I really need help about my dogs weight!

[chocaholic]

:( I know that it is wrong, but I have always fed my dogs with a feeder that has dog food in it at all times. I have no trouble with any fighting and I have done this going on 6 years or so. So that is not the problem I have 8 dogs and only 2 of them became over weight over the last few years. At first it was not bad but now I feel that their health is in trouble. So my question is how do I seperate the feeder from the 2 when they are so used to it? And what about the others that are also used to it. I want to put the 2 on diet food so I need one that actually will help them lose weight, fill them up and taste good. Does anyone have good ideas on this? Also is there any treats out there that will also help them while we are going through this diet that will help with the hunger. My pets are so spoiled that this will be hard and they will think that I am punishing them. But I do not want them to die. :(

Thanks I would appreciate any ideas.
Chocaholic

[chocaholic]

:confused: One of the dogs that is overweight eats a lot of grass to make her sick. I would think it was because she gorges herself but, I have a couple other ones that do it too. But Katie the one that really is over weight does it a lot.
So I was wondering about that too. So any ideas on this one also?
Thanks,
chocaholic

[skippygurl00]

there are lite dog foods available,although I dont know if dogs generally like it.I feed my dog once a day in the evening,and the occasional raw bone during the day.I hope you put you overweight pooches on diets as obesity in dogs can reduce your dogs lifespan and cause lots of problems later on.
all I can suggest is to feed the once or 2 little meals a day instead of letting them eat all day whenever they please.move walks wouldnt hurt either:)
if you cut their food gradually their tummys will get use to the new routine.
veggies in their food will make them feel full

[toppers]

take the dogs away from the food or the food away from the dogs. I have 6 dogs at the moment, my friend has 8 (10 at weekends as she dog sits) all dogs have different appetites and we feed our dogs SEPERATLY and remove bowls when dogs have finished. Give your dog 10 minutes to eat and then remove the food. Use a smaller bowl for the fat dogs so their brain thinks they are getting loads. Exercise lots and within a week you should start to see a difference. Grazing is a good way to feed certain breeds of dogs (one of my friends feeds her italian greyhounds this way) but obesity is VERY dangerous in dogs and should be avoided at all costs.
Vets can help and usually run a slimmers class. Our vet has slimmer of the month competitions!:D

[katrina]

my chihuahua is kind of overweight I don't think I'm feeding her too much ( she gets 1half of a 12oz can and 3/4 a cup of dry food a day) but the baby and my 2 year old are always dropping food which she of course goobles right up. On the plus side her fave treat is frozen ppeas she will do a back flip for them. we go on 2 hour long walks a day and she runs around the back yard all day with my son. she is not a teeney chihuahua but i think she could lose a little weight. :D I'm trying to really watch what she eats so i don't end up with a 40 pound chihuahua:eek:

[Carol]

It is way too easy to overfeed a dog, especially when you free feed and then give treats.
I have to catch myself and offer baby carrots and apple chunks instead of biscuits.
I would give all the dogs less food by giving them a mealtime even if it is twice a day. But the total amount of food per day msut be measured and divided into those two meals.
I remember when I had my Large Lab who was over 100 lbs my Vet told me to give her only 1/2 cup in morning and 1/2 cup at night because it was a high quality food and that was all she needed. Lots of water handy all the time is important. Carrots and apples make wonderful treats. No seeds or cores though.
Obese dogs are ill dogs.....it is very hard on them to be overweight. Their joints and pancreas suffer terribly and they get all kinds of problems.
Good Luck

[chocaholic]

I will start trying that right away.I just have done it forever that their so use to it. I do want my dogs to live and I would be devastated if any of them dies because of this. :(
Thank you

[tankstar]

Get them all on a meal plan. Feed them once or twice a day. They will get used to it over time. My dog was free fed for almost 4 years becuase we free fed the older dog like this. When the older dog passed away I started my dog on 2 meals aday. With added excersise and a good food plan you can make them lose it.

[Daire1234]

i would have to watch the fat content on the chicken pork beef turkey and etc. I would switch to and elk line or a bison line cause they r a high protien red meat. I feed my dogs raw and they love so that can be another switch to do too and read up on it. Grain products can add weight to ur dogs too! i hope this will help, if u like to talk please do! Daire1234 =)

[kuka]

You need a nutritional balanced food for over weight dogs. For a nutritional comparison of leading pet foods as well as an education on how to read labels go to: grandpurposepetfood.com
You will be surprised to learn what is in many pet foods. You will also learn what pets should and shouldn't eat.

