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How to Be a Big Loser

By Faith Maloney

Run your fingers along your pet's body. If you can't easily feel their ribs, it's more than likely that Fido or Fluffy is overweight. (If you're not sure, your vet can tell you.)

You're not alone. In the United States, 40 percent of all pets entering veterinary hospitals are overweight. In some other countries, it's even worse. In Britain, 52 percent of dogs and 47 percent of cats are overweight. British pets are the fattest in Europe.

Weight loss can be a touchy subject and nobody wants to be "cruel" to a four-legged member of the family who just loves extra treats. Even here at the sanctuary, we all knew that Petunia, a rather wide Heinz 57 mix, was on the tubby side. Well, frankly, she was positively obese!

One day she had a seizure and was rushed to the doctor, who checked out all her vitals and then pronounced, "Petunia needs to lose weight - a lot of weight." He prescribed a low-calorie, high-fiber food and told everyone to make sure that she ate only the amount he said to feed. And while her dinner companions were being fed, she was to be put in a separate room so she didn't sneak any extra food.

It was hard at first, and it took a while. But every week when she came down to the clinic for a weigh-in, she got a round of applause for being such a good loser!

She felt great, too, and was soon to be seen running all over the place.

Another "big loser" at the Best Friends spa program was Ashley (pictured), a very large black Lab, who came to us recently from a home in Las Vegas, after her person passed away. She weighed in at 116 pounds. Her ideal weight should be around 80 pounds, and she soon got the nickname of Ashley Grande - like the piano.

Ashley was down to 108 pounds when she met Nina and Mike from Phoenix. The couple already has an overweight yellow Lab with a thyroid problem, so they're used to doing a restricted diet. It was love at first sight all round, and last we heard, Ashley was chasing balls at their beach house in Mexico!

On the other hand, some of the dogs who arrive here on the plump side slim down on their own without anything special. They don't need less food and they don't even need the high-fiber, low-calorie diet. As soon as they're given good quality dog food and more exercise running and playing with their new friends, they start taking off weight.

A Few Tips on Your Weight Loss Program

It's hard to resist those big brown eyes when you're eating dinner. "A little bit won't hurt," you say. But it does, over time. Pets need a balanced diet designed just for them.

• Visit your veterinarian first. Your pet may be on medication or have an underlying problem that's causing weight gain.




• Divide the reduced food allowance into two or three meals a day. This helps relieve boredom and hunger.




• Extra care is needed with cats since they can develop liver problems if food intake is reduced too drastically.




• Expect a 15 percent weight loss in about 3 months for dogs, 4 months for cats.




• Exercise is important, but introduce it gradually. Too much will stress the heart of an unfit animal. And exercise is not a substitute for calorie control.