# Champ needs to lose weight!



## hutch (Jun 17, 2010)

Walks are good, does he like swimming? if he gets 1 1/2-2 cu make sure he gets just 1 1/2 cu. maybe a few less treats. Just like people fast weight loss is not the best solution.

Do you have a leash free park, with other dogs around, that might get him moving a little more too.


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## Champ (Jun 10, 2006)

hutch said:


> Walks are good, does he like swimming? if he gets 1 1/2-2 cu make sure he gets just 1 1/2 cu. maybe a few less treats. Just like people fast weight loss is not the best solution.
> 
> Do you have a leash free park, with other dogs around, that might get him moving a little more too.


He loved swimming when he was younger but these days he only gets in the water for a few minutes and gets sick of it quickly. We also used to take him to the dog park all the time, but he rarely plays with the other dogs - he prefers to sit down with the humans to get pet or sniff the grass. He's just not that active anymore which makes it a little more tough to get him moving. It seems like walks may be the only option.


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## Champ (Jun 10, 2006)

What do you guys think about maybe feeding him 1 cup kibble and 1/2 a cup green beans or pumpkin twice a day? I heard that can be helpful to fill them up without feeding them too much kibble.


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## 2Retrievers222 (Sep 5, 2007)

Try him with bike, increase mileage slowly, then back off once a week for recovery. Or change it up a bit 2kms 5kms 4kms 2kms 8kms 3kms day off at the lake repeat

Switch to raw.


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## Oaklys Dad (Dec 28, 2005)

Many members here have had great success replacing a portion of the kibble with unsalted canned green beans. I'm sure a baby brother would bring out the pup in Champ too.


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## Champ (Jun 10, 2006)

Thanks for the responses guys. Tried giving him some green beans with his dinner, turns out he hates green beans! Even spits them out if I try putting it in his mouth.

I wish I could get him a baby brother/sister. I live with my parents though and my mom isn't a big fan of dogs so I'm lucky to even have one. I'm also starting college in the fall so I'm not sure how much time I'd have for a pup anyways. Same for the raw, my parents are the ones that pay for his food and they don't like the idea of going out to buy pounds of raw chicken for "just a dog". I'll try doing some research about it though...maybe if I can find somewhere that sells raw fairly cheap.

But for now, looks like I might just have to keep the 1 1/2 cups kibble or try pumpkin instead of green beans.


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## FlyingQuizini (Oct 24, 2006)

I'd cut his food down to 1 c twice a day and increase the walks.


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## esSJay (Apr 13, 2009)

How many calories are in 1 cup of his food? I've read somewhere to feed 10 calories per pound of ideal body weight to bring the weight down. So if you want him to be 75 pounds, feed him 750 calories. If there are 500 calories per cup, that is 1.5 cups/day. If you aren't already, make sure that you are using proper measuring cups to measure out his food so you aren't accidentally overfeeding him.

Increase the walks, and perhaps pick up the pace a little when you're walking to boost his heart rate a little bit. Even some short (1 min) jogging sprints would help too. Oh, and keep an eye on how many treats you give him and how many calories are in them!


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## rappwizard (May 27, 2009)

Champ is so handsome; he must share a bloodline to my late, great Alli-cat. She was the same way--I crowned her Couch Potato Excellent (CPE). Sounds like she would have met her match in a competition.

It was very, very difficult keeping weight off of her--I had to watch her so closely. Any treats or table scraps? Well, I had to subtract from her kibble--if she was used to 3/4 of a cup in the morning, she was fed a half of a cup--and she knew it--she would give me "devil eye stares" to let me know the dish was light.

She also wasn't fond of green beans. I did try the canned (unsweetened) pumpkin but she liked a texture that she could chow down on. What really worked for me, but I had to be careful because this can cause loose stools, is romaine lettuce--6 leaves or so. Gives a nice crunchy texture and was something she enjoys shredding while she did it. 

I accidentally discovered it while feeding my two house rabbits. Alli and our other dog Jake were huddled around the hutch, wanting some of the food too. I didn't think they would want any, so I flipped them a couple of pieces of lettuce and they went wild (!!!!) Our current golden Mac is the same way--when I am ready to feed the rabbits, she's right there, wanting her portion of romaine, or radicchio. (do not feed iceberg--has too much water--very little nutritional value).

I agree with the long walks. I walked Alli 3 miles a day--we did a 1 1/2 mile loop in the am--and another in the pm. That helped a lot. She paced practically the entire way, but I let her lope along--I figured she was burning calories anyway. Our other dog Jake, who was 2 years older, was a speed demon, pulling me at the end of the lead the whole way--I hardly ever had a weight problem with him. But you just enjoy the difference! Good luck!


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## Champ (Jun 10, 2006)

I'm not sure how many calories are in his food. I have to buy him a new bag so maybe I'll take a look at it when I go buy it.

It's going to be tough taking him on long walks now...it's just starting to get deathly hot. It's 98 degrees F today...maybe I'll just have to take him in the evenings.


