# Morbidly obese golden



## gold4me

Bless you for taking him into your home. I would think that like any way to start exercise it should be slow. Walking short distances and increasing as you think he is able. Good luck and keep us posted on your progress.


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## DieselDog

I would take baby steps with him. I think you will be able to tell if you are over doing it but will need to keep a close eye on him when exercising. Maybe short ball throws a couple times a day mixed with short walks that slowly increase overtime. Treat him like you would a puppy... One step at a time! Bless you for helping him!


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## Megora

Do you have access to lakes or ponds where dogs can get in?


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## Kally76

What a wonderful thing you have done! Do you have any photos you can share? I have to say I'm a little curious as to what an 150 pound golden looks like.


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## Ryan S.

Shiloh is in a real bad way. I'm not exaggerating his condition. He can't run. He waddles. I have never seen a dog this fat. My wife took him out to feed the horses this morning, and he was worn out before all of the chores were done. We do have access to many lakes and ponds. We have one on the property, but I don't think he would be able to make it to the pond yet. We were discussing the pond idea this morning for low impact exercise. He wears out super easily. I know what you mean by baby steps, but I want to give him enough exercise to be effective. He is a very happy boy though!


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## Penny & Maggie's Mom

Firstly, thank you!!!! I would work with your vet.... and perhaps try to find a rehab vet that can guide you in helping him. Slow is definitely the key. Ideally, a rehab vet could get him some hydro therapy.... like an underwater treadmill that would allow him to exercise without being too hard on his joints. He'll have to build up endurance as he goes along. Please keep us posted as to his progress. So sad that he was allowed to get this way.


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## Ryan S.

I have pictures I will post. They don't represent him well. You would have to see him in person. I swear he looks like two golden retrievers of medium size. I am still in shock of how fat he is. I can't believe someone would do this. I am glad that they gave him to the shelter. I am actually a bit scared for him in his condition. His tongue turns purple with just a short walk.


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## Karen519

*Ryan*



Ryan S. said:


> Shiloh is in a real bad way. I'm not exaggerating his condition. He can't run. He waddles. I have never seen a dog this fat. My wife took him out to feed the horses this morning, and he was worn out before all of the chores were done. We do have access to many lakes and ponds. We have one on the property, but I don't think he would be able to make it to the pond yet. We were discussing the pond idea this morning for low impact exercise. He wears out super easily. I know what you mean by baby steps, but I want to give him enough exercise to be effective. He is a very happy boy though!


Bless you for adopting Shiloh. I would have the vet check him out and also ask what type of exercise would be safe and doable for him. Also, ask about food.
If his tongue turns purple, that sounds like it should be checked out!


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## Megora

My feeling is with your family - he already is getting a boost in exercise as opposed to what he probably had in his previous home. That will help (possibly) get him going in the right direction and help him get stronger. 

Involve your vet and have his thyroid and heart checked out.


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## Brave

I would definitely consult a vet. I personally, would feed a high quality food (not weight management) and just lower the portion and use unsalted green beans as filler if he appears to be still hungry. The food should be fed with maybe 1/4-1/2 cup less than what he was getting to maintain this weight. That way his body doesn't feel starved. Exercise will need to be slow and steady. If he cannot go 10 minutes of walking, then walk him 5 minutes several times a day. Weight should come off slowly and steadily. 

You can reach out to Max's Dad here on the forum, he trimmed up his golden this year and he may have some good tips for you. 


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## Maggies mom

I fostered a 130 pound golden, he couldnt even get up off the floor without my help, as for walking in my house he could go about 20 feet and have to lay down. Has he been to the vet yet? You might want to get his thyroid checked. My vet put Bill on Purina Om (weight loss) half a can of green beans each meal and thyroid meds.NO TREATS, he got a piece of Dog food as a treat. I would be very careful how much exercise he gets until he loses some of the weight, to much can cause him to have a heart attack.


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## OnMyWay2MyDreams

Bless you for taking on such a challenging case! I would start with diet, defientely check his thyroid (make sure you ask that a panel gets done along with the regular blood work) start with short walks. Also start him on a joint supplement will really help as you start this journey as is joints will really be feeling the strain. Good luck and I too would love to see photos and follow your journey to a brand new dog!


