Dog weight loss is a growing industry and recent studies found that dog obesity is becoming a world wide problem with statistics revealing that the United States, the figure for canine obesity stands at 35 per cent and 40 percent of Australian dogs statistics show that their dogs are also classed as being in the unhealthy weight range.

The study concluded that only 3 percent of the dogs that were tested and over weight were due to medical condition the remaining 97 percent was a result of dog owners over feeding their pets.

In the following paragraphs I want to be able to help you to identify if your dog is overweight or obese and in later pages reveal dog weight loss tips and the type of dog food to help you with your dogs weight problem.  First things first let’s look at what to look for to identify if your dog is in deed fat.

Dog Weight Loss – Signs that your dog is over weight:

Today dog owners love their pets but are over feeding them and sentencing them to early death or the dogs are contracting diseases that are associated with being over weight or more bluntly fat.  Sometimes we don’t see that our dogs are getting fat keep in mind that dogs, much like humans, come in many different shapes and sizes.

You should be familiar with what’s normal for you’re particularly or specific dog breed.  Generally speaking, there are several physical indicators that you can watch out for to make sure that your dog is not obese or overweight.

Step 1:

Get your dog to stand and first give him the eye test to see if your dog looks fat.  Next, keep an eye out for increased fat over your dog’s ribcage. If you run your hand over his ribs you should be able to feel each rib distinctly. There should be some fat covering the ribs, but not enough to make it difficult to actually feel them.

Step 2:

If you are still unsure continue your examination and after checking the ribcage the next thing you should look at is your dog’s waist. It should be very easy to visualize his waist. Stand above your dog and look down at him while he is standing on all four legs.

Check the area between the ribs and the hips. The dog’s waist should be easy to see, as it should taper off his body. If you cannot see the waist at all, he is overweight. Still looking at your dog objectively, if the area where the waist should be is actually wider than his ribcage or hips, then he is more than likely obese.

Another simple way to gauge whether or not your dog is suffering from obesity is to run your hands over his body. As you do this, pay attention to what you are feeling. Can you feel his hips, spine or shoulders? Much like the ribcage, you should generally be able to feel these bones under a thin layer of fat. If you cannot feel them, there is a very good chance your dog is overweight.

The final method to assess whether or not your dog is overweight is to look for an abdominal tuck. All dogs should have an abdominal tuck. Look at your dog from the side, and you should see a narrowing upwards of the underside of his body, just after his rib cage. Keep in mind that how obvious the abdominal tuck is can vary greatly from one dog breed to the next, and with gender female dogs that have had puppies may have some loose skin, which can disguise their tucked up tummy.

Still really in denial when owners visit vets they are usually objective when evaluating their dog’s body condition. They blame the expanding waistline on big bones or the fact that they have lots of hair. Don’t make this mistake be realistic and if your dog is a bit generous around the middle, then take steps to remedy the situation.

Diabetes – Dog weight loss:

In the following chapters I want to cover the diseases associated with having an overweight dog and what signs you should be made aware of. However, one very significant effect that is often overlooked is the fact that it can reduce your dog’s lifespan. As a general rule lean dogs live for up to two years longer than overweight dogs, and they don’t develop age related conditions like arthritis until they are older.

One of the most common hormonal disorders that a dog owner may have to deal with is diabetes. Diabetes is a chronic disorder where the body’s ability to metabolize sugar is compromised due to the fact that it can no longer produce a sufficient amount of the hormone insulin.

There are two different types of diabetes. The first kind, type 1, occurs when the body cannot produce enough insulin. This is the type of diabetes that dog owners need to be the most concerned about. The other kind of diabetes, type two, occurs when the body can produce enough insulin, but is not able to use the insulin effectively. Type 2 diabetes rarely occurs in dogs.

Usually there are several warning signs you should watch out for that can indicate that your dog may be suffering from diabetes.

• Look at how much your dog is drinking. Diabetes can cause dogs to become extremely thirsty.
• They will be going to their dog bowl for a drink much more often than they used to.
• This leads to increased urination is also a very common sign of diabetes in dogs. If you find your dog needs to go outside to urinate more often, or he has a lot more accidents inside than is normal, he may have diabetes.
• Excessive urination can also be a sign of a bladder infection, and this too is more common in diabetic dogs. Another common indicator of diabetes in dogs is lethargy. It is very common for dogs after they develop diabetes to become very sluggish; you may find that they want to sleep much more often than they used to. Also watch out for sudden weight loss. In dogs diabetes can lead to a sudden and dramatic drop in weight, in spite of a good appetite.

While the exact causes of diabetes in dogs are not known, it is well documented that one of the greatest risk factors that contribute to dog diabetes is obesity. Dogs that are excessively overweight or obese have a much higher likelihood of developing this disorder than dogs that are in a more healthy weight range.

Arthritis and how dog weight loss can help:

One of the most noticeable and painful effects that obesity can have on your dog’s body is the increased amount of stress that is put on his joints. Joints, much like any moving object, are subject to a certain amount of wear and tear.

The more weight that the joints have to carry, the more wear and tear the joints receive. If a joint has too much wear and tear, osteoarthritis is likely to occur. Osteoarthritis is a very painful degenerative disorder of the joints, which is much more likely to occur in an overweight dog, because their joints have to carry more weight than they should.

Carrying extra weight causes excessive rubbing of the cartilage that covers the bones. Eventually this cartilage can be rubbed away completely, resulting in a situation where your dog’s joints are essentially bone on bone without the benefit of any protective cartilage. Studies have shown that the difference in the amount of force placed upon the joints of an overweight animal compared to a pet in their ideal weight range is extreme.

If anything to help your dogs health avoid contracting either diabetes or arthritis should be enough encouragement to get you thinking of a dog weight loss program as treating any of these diseases can become costly over a period of time.  And for the mere fact that dog weight loss can add years to your dog’s life.