# Overweight Dog... Food Change?



## Penny & Maggie's Mom (Oct 4, 2007)

WOW! That's a ton of calories. My girls would look like a Macy's balloon if they had all that. At 468 cals/cup, that is a very high cal food. My dogs get no more than 1000 calories/day including supplements and snacks. Several years ago when they were on a diet, they got 3/4 c of Wellness Core Red Fat for breakfast and then again for dinner. That was about 700 calories. They did get fish oil which added about 70 cals and got green beans as a filler. First off, I would cut out snacks unless it a portion of her allotted kibble for the day. Then cut back how much she's getting for meals.

Added.... I think most all goldens act as if they are starving and could eat about as much as anyone would feed.


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## Bender (Dec 30, 2008)

Is the kong filled with peanut butter? Two tablespoons is close to 200 calories - you may want to get some good quality, canned dog food and use that instead, and limit the cooked chicken breast to one total per week if you're giving one per day. It's not a bad thing but it adds up.

You can also use veggies to fill the kong, or fat free yogurt mixed with frozen veggies. 

You may also want to cut her current food down to 1 and a half cups a day - most healthy dogs eat around 2 cups a day to maintain depending on the food. 

Oh and the 'always hungry' thing, ignore it, they're just like that (some of them anyway). You can give carrots and frozen peas as treats too, and substitute the odd meal for a nice beef neck bone, lots of meat and no fat (the marrow bones are loaded with fat).

Bender would honestly eat herself to death if I let her, she once ate so much deer meat and bone that she looked like she was about to have 20 puppies.:doh: She was no longer allowed to just gage herself at the buffet table.

Lana


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## Enzos_Mom (Apr 8, 2010)

Fromm 4 star Whitefish and Potato has only 325 calories and is a great food. =) I pay about $45-50 for a 30 lb bag.


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## GoldenOwner12 (Jun 18, 2008)

Hi my Shelley is also on a diet she is getting only 2 cups of food a day but cut in half 1 cup in the morning 1 cup at night. May i surguest you stop with the peanut butter as that is very fattening. If you are going to fill her kong up with food i would that as her dinner or breakfast. I've count out on all treats and extra food, If i give her a bone that is her morning feed she doesn't get anything till dinner time. 

Thats goldens for you they always act like there hungry, They always give you that look come on mum feed me more. To me i think your feeding her to much ii would feed 2 meals instand of 1 big meal. Beans are fine to feed as there not fatening so use them as treats. Feed her morning and at night that way she may feel full for longer. 

My Shelley was the same always hungry but found out cause i only gave her 1 meal a day at night so she got 2 cups at night. So she had a empty stomach all day which is why she seemed hungry all the time. But now she is getting the same amount 2 cups but halfed 1 cup morning 1 cup night. I found by doing that she doesn't seem hungry all the time.


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## jackie_hubert (Jun 2, 2010)

You got some great advice. Hope she trims down soon. I think Canidae is a good food. don't see a reason for switching, just altering how much she eats.

How much and what type of excercise does she get? I think it's good to shoot for 2hrs/day of walking. With some time for running around too. While she's a little bigger you may have to cut back and work your way up to 2hrs/day. 

Also, we love pictures. Maybe you could take a picture every week and share with us how her weight loss is coming along.


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## Megora (Jun 7, 2010)

jmich24 said:


> My pup is over weight. She is 14 months old. Short and stock. My wife and I refer to her as our little "Tub of Goo"
> 
> I have had her on a diet of 2 1/2 cups of Canidae per day with one can of salt free green beans (filler). She walks an average of 2 miles per day. She also get Kong w/ Peanut Butter, and cooked chicken breast as treats almost daily. She has been on the is diet for 2 monthes with zero weight loss. Her Thyroid has been checked and came back negitive.


You know, I think you could keep her on the same food if she's doing well on it (no digestive issues). Just cut her down to only 2 cups a day. That should be 1 meal in the morning and 1 meal at night. Give her 1/2 a can of green beans with every meal. 

Keep an eye on her weight - meaning visually. Is she getting a tuck and a waistline? Can you feel her ribs by just lightly feeling her sides?

If that isn't working within 3 months, cut her down to 1 cup a day. That would be 1/2 a cup of kibble in the morning and 1/2 a cup of kibble at night. And 1/2 a can of green beans with every meal.

And keep walking her 2 miles every day. 

And don't worry about starving her. Dogs do adjust fairly quickly to smaller meals.


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## Penny & Maggie's Mom (Oct 4, 2007)

Personally, I wouldn't cut a golden down to only 1 cup daily. They need enough nutrition for healthy body functioning. Losing slowing and steadily is much healthier in the long run.


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## Megora (Jun 7, 2010)

Penny & Maggie's Mom said:


> Personally, I wouldn't cut a golden down to only 1 cup daily. They need enough nutrition for healthy body functioning. Losing slowing and steadily is much healthier in the long run.


