People With Fat Dogs

[LisaCC]

She apologised.

And I hope she learns to keep her mouth shut from now on - how rude.

And congratulations to you for handling it the way you did.

Thanks, seeing as I'm specifically trying to keep him lean while he grows I was a bit upset.

[Whiskered]

I've noticed there are numerous statements in this thread that vets don't say anything about overweight dogs.

This is completely untrue.

Broaching the subject of overweight and obesity is as common as advice on parasite control. Honestly.

People take the advice they want and ignore the rest. The patient history notes of every fat dog in every clinic I've ever worked in contain records of weight-loss discussions.

I strongly suspect the "but my vet has never said anything" line is trotted out as a way of absolving themselves of responsibility. That excuse is a load of rubbish. If their dog is overweight you can bet your life their vet has said something.

[Diva]

One of mine was overweight, I mentioned to the vet at their vacc appointment that I was working on getting her back to a good weight and was told not to worry, she looked good to her. My fit dog she called underweight and in need of fattening, I gasped at that and made her put her hands on her to feel the muscle and she backed down, not a vet to trust on the weight issue at all.

But my chiropractically qualified vet is very good on condition and will always point out if anyone is getting even a little heavy.

Edited October 13, 2013 by Diva

[persephone]

I've noticed there are numerous statements in this thread that vets don't say anything about overweight dogs.

This is completely untrue.

;) unless you have been privy to an awful lot of vet consults ..the truth or falsity of these observations cannot be proven .

There are vets who think many overweight dogs are just 'well covered' , and seem to have no concerns .... or think roly poly puppies are wonderful ...

[Kirislin]

I have a friend who rescued a dog and when she arrived she was at her perfect weight, about 24kgs. I would estimate she is now about 40kgs. Last time I looked after her I took her to the vet and she weighed in then at 36kg and she's put on weight since then. I used to try to tell her owner she was too fat, but it fell on deaf ears. I used to take her to the park to let her run with my whippets, which she loved, but I refuse to now because I'm afraid she'll do herself an injury or drop dead from a heart attack. His way of showing her affection is to feed her.

[Whiskered]

I've noticed there are numerous statements in this thread that vets don't say anything about overweight dogs.

This is completely untrue.

;) unless you have been privy to an awful lot of vet consults ..the truth or falsity of these observations cannot be proven .

There are vets who think many overweight dogs are just 'well covered' , and seem to have no concerns .... or think roly poly puppies are wonderful ...

:) Yep. Privy to vet advice over almost 20 years of working in veterinary clinics across Australia. An awful lot I'd say. And of course the advice usually begins in the waiting room before they get into the consult room. Stating that vets don't say anything about overweight dogs is absolutely a completely untrue assertion. I've been fortunate not to have come into contact with those vets who think fat dogs are of no concern.

Even from a professional approach, addressing the issue of fat dogs is challenging. Lots of owners don't want to know or as others have commented on, have a negative emotional response to their dog's weight being addressed in the clinic. There are also lots of people who come in saying they expect some sort of telling off because they know their dog is fat.

From a health promotion perspective its always challenging to find ways to bring it to peoples attention and motivate them to take action without causing offence.

For myself, seeing the reactions of some people towards receiving advice about their dogs weight by professionals in an animal healthcare environment I would be very reluctant to comment on the weight of someone's dog outside of that setting (as much as I don't like seeing fat dogs)

[Loving my Oldies]

I've noticed there are numerous statements in this thread that vets don't say anything about overweight dogs.

This is completely untrue.

Broaching the subject of overweight and obesity is as common as advice on parasite control. Honestly.

People take the advice they want and ignore the rest. The patient history notes of every fat dog in every clinic I've ever worked in contain records of weight-loss discussions.

I strongly suspect the "but my vet has never said anything" line is trotted out as a way of absolving themselves of responsibility. That excuse is a load of rubbish. If their dog is overweight you can bet your life their vet has said something.

WOW! What a statement to make LOL. So you have canvassed every vet in Australia then? :laugh: :laugh:

[sas]

It irkes me to see fat dogs and then oh shit I had one!

I have a little Lab x 2 year old - should be around 15-16 kilos - he is now 18, got him down to 15.8 and now he's put it back on again. What makes it worse is I think he's a Lab x Staffy so naturally has a bit of a barrel shape that when he carries any extra weight looks terrible.

80 grams (40 grams morning and night) of BARF per day and lot's of play and 2 walks a day with off lead running as well. The only way I got him to drop the 2 kilos before was 5 km bike rides morning and night.

He does have a calorie overload Monday nights for agility training but is also there for around 1.5 hours running.

