# Changing food for weight loss



## Max's Dad (Apr 23, 2012)

When thinking about having your dog lose weight, think in terms of calories. A simple rule of thumb is 10 calories per pound of your dog's goal weight. So if you want your dog to weigh 70 pounds, feed her 700 calories per day. 10 times 70 equals 700 calories per day.

The Science Diet Adult is about 370 calories per cup and the Light food is about 300 per cup. By adding the wet food, you are adding calories. It is important to measure the quantity of food accurately. Every calorie counts!

Also, remember that any treats you give Sadie also adds calories to her daily intake. Some treats are surprisingly high in calories. For example, we used to give Max Kirkland Lamb/Chicken biscuits from Costco. Turned out they were over 120 calories each!

When we put Max on his diet a couple of years ago, we used a high protein, grain free food, Acana Wild Prairie, which is 413 calories per cup. We limited his treats to one or two Blue Buffalo Salmon Biscuits per day. He lost about 22 pounds over about 8 months.

Good luck!


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## SadiesWorld (Nov 13, 2012)

Max's Dad said:


> When thinking about having your dog lose weight, think in terms of calories. A simple rule of thumb is 10 calories per pound of your dog's goal weight. So if you want your dog to weigh 70 pounds, feed her 700 calories per day. 10 times 70 equals 700 calories per day.
> 
> The Science Diet Adult is about 370 calories per cup and the Light food is about 300 per cup. By adding the wet food, you are adding calories. It is important to measure the quantity of food accurately. Every calorie counts!
> 
> ...



Thank you so much! You've provided so much needed information!!


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## tippykayak (Oct 27, 2008)

I subscribe to the notion that you should feed a good food and adjust the _amount_ to keep the dog at the right weight. So I'd suggest feeding her something that you think is good for her and then adjust the quantity based on her weight gain or loss.


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## murphy1 (Jun 21, 2012)

Please do some research on the ingredients in Science diet lite. It's probably one of the worse dog foods on the market. Read the first few ingredients. You can find much better food and feed a smaller amount. Feeding two cups of science diet lite is a starvation diet.


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## SadiesWorld (Nov 13, 2012)

murphy1 said:


> Please do some research on the ingredients in Science diet lite. It's probably one of the worse dog foods on the market. Read the first few ingredients. You can find much better food and feed a smaller amount. Feeding two cups of science diet lite is a starvation diet.


She responds well with science diet. Healthy skin, coat and poop


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## SadiesWorld (Nov 13, 2012)

What do you guys feed your dogs?


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## Max's Dad (Apr 23, 2012)

When we put Max on his diet, we made the decision to not feed a diet food, but rather feed him a high quality food that offered good nutrition. We chose Acana Wild Prairie, which is a high protein, grain free food. We then figured the calories and fed Max the appropriate amount. He picked the food from six different foods when we did a taste test.

Science Diet is generally not a highly rated dog food. However, we fed our previous Golden, Chewy, Science Diet Sensitive Stomach formula, and she did very well on it. She lived to be over 14 years old.

A good food is whatever works well for your dog. However, I think it is a good idea to feed a regular food rather than a weight loss type diet food.


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## dborgers (Dec 7, 2011)

Our last rescue got fat sneaking around and finishing the girl dog's dinners.

We fed him the same high quality food, but less of it. We added green beans and other veggies for bulk. In a couple months he was perfect. And he loved the green beans, carrots, etc. we switched around in his meals.


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## Jennifer1 (Mar 31, 2012)

Whenever I've needed my guys to drop a few pounds I adjust the volume of their food down. So if they get 1C twice a day, I drop it to 3/4C twice a day. I actually rotate food brands on a regular basis and they get different amounts for each brand. They also get less at meal times if I am doing a lot of training with treats at that time.
Some people will fill in the amount taken away with no-salt green beans as a filler. I've never done that, but if you feel your dog thinks it is starving, try that.


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## SadiesWorld (Nov 13, 2012)

Okay, I'm changing her to a higher quality food. I'm thinking blue buffalo? I looked at the ingredients and it has no animal by products.


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## xoerika620xo (May 25, 2012)

SadiesWorld said:


> Okay, I'm changing her to a higher quality food. I'm thinking blue buffalo? I looked at the ingredients and it has no animal by products.


be careful with blue buffalo many dogs have developed loose stools from it. That is one reason i decided to stay away from it, while it sounds like an amazing brand i decided i did not want to put chester of the possibility of developing loose stools and a upset tummy.


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## CAROLINA MOM (May 12, 2009)

My guys were eating BB, they both had problems with it. I tried different formulas of it, didn't matter. They still had loose stools and their coats got really dry. 

I switched to Purina Pro Plan for Sensitive Skin and Stomach three years ago. It is salmon, does not contain corn, wheat or soy. They're both doing really well on it. 

Whenever my girl needs to drop a few pounds, I cut the food back by 1/4-1/2 cups, supplement the remaining with UNSALTED green beans, either fresh, frozen or canned. I give my guys fresh fruits and veggies on a regular basis, basically whatever is in season and locally grown. Both of my goldens get a cup of food in the a.m., one cup in the evening, I limit their treats also and/or included their calories in their total intake for the day. Fresh veggies or fruit I do not include. 

I have never fed my guys canned dog food.

Whatever food you decide to go with, make the switch slowly and gradually. If you do it all at once, your dog could have an upset stomach. 

Also do a price comparison of the food you switch to before buying, prices for the same brand of food vary greatly from retailer to retailer. 