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## Penny & Maggie's Mom

Don't let him overdo at this stage... it could be catastrophic. Even just a short stroll around the back yard (or thru the house) could be enough in his shape. Get to the vet asap and ask for help in planning out a safe plan for getting him moving. Also, feed him for the weight you want him to be.


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## Max's Dad

Brave said:


> You can reach out to Max's Dad here on the forum, he trimmed up his golden this year and he may have some good tips for you.
> 
> 
> Sent from Petguide.com Free App


Max has lost about 20 pounds this year--over the course of about 8 months. Max is an unusually large Golden and was slightly overweight. He is about 28 to 29 inches tall at the withers and has a very large frame. We put him on a high quality dog food--in our case, Acana Wild Prairie, which is 434 calories per cup. We used the dog food calculator to help us determine how much to feed, which can be found at this link.

Dog Food Calculator

We fed Max a little less than what he needed to maintain what we thought was his ideal weight. We also limited his treats to only one or two Blue Buffalo Salmon Biscuits. 

We have tried to give him adequate exercise which for Max is swimming and running around. He was about 2 years old when we started his diet, but he was always energetic, and did not have any problem getting around. We also had his thyroid checked, which was normal.

Good luck getting your boy in shape! For us, it was a gradual process. Just like with humans, weight loss does not happen overnight.


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## OutWest

How wonderful that you took him home with you. 

Whatever you do should occur slowly and with the advice of your vet. You don't mention how old he is. I would think that would make a big difference in your approach. Carrying all that weight must be very hard on his joints. What's his name? 

Is there someplace nearby that he could swim frequently? Without knowing much about him, I'd say slow walking (where he gets to set the pace as much as possible) and swimming would be the best exercise. 

I hope you'll stick around, post lots of pictures and keep us updated. This weight loss effort sounds likes it would make an excellent article for a magazine.


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## JoshNy

Swimming is great for low impact exercise.

Unsalted green beans is a great idea too, just as a filler or add to a smaller portion of food.

I would ask your vet, but it might be worth adding a Glucosimine / Chondroitin supplement to his meals to help with joint lubrication.


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## BajaOklahoma

The purple tongue is red flag - don't do too much exercise.
The water therapy is a great idea. Even if you have to start out with a wagon to get to the lake or pond. And a life vest - more so you can grab him quickly if he gets in trouble.
With all of that fat, he will overheat easily and quickly.


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## Kally76

I fostered a golden girl once that was about 35 pounds overweight. Her owner was elderly and had to be put in a nursing home. She fed her soft peppermint pieces and peanut butter crackers all day long. I feel bad for him because she was miserable and was no where near as bad as him.

My vet put her on a schedule. I had it printed out and put on my fridge. I wish I would've kept it so I could refresh my memory but I didn't. I do remember that I had her for almost a month before the exercise started. She lost about 10 pounds quickly just by being fed correctly. Your vet may have something like that to help you with. It made things a lot easier for me. I would've been prone to have overdone it on the exercise if I hadn't had that to go by. Just remember slow and steady wins the race. Just being taken care of properly will work miracles for him. Good luck to you!


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## CAROLINA MOM

Welcome to the forum and thank you for giving this boy a home.

As others have suggested, I would work your Vet to reduce his weight and set up an exercise program. I think a full check up including bloodwork is needed too. 

Best of luck with your boy, what's his name? 

Looking forward to seeing pictures of him and the progress he makes.


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## jacksilas

Well, good on you for giving the poor guy a home.

He sounds well adjusted despite his discomfort as you say he is happy.

That happiness will make it all worthwhile I am sure.

Good luck and please keep us updated


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## Elisabeth Kazup

I would start with his diet. Ask your vet how much and what food to feed to safely lose weight. He probably doesn't need a reduction in calories beyond maintainance for his desired weight. Agree 100% to check thyroid and any other factors that could influence weight.

At this point, I would not force exercise. He will do more and more as he looses weight and it gets easier for him. 

A veterinary study at Mich State U found that dogs who were exercised didn't lose weight any faster than dogs who were fed a reduced calorie diet. The exercised dogs slept more and evened it all out.


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## DieselDog

Ryan S. said:


> Shiloh is in a real bad way. I'm not exaggerating his condition. He can't run. He waddles. I have never seen a dog this fat. My wife took him out to feed the horses this morning, and he was worn out before all of the chores were done. We do have access to many lakes and ponds. We have one on the property, but I don't think he would be able to make it to the pond yet. We were discussing the pond idea this morning for low impact exercise. He wears out super easily. I know what you mean by baby steps, but I want to give him enough exercise to be effective. He is a very happy boy though!