Man, I wish it were easier, I really do! So I sympathise with those who like myself are trying and are aware their dogs are overweight but will continued to be annoyed at the ignorant.

My Vet has commented on his weight before and I think like me was happy to see it come off - eeek don't want to take him back now!

Edited October 13, 2013 by sas

[Loving my Oldies]

So I sympathise with those who like myself are trying and are aware their dogs are overweight but will continued to be annoyed at the ignorant.

And I will continue to be annoyed with those who judge when they shouldn't and those who take the high moral ground because they don't have dogs with weight/food/medical issues.

And with those who make sweeping statements that people who say, "My vet has never said anything about my dog's weight" are liars and/or selectively deaf.

Goodness me, people are so judgemental and cruel. Yes, there are stupid people out there who over feed their dogs and give them too many treats, but there are those who don't and still have dogs who could lose a few kilos .... as SAS has discovered.

Despite having lots of my own dogs and many fosters and rescues through the door, I've only ever had one dog who was really driven by food and that is Bunter whom I've talked about previously in this thread. All my other dogs have eaten to stay alive and it is nothing for them to miss a couple of feeds. But Bunter would eat 10 meals a day if I put them in front of him. In fact, one morning when he didn't eat all his breakfast, I got such a shock, I started a thread on it.

For sure, we can grind out teeth and get cross when we see overweight dogs, but before jumping to conclusions that the people are "ignorant" and liars, perhaps consider that it might be medication and/or inappropriate expression of love, and the people DON'T have a vet who would suggest their dog needs to lose weight.

[Whiskered]

It irkes me to see fat dogs and then oh shit I had one!

I have a little Lab x 2 year old - should be around 15-16 kilos - he is now 18, got him down to 15.8 and now he's put it back on again. What makes it worse is I think he's a Lab x Staffy so naturally has a bit of a barrel shape that when he carries any extra weight looks terrible.

80 grams (40 grams morning and night) of BARF per day and lot's of play and 2 walks a day with off lead running as well. The only way I got him to drop the 2 kilos before was 5 km bike rides morning and night.

He does have a calorie overload Monday nights for agility training but is also there for around 1.5 hours running.

Man, I wish it were easier, I really do! So I sympathise with those who like myself are trying and are aware their dogs are overweight but will continued to be annoyed at the ignorant.

My Vet has commented on his weight before and I think like me was happy to see it come off - eeek don't want to take him back now!

Yes. And should have added that for me commenting outside a professional setting (so not knowing the dog's history) is a no-no for the potential to cause offence to people whose dog does have a medical issue or who are already trying to get weight off.

[Danois]

It irkes me to see fat dogs and then oh shit I had one!

I have a little Lab x 2 year old - should be around 15-16 kilos - he is now 18, got him down to 15.8 and now he's put it back on again. What makes it worse is I think he's a Lab x Staffy so naturally has a bit of a barrel shape that when he carries any extra weight looks terrible.

80 grams (40 grams morning and night) of BARF per day and lot's of play and 2 walks a day with off lead running as well. The only way I got him to drop the 2 kilos before was 5 km bike rides morning and night.

He does have a calorie overload Monday nights for agility training but is also there for around 1.5 hours running.

Man, I wish it were easier, I really do! So I sympathise with those who like myself are trying and are aware their dogs are overweight but will continued to be annoyed at the ignorant.

My Vet has commented on his weight before and I think like me was happy to see it come off - eeek don't want to take him back now!

I can lend you a friend for him who clocked in at 67kg yesterday....

[Vehs]

Someone once said that my dog's nails were a bit long (they weren't), took all my willpower not to retort that her child was fat.

God help me if she had commented on his weight (which is perfect) or his age (which is getting on).

Unfortunately I have been guilty of calling a friends dachshund fat, but they know and he gets the same food and exercise as the other two... he's just got a different metabolism so they are going to feed him less.. so in the long run the comment has benefited him.

[Daisys Mum]

I knew someone who had an obese chihuahua and the owner admitted that she gave her too many treats but she said she is old now anyway so I don't want to deprive her of a few treats.... Amazing that the dog passed away at 14 with no health problems that I knew of.

My Kelpie is a working line Kelpie so she is quite slim but very muscular.... She is currently 15.5kg but at one stage she was about 16.5kg and it was noticeable . My Cavalier is a little piggy so i have to adjust her intake depending on what extra treat she has had, she had surgery for a Luxating Patella and she lost weight after the surgery even though she had no exercise but I just adjusted the food she would have normally got.My vet is happy with their current weight.. he will honestly tell me if I need to change the way they are fed or up their exercise :)

When I see an overweight dog I don't judge ... Who knows it could have medical issues.

