Do you think allowing your pet to be obese is cruel?

Question

I do. It is our responsibilty to care for them, and for me that means making sure they are as healthy and happy as possible. A fat animal is not healthy, most of them are probably are not happy either.

http://www.theonion.com/content/files/images/onion_news2425.jpg
http://www.thepetcenter.com/imtop/catbig1.jpg

Answer 1

I don't think many people realise they are doing it, so not cruel so much as unthinking, giving animals treats that make them fat. Cruelty does exist if it didn't we wouldn't need the RSPCA

Answer 2

I agree. Animals carrying a little bit of excess weight isn't so much an issue, but I'm seeing more and more pets who would fall into the morbidly obese category.

Just like us, obesity in animals is associated with a lot of health problems. It can contribute to diabetes mellitus, heart problems, joint problems, feline lower urinary tract disease in cats, you name it. And Katie's right- fat animals often have fat owners.

It's really not hard to keep an animal at a healthy weight. As far as I'm concerned, there's no excuse for having an obese animal. I get really annoyed when people try to write it off as he's just a big dog" or something like that- had someone telling me that the other week regarding their 57kg labrador. Poor thing was so fat and arthritic it could hardly move.

Answer 3

I do agree with you whole heartedly. My 6 yr old JR x Lakeland was speyed 3 yrs ago and she is quite a little tublet! - but living on a farm, I walk them 6 times a day and for really good long walks. She eats very little and is terribly fussy, the vet has taken blood (all clear) and says she is just full of muscle (yeah right, that is my excuse) but her heart is healthy - and what else can I do??

Answer 4

Absolutely. The list of problems/diseases that occur due to obesity is staggering, and there is simply no excuse for it. Diabetes and hormonal derrangements, exacerbation of orthopaedic problems, breathing difficulties, increased anaesthetic risk.... Need I go on?

Horses are no different, and laminitis is frequently caused by obesity.

Unfortunately, and this is controversial for non-vets but I'm afraid true, fat pets are often owned by fat people. Their own justification about their weight is extended to the animal, and the consequence is denial that the pet being fat is affecting its health. I'm not in any way criticising people for being overweight, please please don't get me wrong, but that is the person's choice if they want to do it to themselves. Smokers can give themselves cancer but we'd be horrified if we thought they'd given their dog cancer too. Why then should animals suffer their owners' weight misgivings?

Answer 5

it is cruel...
so many people don't realize ...
yes, YOU are content to spend YOUR life watching tv and eating chocolate; but animals aren't happy being fat!
Animals like to earn their food by exercising: playing and hunting,
YOU THINK your pet is happy because she looks content just sitting there on the couch all day
but I KNOW that your pet is depressed sitting on the couch all day, THEY WANT to get up and do something but YOU NEED to provide them with some mental stimulation first!
YOU THINK your pet is happy because she purrs or wags her tail every time you feed her some human food;
I KNOW that she only seems happy now because you have have forced her to revolve her entire life around food!
Animals don't always know what is good for them, much like children;
and they try to tell you what they want (mental stimulation to play and hunt and exercise)
but after you deny them these simple pleasures in life repeatedly and constantly feed them treats instead,
well of course they are going to give up and lead depressed fat lives on your couch! what do you think they're gonna do? it's not like they can put their own leash on and take them selfs to the park!
http://www.drsfostersmith.com/pic/article.cfm?dept_id=0&siteid=1&acatid=209&aid=886
http://www.wihumane.org/education/WisconsinHumaneSociety-PlayTherapyforCats.aspx
sorry if I seem rude, but this is just such an upsetting subject....

besides the need to exercise and have mental stimulation in their lives;
another reason for pet obesity would be poor nutrition:
so many pet foods are based off of corn and they can't get proper nutrition off of that!
http://www.drsfostersmith.com/pic/article.cfm?dept_id=0&siteid=1&acatid=296&aid=98
however, I would say the main cause is lack of exercise usually paired with depression or lack of mental stimulation (and leading to a world of other health problems)

Answer 6

... definitely not too healthy for the animal ... but i think, like people, some animals are probably more prone to obesity than others, because some dogs are naturally more active (hyper) and peppy while others like to laze around... owners need to keep them on a healthy diet with plenty of exercise ... i feed my dog a healthy diet with hardly any table scraps (except what the kids sneak to him), and we go for 3 walks daily ... but not everybody has the time to do this... they do make special diet food for pets, which would probably help that dog and cat, along with some daily exercise ...

Answer 7

i think that most people don't realise they're overfeeding their pet but it is quite cruel to let them get obese because the owner of the pet is the one who should be keeping it on a normal diet so the pet cant help it.

Answer 8

Yes, it is. My bf's dog is extremely overweight and has trouble carrying his weight around, it hurts him to walk. I think cutting back a little of their intake would stop them from being overweight. It is our responsibility as pet owners (and people) to make sure that your animal has long healthy life.

Answer 9

Yes. It is very cruel because obesity can cause other health problems in pets the same way it can cause health problems in humans.

Answer 10

Yeah I know alot of people do not do it intentionally though I did come across someone on here that asked something along the lines of - "how do I make my pet fat so they are cute"