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## Finn's Fan (Dec 22, 2007)

Finn is the same age as Champ and eats 1 cup in the morning and 1 cup in the evening. Long walks in the cool of the evening and cutting back on his food should get the weight off, but you don't want to take it off too quickly....not healthy. You can always try steaming carrots, cauliflower and broccoli in lieu of green beans. Chop the steamed veggies well and put on top of his kibble and see what he thinks


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## Champ (Jun 10, 2006)

Finn's Fan said:


> Finn is the same age as Champ and eats 1 cup in the morning and 1 cup in the evening. Long walks in the cool of the evening and cutting back on his food should get the weight off, but you don't want to take it off too quickly....not healthy. You can always try steaming carrots, cauliflower and broccoli in lieu of green beans. Chop the steamed veggies well and put on top of his kibble and see what he thinks


Unfortunately I have a picky eater, he hates veggies. Like the other day I tried to replace some of his food measurements with green beans, wouldn't touch 'em. Tried giving him a carrot last night too and he refused. He definitely prefers meat. :


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## Champ (Jun 10, 2006)

hey guys,
Champ ran out of food and I can't go out to Costco to buy it for him tonight. He needs dinner though and we do have some T-bone steaks. If I give him that raw do you think he will get sick since he is not used to eating raw? If I do give it to him, how much should he eat?


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## kgiff (Jul 21, 2008)

Champ said:


> Unfortunately I have a picky eater, he hates veggies. Like the other day I tried to replace some of his food measurements with green beans, wouldn't touch 'em. Tried giving him a carrot last night too and he refused. He definitely prefers meat. :


Keep trying. I think it took a couple of days before mine started eating the green beans.


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## Ranger (Nov 11, 2009)

Ranger sounds a lot like your Champ! He's only interested in activity if I do it with him, like walking, hiking, running, etc. I can maybe throw a ball for 5-10 times before he wanders off to snooze in the shade. Other than his "forced" activity (which he loves to do), he's happy to sleep all day...

If your dog won't eat the green beans, I'd just drop his food to 1 cup twice a day (or figure out the 100 cals per 10 lbs like esSJay mentioned above) and then walk him more often. Try waking up earlier in the morning and taking him for a long walk while it's still cool out. Then he can chill during the day and you could do a shorter walk in the evening as well. 

I personally wouldn't give Ranger t-bone steak since I'd think it'd upset his stomach. If you have ground beef or ground chicken (or chicken breasts), you can cook it and add it to some cooked potatoes or cooked rice then let it cool and give to him. Ranger's currently eating this bland diet since his stomach has been upset lately. He got a cooked meal tonight...I had a salad!


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## Katie and Paddy's Mum (Mar 31, 2010)

Hi there,
You've got some great suggestions re: diet and increased exercise.
Have you also, given his age, checked that there is no medical issue leading to him gaining weight and being less interested in exercise (like ball-chasing etc?) It could be a thyroid condition.
I thought I would throw that suggestion out there, as often as our Goldens age they develop thyroid conditions ... and I am sure you have read in past threads that low-normal values are actually low in Goldens.
So sometimes, it is not what or how much you're feeding but it is an internal hormonal thing that is out of sync.
It is worth investigating before beginning to cut back his food!

And if all is ok there, then you know you've got a lot of walking to do!
All the best to you and Champ!

---
Kim


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## Champ (Jun 10, 2006)

Katie and Paddy's Mum said:


> Hi there,
> You've got some great suggestions re: diet and increased exercise.
> Have you also, given his age, checked that there is no medical issue leading to him gaining weight and being less interested in exercise (like ball-chasing etc?) It could be a thyroid condition.
> I thought I would throw that suggestion out there, as often as our Goldens age they develop thyroid conditions ... and I am sure you have read in past threads that low-normal values are actually low in Goldens.
> ...


He just got bloodwork done and the vet says his thyroid and everything else is normal. I thought he had hypothyroidism, but surprisingly I guess not. 

I gave Champ the steak last night and he's had no problems...I wasn't to worried though because I know he has a fairly strong stomach. :dblthumb2

Yup Champ does sound like Ranger. He's not interested in the ball except for some random bursts of energy he gets sometimes. But even then, he doesn't bring the ball back and gets bored instantly. For now he really just likes walks and swimming. No swimming anytime soon though, he just got groomed for $88.


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## Champ (Jun 10, 2006)

Champ ate green beans today!! The problem was that I was giving it to him straight out of the can. Today I cooked them and he liked it that way!


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## Griffyn'sMom (Mar 22, 2007)

Try frozen! You said it's hot there! He might like them better. Canned veggies are usually high in salt. :yuck:

Griff, like Champ is a bit overweight - more than I'd like him to be and like at your place, it's too hot for major walks. He also is iffy about fetch. 

I've got him down to a cup in the AM and a cup in the PM. I do need to restrict his tidbits down to just veggies - I'm lucky because Griff loves them. One of his favorites are pieces of broccoli stalks! Weird - I know!


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## Champ (Jun 10, 2006)

Griffyn'sMom said:


> Try frozen! You said it's hot there! He might like them better. Canned veggies are usually high in salt. :yuck:
> 
> Griff, like Champ is a bit overweight - more than I'd like him to be and like at your place, it's too hot for major walks. He also is iffy about fetch.
> 
> I've got him down to a cup in the AM and a cup in the PM. I do need to restrict his tidbits down to just veggies - I'm lucky because Griff loves them. One of his favorites are pieces of broccoli stalks! Weird - I know!


I got him unsalted green beans.  Champ seems to not like veggies very much, but he tolerates them if they are cooked and soft.  Now that I know he'll eat cooked green beans, I'm going to try replacing some of his kibble with it and see how it works out.


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