Pet Obesity
I just spent the weekend with my wife’s family. They have a Norwegian Forrest Cat named Patches. He also goes by the name Big Man, and for big reason. Patches struggles with pet obesity. He is not alone in this struggle, pet obesity is a growing problem that can cause serious health problems.
Obesity can damage the joints, bones and ligaments. It can cause damage to organs. It can also lead to diabetes, heart disease, and increased blood pressure. The list grows longer with every new study.
Pet owners should know that some breeds are more prone than others. Below is an excerpt from a Flint River Ranch article that discusses pet obesity.
“Some cat and dog breeds are genetically predisposed to being overweight, a predisposition that can be made worse by lack of regular exercise and/or overfeeding (including free feeding). All cats have the potential to become overweight, but the problem tends to be more prevalent in mixed-breed cats, Persians, Domestic Shorthair and Manx breeds.
Some of the more popular dog breeds prone to obesity are Labrador Retrievers, Golden Retrievers, Beagles, Weimaraners, Dalmatians, Basset Hounds, Shetland Sheepdogs (Shelties), Mastiffs, St. Bernards, Great Danes, Elkhounds, English Springer Spaniels, Cocker Spaniels, Pugs, Dachshunds, Miniature Schnauzers, Miniature Poodles, Shih Tzus, Welsh Corgis, Bichon Frise (Bichons), and Cairn Terriers . Unfortunately, many of the dog breeds prone to obesity are also predisposed to suffering from bone and joint disorders such as hip dysplasia and elbow dysplasia.”
How do you combat this problem?
Regular exercise is one of the best ways to curve a weight problem. Low fat, low calorie food will also give your pet good results. Perhaps the best method is portion controlled feeding. Increasing the number of meals and decreasing the portions will help your pet to lose weight. I know that it requires more work on behalf of the pet owner, but there are solutions out there to make your life easy.
There are an abundance of electronic timed portion controlled feeders on the market. The Ergo Auto Pet Feeder and the Five Meal Electronic Pet Feeder are two great options for dogs. The Six Day Automatic Pet Dish and the Le Bistro Electronic Pet Feeder are great options for cats.
I will continue on with this topic later this week. It is one of the most important pet care topics.
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I searched for \’Obesity And Exercise\’ at google and found this your post (\’besity : Leading Edge Pet Care\’) in search results. Not very relevant result, but still interesting to read.