Pet Nutrition and Healthy Weight Management

We love our families. We love our children. We love our pets. We buy organic foods for our families because we believe that these foods are good for people and good for the earth. We ensure that our children are well nourished so that they can enjoy long and healthy lives. It is not surprising that we want the same for our furry family members. The problem is that over nutrition is negatively affecting our pets. Our pets are becoming overweight and even obese as we strive to do right by them and give them the best foods that we can afford. Pet foods sold in this country are composed of high quality ingredients which are of high nutritional value. It is exceedingly uncommon for our pets to experience disease due to poor quality diets. While we have eliminated nutritional deficiencies in our pets, we are only beginning to tackle the issue of overabundance of calories and disease due to over nutrition.

Recent studies have shown that  52% of dogs and  57 % of cats are overweight or obese.(www.petobesityprevention.org) Weight gain occurs when calorie intake exceeds calorie expenditure. Our pets are gaining unnecessary and unhealthy weight because they are receiving too many calories in their diets. I say ‘receiving’ because it stresses the point that we are providing our pets with what they are eating. Our pets no longer  run free on the farm or perform the work of herding the flocks. Many dogs spend their days on the couch, waiting for family members to return in the evening. It doesn’t take a lot of calories to sleep all day. Cats are kept indoors, out of harm’s way.   Our cats and dogs are experiencing fewer traumatic injuries and fewer infectious diseases because we are careful to monitor their activities and eliminate hazards. Unfortunately, weight  gain and obesity have replaced  traumatic and infectious disease threats to our furry friends.

Owners  set the patterns involved in feeding  pets.  Daisy the Labrador Retriever  ‘demands’ the 6am breakfast and 6pm dinner because our behavior has led her to this expectation. If it was Daisy’s decision, every hour would be meal time, she is a Labrador Retriever, after all. She inhales her food.  Daisy  ENJOYS her food, or so we presume from the speed at which it disappears. We feel good about the premium brand dog food she eats since it brings her pleasure and we believe that it is good for her.  Emily the cat also enjoys her food but more surreptitiously, because a cat really doesn’t need an owner. (People are useful, at times, but not necessary.) Emily  likes  to see that the food bowl is  FULL when she passes by, regardless of whether she is hungry. Full is good; a concavity in the contour of the food mound is bad-and she will tell you about it. She does so because  she has had success with this strategy. Protestations yield a freshly topped-off  bowl and some degree of human interaction, even though our  sighs and scoldings  were not exactly  the type of attention she wanted.

Due to the abundance of pet food choices, it is difficult to answer the question-how much brand X kibble should Daisy be eating per day ? Or how many cans or scoops of wet food should Emily be  given? The calorie density of different foods is far more variable  than it was 20 years ago, when we could ball park “1/2c dry food per 10lb body weight per day” for Daisy. Dry dog foods now range from 300 to greater than 500 calories per cup. This is why we ask owners to look at food bags and cans for that brand’s  calorie  information( per cup or can)before we can specify an amount of a specific food to feed.   The recommended number of calories to feed per day can easily be calculated using age, activity level, body size, and standard values for resting energy requirement(RER).

Successful weight loss in pets is similar to successful weight loss in people-it is accomplished by  changing patterns and expectations. Weight loss that occurs because behavior has changed is weight loss that can be maintained. Re-gain of weight is as common in pets as in humans. Reaching and maintaining a healthy body weight IS work-it requires thought and perseverance.  Owners cannot  go from treat provision to treat elimination without  eliciting a surprised( and certainly confused !) response from the pet. But we can break the milkbone in half, providing ½ the usual calories per treat episode. We can also substitute lower calorie items (such as pieces of rice cakes and vegetables) for the higher calorie alternatives. Daisy  MAY  look at us askance if we offer a piece of broccoli instead of that milkbone-but if we gradually decrease the frequency of the milkbone and increase the frequency of the broccoli, without changing the routine   and patter( “Good girl!  Is it time for your bedtime treat ?”), she will adjust her behavior.  Our exuberance in offering the ‘treat’ need not change.   Dogs are social creatures-the interaction with the owner is as important to the dog as the substance of the treat itself (although Daisy might not admit to this the first time she receives a piece of broccoli).

Cats are a different story. Nutritionists agree that the optimal diet for a cat is 8-10 mice per day. Cats eat what they catch, when they catch it.(Then they nap!) They expend calories in the chase-and some days are leaner than others. There is also mental exercise involved in the hunt-something that our pets do not get when we open cans and bags for them. One way to regulate calories consumed and encourage some physical activity, is to take the daily dry food allowance-divide it into 5-6 portions and place those portions around the house. Another approach to engage the reluctant athlete is to feed individual pieces of dry food in a tossing game-the cat needs to chase and consume  each piece of kibble before the next piece is tossed. This is a way to interact with the pet that is fun for owner and pet alike.

 Physical exercise is important for our canine friends. One hour of walking per day is recommended, and this is great target for all of us-dogs and people alike! Dogs with orthopedic issues may need to have their activity adjusted to accommodate their restrictions. Even dogs with joint issues should exercise daily to maintain muscle tone and flexibility. It is obviously more difficult for these pets to lose weight, but it can be accomplished. We first need to identify the type of activity Daisy enjoys (walking, swimming) and the length of time she can exercise without becoming sore.  In many instances, multiple short exercise sessions per day are better tolerated than 1 long one. The exercise goal for cats is 5 minutes of vigorous activity (chasing lights or objects) 2 -3 times daily. Reluctant athletes can be motivated with the kibble game. Cats with orthopedic issues are definitely more challenging but weight loss can be accomplished if we are creative and persistent.

Talk to us about concerns you have about your pet’s diet and body weight. We are here to help your pet live a long and healthy life.

Ann Whereat, VMD

Dr. Whereat earned her degree from the University of Pennsylvania. She also received a B.A. in Biology from Lawrence University in Appleton, Wisconsin.

She has a veterinary interest in internal medicine and the human-animal bond.

Outside the office, Dr. Whereat has one pet – a Great Swiss Mountain dog – and likes to spend time with her husband and three daughters.