Obesity in America – A Dangerous Trend for Our Pets

Americans are fatter than ever. There’s no denying it. You read about it all the time, and the problem is not getting any better with our acknowledgement. But now we have another problem. It seems that obesity is contagious, from humans to pets.

You know, I never really thought about obesity as a zoonotic disease before. But the longer I practice, the more I realize that fat people have fat pets. Now please don’t jump up on your soapbox just yet. I also see a lot of fat pets owned by thin people, and vice versa, but the trend is progressing, and it is frustrating. How do you tell a 350-pound woman that her 65-pound beagle needs to go on a diet? It’s not easy (and not very effective, either). Sometimes, the owners are aware of their pet’s weight problems, and acknowledge it by feeding a low-calorie pet food, which the pet doesn’t eat well (“and this is bad because…?”). So they mix it with some high-fat canned food to get the pet to eat it, and still give it half a package of treats every day! You get my point.

The fact of the matter is that obesity is about as healthy for your pet as it is for yourself. Overweight dogs are predisposed to heart disease, diabetes and osteoarthritis, to name a few. Overweight cats can also readily become diabetic, or suffer from liver disease. Fat birds, especially parrot species, can actually get coronary artery disease, just like humans. The whole reason we get pets in the first place is for companionship, and we want our pets to live long lives with us. But we are killing them with kindness! I’ve lost count of how many clients tell me “no” when I ask them if they feed their pets table food. But with a little prying, they proceed into a list of less-than-healthy human fare that their pets receive on a regular basis.

Well, here it is. The secret to weight loss in pets is (drum roll please): eat less and exercise more. Yep, that’s it. Sound familiar? Look, our pets are no different from us in this regard. Feed them a good healthy diet, in moderation, and get them plenty of exercise, and they will stay fit. If your dog or cat is overweight, start by cutting out table scraps and limiting treats. Next, switch their food to a lower-calorie alternative. Most quality name-brand pet foods have a “less-active” or “reduced-calorie” formula that is basically the same as the maintenance formula, with higher fiber and fewer calories. There are even some prescription diets out there for morbidly obese animals that will slim them down quickly, like Hill’s r/d and m/d, and Purina’s OM formulas. The m/d diet is even being marketed as the Atkins’ diet for cats, and it works for ferrets, too. For rabbits and rodents, feed their pellets as label-instructed, limit fruits and veggies (which are very high in sugars and starches for these species) and give them free choice grass hay. For birds, get them off of the seeds, and on to a healthier pelleted diet.

Next, get them off the sofa. Do you jog? Take your dog with you. Get a pack of tennis balls and head to the backyard or the park for a good fetch session. Teach you dog to swim or play Frisbee. Get a laser pointer or a fishing rod toy and drive your cat nuts with it. Get your hamster an exercise wheel. Heck, for rabbits, birds and other exotic pets, just get them out of the cage and play with them. I can’t tell you how many birds I see that are basically perch-potatoes.

Take control of your pet’s weight problem. You caused it, now you need to fix it. We are solely responsible for what our pets eat and how much exercise they get. And who knows? You might drop a few pounds yourself in the process.