Getting Weight Off Dog

[juice]

I am trying to get the weight off my new girl and it seems to be harder than i thought.

My dogs have roo or chicken mince mixed with VANS for dinner and two 2x4 bics for brekky.

When she first arrived she turned her nose up night after night to that, so i went back to what the breeder fed her, cup of mince, cup of brown rice, cup of kibble which she scoffed.

I gradually introduced the VANS a teaspoon at a time and now i can get two tablespoons in the mix before she leaves any.

However, i have reduced the kibble and the rice a little and she is still rotund.

Someone said its the rice as its a carb, but i thought rice was a filler with no value?

I would love to offload the kibble but she not sure she will go for it.

So , which out of those ingredients is the worst offender ?

[karen15]

What breed is she?

I'd reduce the quantity of all three components.

[Dogsfevr]

what did the breeder say about being over weight .

[The Spotted Devil]

I'd switch the rice for mashed pumpkin for a start - the latter is MUCH more of a filler than rice! If that doesn't work, then cut the other components by third/half and up the pumpkin if she still seems hungry.

Edited September 11, 2016 by The Spotted Devil

[JulesP]

You are looking at about 200 calories in a cup of rice. So that is a far bit.

I would also look at the 2x4s in the morning. Maybe only give one.

[juice]

When I picked her up from the breeder she was brought out by someone else she goes to to welp. I commented to breeder that she was rather large and the breeder said X was too soft . He said now her litter was weaned she should drop weight .

So the rice is bad ? Should I try and wean her off it altogether ? Or just reduce it all ?

[juice]

She is bull terrier .

[Xyz]

Id stop the rice. No need for the extra carbs!

[The Spotted Devil]

Depends how much she loves rice and hates mashed pumpkin :D If she's fussy I would add a little mash and reduce the rice over a week or two. I'm lucky - Em was running herself silly from Week 2 after whelping. Was dripping with milk but looked fabulous by the time the pups left. I was feeding her BUCKET loads. Much to her delight!

Edited September 11, 2016 by The Spotted Devil

[juice]

I've never cooked pumpkin , is it just likes cooking potatoes ? Cube , boil and mash ? I will give it a try .

[Mrs Rusty Bucket]

pumpkin goes mushy by itself when you boil or roast it. Instant pumpkin soup if you over do it. But I'm sure the dog won't care. Just cook it until a skewer goes through easily - will be quicker than the same sized bit of potato.

I just chop it up into 1cm cubes and add it to the dog dinner I'm cooking. The skin is supposed to be the most nutritious bit but it's hard to mash.

As for losing weight off a dog - the first thing I cut back on is the kibble but I will cut back on everything - about 10% a week until the weight starts to come off and then I will stop there or add a bit more.

If she does the big brown eyes "I'm starving" thing - I feed her carrot.

I keep the standard training treats (mostly kibble with a bit of dried roo) the same tho. Just add less and less (down to none) with her regular dinner.

[The Spotted Devil]

I've never cooked pumpkin , is it just likes cooking potatoes ? Cube , boil and mash ? I will give it a try .

Exactly!

[Dogsfevr]

So how old are the pups ,there is a difference between dieting a fat dog and dieting a bitch who has had pups recently ,and if the pups have just been weaned then there is no way I would extreme dieting her I would just let her get back to normal and she will be back in shape at her own time not when we want it

[The Spotted Devil]

I'm pretty sure juice has had this dog since about March...?

[juice]

Yes i have, i think judging by the fact i saw them listed on here for sale still when i had her she had literally just been weaned off them when i got her.

My last bully came to me at 3yrs after two litters aswell and never lost her saggy tum either, hers was very low and i'm wondering if its because they were kennel dogs? Its a different breeder this time and his dogs are blody huge anyway :laugh:

The other thing is treats, i am constantly reinforcing recall on our walks and reward her for being in her crate too, i keep a bowl of treats above her crate and the kids reward too. i use those milky treats from kmart as they dont smell left out in a bowl.They are 23% protein, 7%fat, the ones i use on walk are roo treats, 25% protein, 8% fat.

[The Spotted Devil]

Mine also go into whelp super fit - not intentionally mind you - they just can't be stopped :laugh: I wonder if that makes a difference.

Steamed chicken makes lovely training treats too. If she likes the dry then use that as training treats at home - ration out her daily amount and everyone can use that. Save the good stuff for when you're out walking. All mine train at home (a lot!) for dry food.

Edited September 11, 2016 by The Spotted Devil

[sheena]

I've never cooked pumpkin , is it just likes cooking potatoes ? Cube , boil and mash ? I will give it a try .

Just make sure you include the cooked skin...great for keeping fungal infections away as well as the nutrients

[Scottsmum]

Juice - i use ziwipeak for treats their "kibble" not their treats - if that makes sense.

Its not a low fat option, but, there's not much smell, they're palatable & while expensive a similar price per kilo to smackos.

AND ... when we used to do a big session it replaced his kibble portion of his meal entirely that day.

Even now, we dont go to training anymore, if he cant be walked we do tricks & low level obedience for "one scoops worth of time" thats his dinner & more than long enough to tire him out.

[persephone]

feed what she's used to - but 1/2 quantity :) Easy .

[Mrs Rusty Bucket]

I mostly use kibble and mini goodos for treats.

The mini goodos are full of dodgy ingredients like food colouring but I can break them up into four little bits and get really good milage for them.

Last time I checked - a small roast beef - chopped up into treat sized pieces was cheaper per kilo than stuff like liver or smackos - those things can work out to $80 per kilo with very high energy as well.

Pay attention to what your dog will work for. I've seen some dogs working really hard for chopped carrot. Have a ranking for those treats - and then use the highest value stuff for new tricks or high distraction environments, and lower value stuff for every day things like nice heel work on walks.