Long term health implications for overweight dog?

Moominmamma

I am considering re-homing a dog, but he is massively overweight (about 12kg :eek:)

He's approximately 2 years old, and I'm not sure how long he's been so big for.

At the moment my heart is saying yes, but whilst I'd obviously put him on a diet and give him plenty of exercise my head is wondering what damage may already have been done, the lady who's fostering him says her vet thinks that as he's still young he will be fine when he looses his excess weight ~ does anyone have any experience of this kind of situation?

TIA

Moomin

WolfSong2000

Poor animal!

I'm not sure what the long-term health implications would be, but I can say my parents took on an elderly obese labrador (owners were moving abroad and couldn't find anyone to take him on)...he struggled to lose weight, despite the diet, due to his arthritis, but he did okay and my family had him for a good few years before he passed away. I think with a dog that young, as long as he loses the weight as quickly as (healthily) possible, he should be okay.

What I would suggest is bulking up his meal with raw chopped veggies such as carrots so he wont feel so cheated food wise with tiny portions. Worked well for the old lab .

hethmar

I dont think he will have done that much damage - if you take your vets advice and put him on the right food in the right amounts and build up his exercising regime then I think he should be ok. The big worry is with joint problems but it would have taken him a lot of his short life to have got this fat, so its not like he has been dragging that weight around for a long time.

AND get him insured asap!!

Give a good rescue like Many Tears an email to see if they can advise.

foreign_correspondent

I agree with hethmar here - long term, if a dog is fat for years, there are often health implications, but he hasnt had that long to develop them... I do wonder why a young dog is so overweight though? - if he is massively overweight? - what sort of dog is he? - just thinking 12 kg may not be a vast amount on a mastiff or other large, big framed dog, but it would be a massive amount on a small-medium sized dog!!

Personally, if he has the all clear from the vet, and if you fancy taking him on, I would look at reducing his weight very slowly and gradually, whilst gently building up his exercise, and consider whether any supplements may be wise (talk to your vet) to try and add some extra protection in for his joints just in case they have had any extra wear (glucosamine and chondriotin perhaps) - though I guess his weight is partially a result of being under-exercised... which may mean the wear to his joints has been minimised anyway!

snowman2_2

On average, an overweight dog lives for 2 years less and has problems like arthritis, heart disease & diabetes 3 years earlier. As long as your dog doesn't have any of these problems, there is still time for weight loss to be beneficial.

Mankysteve

He's only 2 years old. Still a young dog, plenty of time of time to change his ways.

potsofmoney_(I_wish)

I gave a home in November of last year to a ex breeding pug who was hugely overweight. When I took her to the vets they were appauled at her condition. She was over twice the weight she should have been, had filthy teeth, an eye ulcer and ear mites.

I took things very slowly, I walked her most days. At first she could only manage a very small distance I increased it by one lampost at a time. She had not really been outside and was not house trained. Also she still leaks urine in her bed.

Now only a few months later my absolute pride and joy, goes crazy when she sees the lead, runs, loves to sit outside, and is a completely different dog. I took her to the IOW the other day and was a bit worried that it would be too much for her. She was running in the sea and a passerby commented on what a fit little dog she was.

She has no health problems and even if her experience has shaved a couple of years from her life, the life she has now is of such better quality. I adore her and would not hesitate in the future to rehome a similer one again. I took her back to her original owners to show them how well she looks, happily they were as happy as I am.

HTH and good luck with your decision.

teachergirl

Hi there moominmamma . We rescued two Cavalier King charles from the RSPCA over four years ago. One was very overweight and one was very skinny. They were 6&7 at the time so not young dogs. Like potsofmoney I don't think these girls had ever been out for walks and at first they were very fearful Now they absolutley love going out and chase round in circles whenever we get their leads out. I would like to tell you that the fat one has become thin but this has never happened despite our best efforts(and the vets!!!!).
She is however very happy and her only health problems are related to her heart which is a congenital fault with Cavaliers and not to do with her weight. In fact the skinny ones heart condition is far worse.
The one thing I do agree with is the insurance bit. In my whole life the pet insurance has been the only insurance that has ever really paid for itself. The RSPCA told us to get it and we paid for a really good one that had a life cover. (I always meant to cancel it after a year but never got around to it:o)
Now monthly cost of insurance for two dogs £50. (they are both over eight.) Monthly cost of drugs before heart scans etc etc £150+:D

One of the best things I ever did rescuing these dogs. I have never regretted it.(except perhaps when they want to go for a walk and it is really cold and yuk outside;))

chucknorris

Moominmamma wrote: »

I am considering re-homing a dog, but he is massively overweight (about 12kg :eek:)

He's approximately 2 years old, and I'm not sure how long he's been so big for.

At the moment my heart is saying yes, but whilst I'd obviously put him on a diet and give him plenty of exercise my head is wondering what damage may already have been done, the lady who's fostering him says her vet thinks that as he's still young he will be fine when he looses his excess weight ~ does anyone have any experience of this kind of situation?

TIA

Moomin

We took on Mills a Lab/Spaniel cross, he was 4.5 years old and 48kg (that's 20 kg overweight)! we gave him plenty of exercise and put him on a diet and after about 7-8 months he was down to 28kg (and still is after 4 years). He does have a slight arthritus problem but it isn't major. The vetinary nurse said I have added ay least 3 years to his life and gave him a much better quality of life than he was destined for with his excess weight. It obviously wasn't his fault though, not only did his previous owners overfeed him they never took him out. Now he goes walking, jogging and cycling with me and loves it especially as I run and cycle off road in the countrside and he is off lead.

I would say go for it and give him a better life and you too, our lives have been so enriched by our dog that I cannot possibly express it in words here.

Moominmamma

Thank you so much everyone for all your replies, you've really helped me to make my mind up, the upshot being that, fingers crossed, we'll soon have a new canine addition to the family :j He's a labradoodle, btw, so a fairly big dog.

Will try and update with some pics when he arrives!

hethmar

Well done you. He will soon be fighting fit Im sure. AND dont forget the insurance - Id recommend AXA life time policy. Check them out.