Food for Fido- All Are Not Created Equal
Posted by The Editorial Desk / Tuesday, September 13th, 2011
We’ve all been made aware that obesity is one of the leading problems in our society today; but what about for your pets?
According to a recent study, obesity in domestic animals is on the rise as well- as much as 20 percent of dogs and cats in America are obese. This is a 1 percent increase from 2007. Part of the problem is that even a small weight gain for a pet is a significant increase.
Ok, so obviously there has to be some sort of correlation. American’s aren’t getting enough exercise and, therefore, our pets aren’t either. But, as the owner of a dog who has recently put on quite a bit of weight, I know that there are other factors at play.
Our 4 year old Welsh Corgi, Nitro, has always been very slim and active. He can and will retrieve an old tennis ball for hours without any signs of slowing- but within the last year we started to notice an excess of tummy dragging on the ground. His exercise habits had not changed- but his food had.
Nitro the Corgi
About a year ago, we decided to buy him a type of dog food that is supposed to be all-natural, super healthy, holistic, etc… All the reviews raved that it was the best type of food to give your pet, made only with the finest ingredients. We felt we were doing Nitro a favor by being such good “parents” and buying this healthy (and expensive!) dog food.
6 months later, at a routine trip to the vet, she informed us that our little dog had put on a hefty 6 pounds! She warned us that all dog foods are not equal; even the ones that say they promote healthy weight management may contain more calories (or kCal) per serving than the dog (or cat) should be having. She reminded us that it is very important to always check the nutritional content- just like you would buying food for yourself.
This was news to me. I had no idea that I should be checking the caloric content of dog food. And sure enough, even though Nitro was on a Weight Management version, the calories per serving were twice what he should be having as a daily intake.
Lesson learned. Don’t just go for the fancy stuff. Be sure to talk to your vet about what’s right for your pet.
FYI, we have since switched him to a lower calorie (and lower priced) food and, sure enough, he seems to be losing weight!
– Jennie Whistler
Tags: dog food, dogs, Gut Check, healthy, Jennie, Northern Virginia, Northern Virginia Magazine, NoVA, nova mag, nutritional information, obesity, pet advice, pets, weight management