Very true... it is why if you go that route, you need to do monthly checks at the vet for your dog's weight. If your dog is losing too much weight too fast, it can be unhealthy. 

That said, if you are not cutting back on everything else the dog eats, she will still be getting plenty of nutrition. There are plenty enough calories in the food the OP is feeding his dog. 

My golden is only getting 1 1/2 cups a day + 3 mile daily walk. And he is 82 pounds. 

Now one thing to consider with him is he is big boned and does not look overweight. You can feel his ribs, he has a decent tuck, and waistline. That's what I go by, not so much his weight at the vet.


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## Judi (Feb 26, 2007)

I have a Golden that lost about 40 pounds. She was on Prescription Diet food from the Vet. Every month, she went to the Vet to get weighed. When she reached her goal, she gave up that food. She has kept most of it off.


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## Penny & Maggie's Mom (Oct 4, 2007)

Yes, weigh ins are very important. But I could never recommend less than 500 calories per day for an adult golden, which is what 1 cup/day would be. That would put the dog into starvation mode and could seriously jeopardize health.


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## tippykayak (Oct 27, 2008)

Cut back a bit on treats and PB if you can.

Cut the food to 2 cups for a month and see if she loses any weight. If she's lost more than 4 or 5 pounds, go up to 2 1/4. If she hasn't lost anything, cut to 1 3/4.

It's a nutritionally dense food. Don't be afraid to cut back on the amount. 

One way or another, you need to get her weight down. Obesity can take two healthy years off your dog's life.


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## tippykayak (Oct 27, 2008)

Penny & Maggie's Mom said:


> Personally, I wouldn't cut a golden down to only 1 cup daily. They need enough nutrition for healthy body functioning. Losing slowing and steadily is much healthier in the long run.


I can't imagine they'd need to cut that low to get weight loss in this situation. If it's 2 1/2 cups now, I bet they see healthy weight loss with 1 3/4 or more.


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## Megora (Jun 7, 2010)

Penny & Maggie's Mom said:


> Yes, weigh ins are very important. But I could never recommend less than 500 calories per day for an adult golden, which is what 1 cup/day would be. That would put the dog into starvation mode and could seriously jeopardize health.


Again, this would be very true if your golden is only getting 1 cup of kibble a day. But most goldens get plenty of treats a day, especially if they are in training. You have to factor in those calories as well. 

Other than that... there isn't much difference between 1 1/2 cups and 1 cup to the dog. Especially if you are giving the dog filler (green beans, potatoes, pumpkin).


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## Judi (Feb 26, 2007)

Penny & Maggie's Mom said:


> Yes, weigh ins are very important. But I could never recommend less than 500 calories per day for an adult golden, which is what 1 cup/day would be. That would put the dog into starvation mode and could seriously jeopardize health.


Doing what I did didn't jeopardise health. If I didn't do this, she might not be here today. She was about 105 pounds!


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## marshab1 (Aug 28, 2006)

My Tinkerbell can't do much excercising due to her heart. So when she needed to lose weight we had to do it with food. Veggies are her best friend. We use a variety of fresh and frozen veggies for treats and as filler with her meals. We switched to Wellness Core Reduced fat and more recently to Acana Prairie. She gets 2 cups a day, 1 in the morning and 1 at night. This allowed her to drop from 80 pounds down to 65 pounds.


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## Judi (Feb 26, 2007)

My Pets are on Precise food.


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## Penny & Maggie's Mom (Oct 4, 2007)

tippykayak said:


> I can't imagine they'd need to cut that low to get weight loss in this situation. If it's 2 1/2 cups now, I bet they see healthy weight loss with 1 3/4 or more.


 
I agree Tippy. I was referencing an earlier post to cut down to 1 cup.


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## Penny & Maggie's Mom (Oct 4, 2007)

Judi said:


> Doing what I did didn't jeopardise health. If I didn't do this, she might not be here today. She was about 105 pounds!


 
I agree Judi. My statement was in reference to another post.


Also, to the OP, there is a common diet theory that many of us have used that says 10 calories for every pound they SHOULD weigh. Thus, if the goal is 70 pounds, you'd feed 700 calories.


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## GoldenOwner12 (Jun 18, 2008)

i agree 1 cup a day is not enough for a golden i don't think they will be getting the nutrience they need. Shelley does good with her 1 cup in the morning 1 cup at night, If i feed her lower then that i know she will start eatting anything in sight. I also noticed with Shelley is if i feed only 1 cup of food and 1 cup of beans she still acted like she was straving, I reckon its cause she wasn't getting enough nutrience in that meal. 

Shelley has only just started her diet its only been a week so i guess time will tell if this diet works. If not its to the vet for a check up and get her thyriod checked, Vets here said to get her thyriod checked is going to cost me $350.