I buy the PPP SSS from Amazon, it's shipped directly to me free of charge. I get an additional discount on the price because I get monthly shipments.


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## SadiesWorld (Nov 13, 2012)

Okay so since Sadie has done well with science diet should I just leave her on it? I mean I'll try blue buffalo out and see if it works with her.


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## Max's Dad (Apr 23, 2012)

If Sadie is doing well on the Science Diet, I would say continue to feed it. Feed less, but stay away from the diet version.


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## SadiesWorld (Nov 13, 2012)

Max's Dad said:


> If Sadie is doing well on the Science Diet, I would say continue to feed it. Feed less, but stay away from the diet version.



Okay, thank you all for the advice.  
Ultimately, I've decided to stick with her regular Science diet food and I'll give her smaller quantities.


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## SadiesWorld (Nov 13, 2012)

And, I'll stay away from the lite dog food.


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## SadiesWorld (Nov 13, 2012)

Here is an UPDATE on Sadie's weight!

I've been feeding Sadie 1 1/2 cups of Science Diet Adult 1-6 years and 1 tablespoon of the wet dog food. 
Currently she weighs 78.2 pounds. 

Is it normal for a dogs weight to fluctuate? Because, she will be 79.9lbs and then three days later she will be 78.2 and then three days later she will be back up to 79.5. 

How much weight is safe for a dog to lose in a month? I've heard up to 2lbs


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## SadiesWorld (Nov 13, 2012)

And, her treats equal out to be 180 calories a day. (They are small milkbone biscuits that are 30 calories each)


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## SadiesWorld (Nov 13, 2012)

So, she is getting around 800 calories a day.


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## Max's Dad (Apr 23, 2012)

How trustworthy is the scale you are using? So Sadie has lost 3 to 4 pounds in about a month and a half. Sounds very good to me. Max lost about 2 to 3 pounds a month when he was on his weight loss diet.


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## Max's Dad (Apr 23, 2012)

800 calories per day sounds about right to me.


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## SadiesWorld (Nov 13, 2012)

Okay! The scale is pretty reliable. I put a 10lbs weight on it and the scale read 10lbs. 

What about weight fluctuation? How she would be 1.8lbs less one day, then a few days later she'd be 2lbs heavier? I always weigh her before breakfast in the morning.


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## SadiesWorld (Nov 13, 2012)

I don't weigh her everyday though.


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## Max's Dad (Apr 23, 2012)

I am not an expert on the weight fluctuation, but I do not think 1 or 2 pounds difference every few days is anything serious to worry about.


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## SadiesWorld (Nov 13, 2012)

Okay and one last question, does your Max have a saggy belly? Sadie is only 2 and her belly is saggy. I'm not sure why that is?


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## Max's Dad (Apr 23, 2012)

No, I would not describe Max's belly as saggy. When Max was too heavy, he had bulges on each side--a round look. Now that he has slimmed down, he is very solid. When he lays on his back, his underside is a little soft. It took Max a little over 8 months to drop 20 pounds. 

Sadie still needs to lose about 8 to 10 pounds as I recall. The saggy tummy may disappear when she gets down to her ideal weight.


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## SadiesWorld (Nov 13, 2012)

Thank you so much for your advice!

Sadie's belly isn't too saggy. It's just a little loose. I'm thinking with more exercise it'll tighten up. I just haven't noticed her slim down with the 3-4 pounds she has lost. I hope she's losing fat and not muscle! I'm not sure if there is a way to know if she's lost muscle instead of fat?


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## Max's Dad (Apr 23, 2012)

Make sure she gets her exercise. I am sure that is difficult during the Bakersfield summer. We try to take Max swimming, as it is very warm down here, because he does not like the heat.


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## Katduf (Mar 10, 2013)

Bear recently lost 7 kg (go Bear!). I cut his food in half and bulked up meals with green beans. He tells me he feels fantastic now! And he does look rather sexy too. 


Sent from Petguide.com Free App


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## goldlover68 (Jun 17, 2013)

Our 10 year old girl has gained weight as she is not as active as she used to be. She also had a cancer removed from her mammary gland earlier this year. We think they got it all, but to be sure I put her on a low carb, grain free, food....carbs feed the type of cancer she had! I then decided to put her on a diet food, that is low carb, same brand we were using for her. She put on weight??? I did not check the calories, but when I went back and did check them, the regular food was less calories then their weight loss food....Our vet said to cut her calories by 1/3 to loose weight. We have done that, and she is loosing weight now....


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## SadiesWorld (Nov 13, 2012)

I will be praying and thinking about your girl.


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## SadiesWorld (Nov 13, 2012)

Sadie is now 77.2 lbs. 
I feel like she is losing weight too quickly?


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## SadiesWorld (Nov 13, 2012)

I suppose she isn't since one month ago she weighed 79.5 lbs. 2 pounds isn't too much to lose in a month for a doggy.


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## Max's Dad (Apr 23, 2012)

Wasn't she 78.2 on 8/12? That is a pound lost in 10 days. Sounds good to me. Even if it is 2 pounds, should be okay. Sometimes Max would lose 2 or 3 pounds in two weeks, and then nothing for a week.


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## SadiesWorld (Nov 13, 2012)

Okay! That makes me feel better.


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## SadiesWorld (Nov 13, 2012)

Sadie is now 76.4lbs.  I want her at this weight. I don't want her to lose anymore because she looks healthy now!


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## Max's Dad (Apr 23, 2012)

SadiesWorld said:


> Sadie is now 76.4lbs.  I want her at this weight. I don't want her to lose anymore because she looks healthy now!


Great Job!


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