Will this work to thin out my fatty ? :)

[Goustauf]

Hi all,

I have a really fat basset hound, he is extremely overweight and I was thinking about starting him on an all veggie diet. Is this healthy ?? I know he would like this because he loves veggies but Im not sure if it is healthy, probably healthier for him then being as big as he is... any ideas if it would be ok??

Thanks,
MDM :cool:

[pittiegirl]

NO! It is not healthy! Dogs are carnivores and need the proteins from meat. A much better idea would be to drastically cut back on the amount you are feeding and 'bulk up' the diet with veggies. That way the dog feels full, but is getting fewer calories.

What are you currently feeding? Another good way to get dogs to drop weight is to cut all grains out of the diet. Feed something like Innova EVO, Timberwolf Wild & Natural or Ocean Blue, Nature's Variety Raw Instinct, Solid Gold's Barking at the Moon, or a homecooked or raw diet. Good luck!!

[Cheetah]

I agree. It's very UNhealthy to try and make an animal that is mostly carnivorous eat nothing but veggies. Dogs need mostly meat in their diets. In fact, their systems are not even able to digest veggies unless they're ground to a pulp.

Any vet would have a total cow. >O_o;<

There was an episode of Animal Precinct where a lady was feeding her cats rice and oatmeal, and by the time they seized them, half of them and gone completely blind from lack of a very important mineral from their diet which can only be gotten from meat. >-.-<

[skunkstripe]

How old is your dog? And how much does he weigh now? Like people (actually more so), dogs need exercise. It is not a good idea to try to get him to lose weight TOO fast. I would cut back the food a little, if you give treats, give the low fat kind, and make sure that doggy gets regular walks, hikes, and playtime. Have you been to the vet? If so, what does he/she say? (By the way, don't let them sell you the Science Diet weight loss dog food). I would not go for an all-veggie diet either, although putting SOME veggies in with the meat is ok.
Also take a hard look at what you are feeding. I know this is a 'hot button" topic on dog boards, but the stuff that has the best advertising (like Beneful and Purina) is actually not that great for your dog. It has a lot of fillers like corn meal and stuff that can make them fat. If you get the better dog food that you can only buy and the pet store, it costs a lot more, but you can feed less of it than the cereal stuff,
Good luck and keep up posted!

[Goustauf]

He is 4 and weighs almost 100lbs... the vet got us to buy the special weight loss formula food and he actually GAINED weight on it!! He is also very sneaky... we have other dogs and he tries to steal there food, we watch that closely now. I wasnt sure about the veggie thing, i just noticed how much he liked them and decided to check it out... good thing i did i guess. Right now we feed our dogs hard and soft pedigree mixed, they love it and he is our only fat dog ( we have 11) !! So im not sure what his deal is.

[Becky]

It very well could be the Pedigree. Pedigree, Iams, SD, Purina etc fill their foods FULL of things that can make it very difficult for a dog to lose weight. Such as a ton of grains, some have corn as the first ingredient... when it should ideally be a (specified) meat meal... more ideally is the first 3 or so food sources be specific meat sources (such as a food w/ a list like chicken meal, chicken, turkey meal etc).

If you would like to learn more about dog nutrition, I highly recommend http://www.dogfoodproject.com

In the mean time, your boy needs more excersize and fewer calories. Don't over do the excersize... if he likes to swim, that would be an excellent place to start. Other wise, start slow, with like a 10 min walk and go from there as he gains endurance.

[pittiegirl]

Pedigree and many other formulas like it contain little or no useable calories. They're just like eating junk food all the time - tons of calories and fat, but little or no benefit. It would be beneficial too look for a low-fat, medium protein, meat-based food that will provide your dogs more in the way of useful energy instead of empty calories.

www.dogfoodproject.com is a great place to learn about choosing a good food

http://www.dogaware.com/dogfeeding.html#TopDry is a list of good foods - although you'll still need to do some research to figure out which of these foods is best suited for your purpose

Edited to add: ;-) Becky beat me to it!

[skunkstripe]

Well if he is stealing food, you need to put a stop to that! I used to see every morning that the cat food bowl was licked clean, not a molecule of food in it! I suspected who it was, but you cannot scold a dog unless you catch him/her in the act.
Then one night I was having trouble sleeping and was in the living room at 1:30 AM. Who comes out of the bedroom for her midnight snack but Sophia, who has a weakness for cat food. Fortunately I was able to scold her and it has stopped.
Maybe if you are now "free feeding" you need to stop. Everybody gets fed at the same time, the bowls stay on the floor for ten minutes and then they go back into the shelf, empty or not. No food until the next feeding time. It may be harsh, but it looks like your doggy needs you to keep a sharp eye out on what he is eating.

[retriever crazy]

I agree. It's very UNhealthy to try and make an animal that is mostly carnivorous eat nothing but veggies. Dogs need mostly meat in their diets. In fact, their systems are not even able to digest veggies unless they're ground to a pulp.

Any vet would have a total cow. >O_o;<

There was an episode of Animal Precinct where a lady was feeding her cats rice and oatmeal, and by the time they seized them, half of them and gone completely blind from lack of a very important mineral from their diet which can only be gotten from meat. >-.-<

i seen that episode.. OMG i felt do bad for the cats :(

[3 goldens]

Has he been checked for thyroid? Our first golden ballooned up from like 67 pounds to 88 pounds in what seemed like days. He had low thyroid and once on the meds and diet dog food, he lost the weight. When our golden girl, KayCee, went up from 70 to 85 pounds, I had her checked twice in two months time for thyroid, but it was good. The problem was she had had bad knees and had them operated on a year apart and during that time she had not exercised much and became a couch potato and it showed. The ONLY food we found that took weight off her was Science Diet RD. It had a high percent of peanut hulls (YUK), but it worked and as soon as she was back down to 70 pounds, she got off it. But the thing is, it did work for her.

But if your dog gained on diet food, I really think it possible he has a thyroid problem. Talk to your vet about it. AT his weight is is running the risk of heart problems, joint problems, and especially back problems.

[Cheetah]

I also would not personally feed Pedigree, or anything from walmart or the grocery store for that matter... Too much corn, too many carbs, etc. Too much grain...

I feed Eevee Canidae Platinum for her weight... when she gets proper exercise it works wonders, and she slims down and gets all muscly lol...

There's also Innova, Natural Balance, Nature's Variety, Solid Gold, Newman's Own, Eagle Pack (Holistics) and many more... Mordana's site is an awesome source for information.

If you do want to feed veggies, it's perfectly acceptable to replace a portion of your dog's kibble with some veggies so that the dog feels full... if the veggies aren't ground up they pretty much just pass through and don't add calories or anything.