New Year's Resolution: Cutting back the pounds!
by Erin Kowalski and her Labrador, Zeus
Weight is always a topic that is danced around when it comes to humans and oftentimes their pets. One of the most popular New Year's Resolutions is to loose weight, so I would like to get the topic out in the open and share the roller coaster weight ride of my dog, Zeus.
Zeus came into my life when he was 8 weeks old. Just looking at the size of his paws I knew he was going to be a big boy and named him accordingly. He was actually growing at such a fast pace that at 6 months of age Zeus was diagnosed with arthritis - his ball and socket joints were not growing at the same rate and his hips were grinding bone on bone. He was limping from just running and playing fetch so the veterinarians told me to restrict his activity to alleviate the pain. Other than those words, I was not given guidance on how to tackle the issue that ultimately arose from the veterinarian's advice.
After years of limited activity and a lot of money on joint supplements, Zeus became obese. He was four years old and approaching 110lbs. Expecting him to be a large adult dog to fill in the monstrous puppy paws he had, I did not see his problem until I became a staff member at Mutt Hutt and became educated on proper nutrition and the benefits of high quality food and exercise.
I became aware of how important portion control was in helping your dog lose or maintain their perfect weight. For example, two cups of Fromm or Orijen is not the same as two cups of Purina or Kibbles and Bits. Higher quality foods have higher levels of nutrients and good calories which means your dog needs to consume a lessor amount of the better premium brands.
Zeus was allowed to come to daycare at Mutt Hutt with me everyday and although his playtime was curbed, I noticed a huge difference after only two months of his daycare activity and new diet. Zeus had noticeably lost weight, his energy level increased and his joints were feeling better.
Finally acknowledging the dire situation I had inadvertently put my pup in was hard. I felt awful for letting his weight get so out of control and not realizing how much more damage I was causing him was devastating.
Although he is approaching his 8th birthday and his time at Mutt Hutt has been cut back even more, Zeus is down to 84 healthy pounds. We walk a couple of miles everyday (often with his backpack filled with bottled water - pictured above), measure out exactly how much food he gets at each feeding and give the occasional healthy snack of fresh fruits and vegetables or low calorie treat from Cats, Cutts and Chow.
If you would like to help your pet get back to their healthy weight, stop in Cats, Cutts and Chow to discuss your goals with one of our knowledgeable staff members!
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