A food blog doesn’t have to be all about people food, does it?
This is Beau, my geriatric shepherd mix. A year ago when I adopted him from an animal shelter he weighed a modest 73 pounds. “He can gain a pound or two,” my vet suggested, but paused to give me the serious eye. “But no more!”
During this year’s annual check up, the scale flashed 93 pounds. Convinced that the rat terrier across the room had jumped on the scale when I wasn’t looking, I asked for re-weigh. It confirmed the truth. I had overfed my dog enough for him to gain 20 pounds.
Beau is 12 years old and arthritic, and the extra weight is bad for his joints. Though he gets regular exercise it is limited to what he comfortably do at his age: not much. What I didn’t realize is that older dogs, like older people, have slower metabolisms and lighter caloric needs.
I was feeding Beau the recommended amount for his weight specified on the bag of food which was obviously too much. I considered substituting diet food but I ended up deciding against it for the same reason I decided not to give him senior food. The top ingredients were all byproducts and fillers. I wanted to keep him on his regular food and cut it back somehow without making him really hungry.
Luckily, I read a tip on a message board from a shelter worker who explained how they deal with obese dogs. A portion of dog food is replaced with de-thawed frozen vegetables, usually green beans or mixed vegetables. The dog eats the same volume of food so s/he walks away from the bowl feeling full, but having consumed less calories. With my vet’s OK, I came up with a feeding plan where I would reduce some of Beau’s dry food with vegetables. If I buy the two pound bag of mixed vegetables, the cost is roughly the same as his dog food.
I also did some research about how much food he really needs. I learned calorie requirements vary quite a bit from dog to dog, and certain situations require much more food. Puppies, dogs that are pregnant or lactating, working dogs, and those living outdoors in cold weather need more food while older and less active dogs obviously need less. Canned (wet) food is easier to chew and digest for senior dogs, and is also less caloric. Beau’s teeth are worn down so it was a good choice to add to his diet. One 13.2 oz can of wet food has approximately the same amount of calories as a cup of dry food. (This depends on the brand, but, I found this true for a few of the brands I looked into. If the calorie information for your dog’s food is not on the label, call the toll free number for the brand. Not only will they look it up, they’ll usually send you a few coupons for free food!)
I also found this great site which offers a couple of calorie calculators for dogs. (It’s from a cocker spanial site but can be applied to any dog.) Remember that any recommendation is just a guideline. Your dog made need more or less and the best way to tell if you’re feeding correctly is to get your dog weighed regularly.
Beau now gets a mix of dried and wet food, frozen vegetables and a supplement for senior dogs. Because dogs have complex nutritional needs it’s important not to replace too much of their food with vegetables. Beau gets about 10% of his calories from the vegetables per meal. (This diet is not appropriate for cats.) We’ve also cut back on the treats and people food handouts. If Beau were capable of more exercise we would be doing that but slow gentle walks and short games of fetch are all he can manage.
I am happy to report that he loves his new feeding plan and that his waistline is reappearing. I haven’t brought him back for a weigh-in yet but I’m confident the results will be positive. And I won’t have to pretend a small dog is skewing the scale!
This entry was posted
on Wednesday, April 23rd, 2008 at 5:07 am and is filed under Food Tips.
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