[luvsdogs]

I've had the reverse problem with a previous & my present BC. In 1999 I bought Billinghurst's 1st 2 books & started feeding my then BC with the raw diet. At the end of 2000 my son brought home a pup which I also fed the raw diet. When she was taken to the vets for her 15 m/o check-up I was told that she was too thin & we'd be reported to the RSPCA if an inspector went past our house & saw her. So I put her on to Purina One. A year later she saw a different vet & was told to continue feeding her as is because she was in excellent condition. She was still thin & remained so until her death a year ago. I was told her mother was the same way.

My 5.5 y/o BC is also a thin dog. I once asked the vet about her being so thin & he said they were meant to be lean, mean, working machines. Most days she gets a cup of kibble for breakfast & a couple of raw meaty bones for dinner.

Then there's my 2 y/o JS. He's always been on the small size, being the runt of the litter. The last few weeks I've felt he's looking a little overweight. Not sure if it's because he hasn't lost all his winter coat but then oh likes to give him the wrong treats & says he's ok. He had a bath last week & I didn't really notice his body shape all wet. I've tried feeling his ribs but because he's so small they are so close together, so used to bigger dogs.

When I used to instruct at my obedience club & we had overweight dogs I used to suggest to the owners that they reduce their weight, using myself as an example as I'm overweight, by saying we as humans choose to be the way we are but our dogs have no choice by what they are fed.

We have a friend that inherited her daughter's stafford & she was terribly overweight. It surprised me that she lived to about 14 years & died a couple of years ago on a 40* day while friend was at work.

Edited October 13, 2013 by luvsdogs

[BlackJaq]

I have yet another question:

Would you comment on a fat dog (I'm talking jellyfish, no ribs to be felt, not one or two kilos too much) being trained in agility with intermittent lameness issues?

The dog in question belongs to one of my agility instructors, so the situation is awkward, to say the least.... I had my hands on the dog today so I am not judging on the look, I felt past the coat and I can literally not even feel a rib and according to the owner he will go lame for a whole day if he does any "excessive" exercise, like chasing a rabbit...

[hippo]

I have yet another question:

Would you comment on a fat dog (I'm talking jellyfish, no ribs to be felt, not one or two kilos too much) being trained in agility with intermittent lameness issues?

The dog in question belongs to one of my agility instructors, so the situation is awkward, to say the least.... I had my hands on the dog today so I am not judging on the look, I felt past the coat and I can literally not even feel a rib and according to the owner he will go lame for a whole day if he does any "excessive" exercise, like chasing a rabbit...

That's a tough one... maybe innocently ask why he gets lame, what does the vet say, things like that?

Being an instructor you'd hope they knew better

[kelpiecuddles]

I'd take the opportunity next time she comments about him being lame and do what hippo said and ask if the vet had any suggestions, if she says no or doesn't comment about the weight you could always say very innocently "have you tried reducung his weight to see if it makes any difference?" If she starts the conversation she can't be upset when you contribute to it.

[cali]

I've had vets tell me when my dogs are a good weight, and too thin...I have NEVER had a single vet say a word when one is chubby. heck my Aussies foster was a vet tech and she was trying to pack MORE pounds on her, she is a sausage, no waist whatsoever and no ribs to be found! she is on a diet lol. I have never had a vet not take note of weight, they just don't say anything when its too high...but always comment when I come back and I got the weight off but along the lines of "oh s/he has lost weight since last here..was that intentional? " "yup s/he was fat" "oh ok, excellent" and that's the end of it.

[sandgrubber]

I'm about as happy for people to come up to me and tell me my dog is fat as I am for them to come up to me and tell me I could stand to loose a few kilos. Like, mind your own business, you jerk.

My vets never get a chance to voice an opinion because I always ask them before they get a chance. Often they say my old girl is ok when I think she could stand to loose. Around here Joe Public tends to think an English type Lab is fat when it isn't because they are used to the lankier US type.

Concerning the fat Lab question, what bothers me most is the tendency of some judges to reward overweight dogs in the show ring. I've known people who both show and trial. They say they take 5 kg of the show dog to turn it into a trialing dog. It is not uncommon to see flab that flops around when the dog moves in the ring. It is uncommon to see the ribcage.

No wonder so many people think their Lab is a good weight when it's nice and round looking.

[Steph M]

We were out at a doggie day out yesterday and met lots of people who said Rosie (the whippet x) is too thin, I think she's in great nick, you can see a few ribs but they're surrounded by a solid layer of muscle, she's very happy and fit and eats like a horse!

I can tell you now I had no patience for those people, no matter how well intentioned, as awful as it may be there really isn't any way to make it your business.

You don't know their story, or reasons or situation. It just isn't appropriate to comment. Would you tell a person on the street they're too fat or too thin?