Get him to the vet pronto, sounds like there is more to it than just obesity
2006-10-04 20:23:54 · answer #8 · answered by Feline Female 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Im sorry about your dog. Help him. Take him to the vet.
2006-10-04 20:55:03 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
OK...Can you tell me ***WHY*** you CONTINUE to TRY TO KILL the poor thing??? Cuz that's PRECISELY what you're DOING!!!
You dumb ....BLANK!!! The ONLY way for ANY animal-dog or human or ANYTHING-to lose weight is to EAT LESS!!!
You MUST "starve" it!!!
NO TREATS,***NO*** canned CRAP,LESS DRY!!!
ONE CUP of feed per day!!***NOTHING*** else!!!!
OR....you could just SHOOT it!! At least it'd DIE FASTER!!
2006-10-05 00:37:57 · answer #10 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 0⤋