[LabMomHouston]

I recently was told that my kids are heavy too! Our vet suggested cutting back to twice a day (previously 3 times a day) and 1 cup for our older boy. He's on a weight management formula with 8% fat. She also suggested adding carrots, apples, or canned green beans to his meal time to add fiber and help him feel full during the day. Our new pup was being free fed by the breeder and was suggested we do the same with a small breed puppy food with almost 20% fat. She is also overweight at 24lbs and 12 weeks. :) And I thought I was following the directions to the tee! She also eats 2 a day and just a bit less than recommended on the bag for her age and size. We also are reducing the treats and switching to carrots and apples as treats and exercise, exercise, exercise.

[Suz23]

Your doing all the right things BUT - what the excersise with that pup of yours - no more than 2 fifteen minute walks a day for her - you need to be careful to not over exercise which is not at all good for dogs joints and bones specially at this tender age.

[LabMomHouston]

Good point suz23. We are all taking it easy since the old dog obviously hasn't been worked that much either, but we will limit the pup. We definitely do not want to over work her. Thanks for the advice!

[Suz23]

Your welcome - build the older dogs exercise up slowly to if hes not used to it.

[lovethatdogg]

I would personally use daily tread mill courses. I mean, you can always gradually increase the amount and speed. its good for stamana! :)

[april33]

My dog lost weight on the bestnaturalpet.com less active food, he is fit and shiny. He is more active now that I have changed his diet and he seem to be satisfied and not begging for food anymore.

[LabMomHouston]

I just wanted to update that my Gunner has been losing weight just with adjusting his meals and treats and adding some exercise. He's looking more muscular and less flabby. I haven't gotten a weight on him yet but hopefully will get that today to know exactly where we are.

[madaboutcollies]

hello
well i had to ,put my dylan on a diet due to the fact ,we did the same thing as you ,we left food down all day ,we then took him to atraining class , i felt very bad and upset ,when one of the other ladies there ,said dylan is very over weight ,i felt awfull ,it did however , sort me out ,i promised my self ,that i would never need anyone to say this again .(which i havent lol) so i put him on weight loss food two small feeds day ,yes he was hungry for a while . but i just had to keep telling my self ,im doing it because ,i love him .it took awhile i stuck to my guns ,he now runs fast loves his ball loves life ,instead of just lieing around . no treats no extra none . good luck
what ever you do dont leave the food down all day take it up ,you will feel pleased that he will feel happy to eat it when you wont him to allso .you allso need really to dothe same with all the dogs ,twice a day take the food up if they dont eat it ,they will soon realise . its lovely to see them happy to eat ,allso you only have to clean up after them after meals not all day as im guessing you are doing at the moment .

[Alan]

:eek: I think all this information is good, but to get a food that your dog can remain on is not easy once the weight is under control. I have found the Life's Abundance weight lose food is very good. It is made of all human grade
ingredeants and is AFCO certifide for the European Market thats very important as there much more strict there on foods people and pets you can look at the web site at www.ABetterPetFood.com :)

[LoveMyLabs]

Take away the free feeding bin and set up specific times of the day that all the dogs eat, whether it's at the same time for all or different times. Give the correct amount of food to each dog in correspondence to their ideal weight. If you break the meal down into 3 smaller meals the 2 overweight ones won't think they are as hungry.

Our Tira used to be a free feeder. She's a Lab and Labs are notorious for being overweight cause they'll eat anything. She weighed 75 lbs., got pregnant and went up to 85, down to 71 then back up to about 78. We finally got her food intake situated and she gets treats throughout the day but she's about 65 lbs. (optimal weight) now.

Exercise your 2 overweight ones more and feed them less. Stop free feeding all together. You'll see results.

[Alan]

To tell you about a good food that is made for overweight dogs and is made so once they lose that weight they can stay on the food and it will be no problem. Be sure to measure out your food, Start by what the bag sugests then you can ajust if you need to. Also if your dog golps down the food as fast as you put it down you can put like 3-4 stones in the bowl be sure there large enough he cant gulp them down.:) There are bowls made for this you can look in some stores but the stones work out well. the site is
www.safer4pets.com look at the weight control food.Also there is a healthy heart lowfat baked treats there as well. you can use them instead of fating treats. Also carots and apples should be good