Well its official...

[Friskycatz]

I took Bear my chocolate lab to the vet today, and found out hes very overweight, i knew he was a little on the big side but didn't think he was extremely overweight So now its off to get him a diet food and cut back on his treats.......I hope he gets where he's supposed to be soon, the vet said since he already has arthritis i need to do this immediantley as the weight is putting stress on his body.....I feel like such a bad mommy.

 

[TopShelfPets]

aw, i'm sure you didn't mean for him to get overweight. He'll be okay once he sheds a couple pounds.

 

[Barb04]

Some of those dog treats really put on the pounds. I think cutting down on them will definitely help.

 

[juliefurry]

Aww, I don't really think it's YOUR fault. Just cut down on treats and maybe use on of the light formulas of dog foods. Can he get more exercise? Labs have HUGE appetites and I'm very fortunate that the amount our lab eats she doesn't gain ANY weight. I swear she could eat a whole bag of dog food and not gain an ounce (lucky girl )!

 

[Buddy'sParents]

Use his food as treats. Good luck.

 

[Friskycatz]

Yup he eats and eats but is as lazy as they come for a lab.....So light food and no treats for a while is in his vocabulary right now. I'll be getting him in shape soon enough!

 

[oc_spirit]

Tou dont really have to cut out treats, just moderate his intake. If he gets a couple treats then he gets less kibble during his meals. If he gets no treats then he gets a little more. Also test out using veggies as treats. Some dogs love them and it takes a lot more for them to gain weight off LOL Dont forget to up his excercise too Its not all diet....

 

[Maxy24]

Yeah exercise would be something you should really increase. Does he like swimming? I know you can't do much about that now but once it warms up it would be great if you could play fetch in a lake and make him retrieve from the water. And I agree with using veggies for treats as they will not put weight on fast and treats are a must for training.