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## Megora (Jun 7, 2010)

tippykayak said:


> I can't imagine they'd need to cut that low to get weight loss in this situation. If it's 2 1/2 cups now, I bet they see healthy weight loss with 1 3/4 or more.


As I said in the previous page... if you cut back to only 2 cups, you should see a difference within 3 months. If there isn't any, then you might need to cut back a little further. I did not say you should go from nearly 4 cups a day to only 1 cup. In most cases, it's not necessary. 

And these were tips that I picked up from my vet. This because I had a golden with severe elbow dysplasia and needed to get his weight down. This was complicated with a 25" big boned golden male who could not exercise, but it was accomplished with the help of our vet. He was taken down to 1 cup a day until he dropped the appropriate weight and then we slowly bumped him back up to 2 cups to maintain his weight.


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## Heidi36oh (Feb 27, 2007)

I agree with all of you, I cut Chloe down to 2 cups a day (after last vet visit she weight in at 115 pounds:doh with lot's of veggies, manly green beans and she lost I think 20 to 25 pounds so far (due for weigh in), she is looking so much better and you can tell her energy level is way up..I mean way up..lol

Now it will take a few month, it did for us and we are still working on her weight...I can almost feel her ribs


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## tippykayak (Oct 27, 2008)

Megora said:


> As I said in the previous page... if you cut back to only 2 cups, you should see a difference within 3 months. If there isn't any, then you might need to cut back a little further. I did not say you should go from nearly 4 cups a day to only 1 cup. In most cases, it's not necessary.
> 
> And these were tips that I picked up from my vet. This because I had a golden with severe elbow dysplasia and needed to get his weight down. This was complicated with a 25" big boned golden male who could not exercise, but it was accomplished with the help of our vet. He was taken down to 1 cup a day until he dropped the appropriate weight and then we slowly bumped him back up to 2 cups to maintain his weight.


I'm with you. I think if they're going to go below 1 1/2 cups, they really need to stay in tight consultation with their vet. And I can't believe they'd need to if the dog doesn't have a thyroid problem, so I bet it's not an issue. 2 1/2 cups, plus PB, plus chicken got the dog overweight. It won't take a dramatic cut to start some slow weight loss.


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## tippykayak (Oct 27, 2008)

One thing I forgot to mention in my initial post: weight loss food seems like an unnecessary thing to me. Portion control of a good food seems smarter to me than trying to find a lower calorie food.


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## CarolinaCasey (Jun 1, 2007)

You could try a reduced fat/diet kibble and have less kcals/cup but she could still feel full if the kcals are low enough that she can get "more" kibble.

Good luck!


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## Maxs Mom (Mar 22, 2008)

I would start with a consult with your vet. They know your dog best. I got 30# off my lab, she was not a puppy, and we did a full blood panel to make sure in her case there was not a reason for her to be overweight other than too much food, not enough exercise.

At 14 months your pups growth plates are probably not closed. She will need exercise but you need to be careful to not injure her while she is heavy. It is getting cold here in MI but if you can find a place with indoor swimming, that is excellent exercise and not hard on joints. Good play on grass is healthy and good for calorie burning. Chasing you or if you have them .... kids. 

Cutting back on the food, and perhaps holding out "some" of her food and using that for treats instead of the chicken would not increase her calories. One thing... Do not succumb to the pathetic starving big brown eyes... take it from me... BE STRONG!! Your dog will be much happier if you get the weight off. I can't believe the difference it made in our dog.


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## fostermom (Sep 6, 2007)

I would suggest baby carrots as treats during the day. They seem to give them the crunch they like with almost no calories. Also, with the kong, you can stuff it with some kibble. Just take part of her breakfast allotment and stuff it into the kong. 

I took my lab/golden mix pictured in my signature from 96 lbs to 72 lbs by portioning her food and making sure she got a lot of exercise.


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## MGMF (May 13, 2009)

You don't need to change the food because she is overweight. Does she have good skin and coat? Does the food cause other issues besided weight? If not all you need is to cut back on how much she is eating. Do not use the guildlines on the back of a dog food bag. Rarely see it be correct. Just like people some have faster metabolism and need more or in your case less. You need to adjust to how the dog looks. Sometimes you need an outside opinion of what they honestly think about her weight. (Parents eyes are full of love and want to feed to much) All mine change amounts they eat all the time. Right now all my guys eat different amounts each feeding. It can depend on how much exercise they get. If they are swimming a lot I see they need more. If they are just coach potatos not as much. The puppy depends on you so adjust to get her in shape. Being overweight can cause so many health problems and a shorter life.


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## tippykayak (Oct 27, 2008)

A food obsessed dog will beg for more no matter how much you feed her. I think sometimes when we worry about how "full" the dog is that we're anthropomorphizing a bit.

Also, swimming is great low-impact exercise for an obese dog. It sucks up the calories without putting undue stress on the joints.


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