Maybe get him a life best to swim in just to give him a little extra support for when he is swimming and gets tired.


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## *Laura*

Thank you for adopting this boy!!! I'm glad he's found his way into your home.


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## KathyL

Thank you for giving him a new lease on life and shame on his previous owners. I have seen a few dogs on rescue sites who came in about his size and it was wonderful to see the progress. I remember one dog they took for underwater treadmill exercise. Literally one step at a time for him.


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## Ryan S.

I want to thank everyone for all of the advice. Shiloh will be going to the vet tomorrow for a full work up and to get advice on how to help him loose weight safely.this was the soonest I could get him in. We wound up body shaving him to help with his overheating. We hated to cut off all of the beautiful hair, but we figured this is more important for his safety, hair will grow back. He really seems to be more comfortable now with his new hair cut, not panting as much. He really loves laying on the wet sidewalk. I bought him a toy duck to retrieve, and he carries it around a lot. We have been playing fetch a little bit, only throwing it a few feet. He still has that retreiver spark in him which will help him loose weight. I will post pictures soon. I am a little computer handicapped. We found out who the previous owner was, and also found out Shiloh had a brother that lived with him that was also obese. He had some problem and was put to sleep a couple of weeks ago. I will get more info from the vet that put his brother down, and will give an update tomorrow about what the vet says. Thanks again to everyone.


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## caroline162

Bless you for taking this guy in! I don't have any advice but think you're doing all the right things. I just wanted to say that my Sammy pants a lot when he is nervous - he was panting all the time the first few days he was with us, and then quit when he settled down.

Also, I would start Shiloh on glucosamine if you haven't, because I'm sure all that extra weight is so hard on his poor joints (discuss with your vet of course). Good luck and I'm looking forward to seeing pictures and reading updates!


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## Brave

If he is shaved very very short, be careful with sun exposure. He could get a sunburn. 

Can't wait to see pictures!!!!


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## dborgers

God bless you for rescuing this beautiful boy. Most people would not have. He's a lucky boy to now be with someone who will care for him. I second the idea to get him on joint supplements. With all that weight his joints and ligaments are taking a load they weren't designed to handle. Sounds like he's close to twice the size he should be. People have done it and Shiloh can too. Probably easier for him because he can't go make himself food when he wants it. The panting is probably what any morbidly obese person experiences. It's just hard work getting around. The heart has to work so hard.

I'd send you Andy's Outward Hound life vest, but I don't think it would fit around him as big as he is right now. A human life vest might work (put on the same as a person. Get in the water with him and hold him up. Just moving his legs in a swimming motion will be good exercise and give him confidence in the water. The buoyancy will feel good and won't put stress on his joints.

Again, God bless you for what you've done. Which is give him a life he deserves. And what a gift that is you've given him


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## Karen519

*Ryan*



Ryan S. said:


> I want to thank everyone for all of the advice. Shiloh will be going to the vet tomorrow for a full work up and to get advice on how to help him loose weight safely.this was the soonest I could get him in. We wound up body shaving him to help with his overheating. We hated to cut off all of the beautiful hair, but we figured this is more important for his safety, hair will grow back. He really seems to be more comfortable now with his new hair cut, not panting as much. He really loves laying on the wet sidewalk. I bought him a toy duck to retrieve, and he carries it around a lot. We have been playing fetch a little bit, only throwing it a few feet. He still has that retreiver spark in him which will help him loose weight. I will post pictures soon. I am a little computer handicapped. We found out who the previous owner was, and also found out Shiloh had a brother that lived with him that was also obese. He had some problem and was put to sleep a couple of weeks ago. I will get more info from the vet that put his brother down, and will give an update tomorrow about what the vet says. Thanks again to everyone.


Ryan

If you need help posting his pics and email me and tell me who you are and these pics are of Shiloh, I will post them in his thread. My email is: [email protected] As Brave said be very careful he's not in the sun if all of his fur was shaved off. I bet he would like a big kiddie pool to lay in!


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## KeaColorado

Checking in on Shiloh - any updates?


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## Karen519

*Shiloh*

Hope that Shiloh is doing well!


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