Posted on 12/20/2007 7:48:56 AM PST by DancesWithCats
A diet for obese dogs has been developed by veterinary scientists working in the UK and France.
Researchers have found that a high protein, high fibre diet is more successful in weight loss programmes for dogs because it helps to create a feeling of fullness.
The study, published in the latest issue of the Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine, was carried out by vets at the University of Liverpool's Small Animal Teaching Hospital, working with the Royal Canine Research Centre in France, and has led to the development of a new diet food for dogs.
Most owners who place their pets on diets say the dogs overcome the effects by scavenging, but the new diet, called Satiety Control, aims to combat that problem.
Dr Alex German, head of the weight management clinic at the Small Animal Hospital, said: "Obesity is common in dogs and can lead to a range of illnesses and diseases, even premature death.
"Although treatment for weight loss has been in existence for some time it has not been without its problems. Simply reducing a dog's food intake and increasing exercise can lead to begging and scavenging.
"The new formula is a breakthrough for diet-based weight loss plans for dogs; if satiety is better, then improved compliance is likely to lead to greater success. This work may also be relevant for people as well as dogs. Increasing both dietary fibre and protein may help people on a dietary weight loss plan to control their appetite."
During the study, vets tested three different diets: one high in protein with moderate fibre content, one high in fibre with moderate protein content and one high in both protein and fibre.
(Excerpt) Read more at channel4.com ...
They can do a scratch test but I do not believe it tests for food allergies. There is some controversy over the scratch test versus the blood test. It’s been years since I researched this so memory is vague as to why there was a disagreement over it.
Alot of people who have allergic dogs recommend that you take your dog to a veterinary dermatologist as they are the “go to” guys for allergies.
Years ago we had our border collie tested. It was a simple blood test and it cost around $100. She was allergic to grass pollen, dust and mold. We started to give her allergy shots. They did the trick and the dog never had problems after that. I think we gave her the shots for about 3 years.
The allergy shots do not work for every dog but if the dog has more than a seasonal allergy that cannot be controlled with an antihistamine the allergy shots are worth a try. Alot of vets will just put a dog on steroids instead of getting to the bottom of the problem and steroids have alot of nasty side effects and are not really a good option long term.
For food the vets use an elimination diet. You can google it. I believe they start out with one simple food and you add different things until you get a reaction out of the dog. It is time consuming and you have to follow it to the letter but if you have a dog with a severe food allergy it is worth it to get to the bottom of the problem.
I still had a few links in my bookmarks about allergies in dogs. This one is a UK company that makes the allergy tests but has some good information about allergies.
They do have a test for food allergies now that doesn’t require the food elimination diet. While this is a UK site I would assume that similar testing is available in the US.
Food and inhaled allergies are common but so are flea allergies. Even if you put flea meds on your dog if a flea bites them and they are allergic to fleas it will cause them alot of misery. Mites are determined with a skin scraping I believe. I’ve heard of dogs having these mites. You have to look for them under a microscope to find them they are very small.
Dermapet makes products that you use for shampooing the dog that are quite effective in controlling some of the skin issues in allergic dogs particularly problems that involve yeast or fungus. The key ingredients are acetic & boric acid. I use the ear cleaner and after trying about 3 other products is the only one so far that has prevented yeast infections in my Cavalier’s ears. I’m not affiliated with the company but just have had a lot of success with their products as have other Cavalier owners who have used the ear cleaner as a preventative.
This link has more about the allergy testing and explains why there is controversy about it. However we had just the blood test done on our dog and it was very successful.
http://www.gcvs.com/Derm/allergy_test.htm
I am most familiar with allergy shots in humans. I have alot of allergies and have been getting the shots myself since childhood. They have worked well for me over the years and indeed have allowed me to enjoy life in a way I could not have without them. I can garden AND have a pet!
But my daughter tried them for her allergies and did not have positive results so they don’t always work for every one nor every dog. And you have to be patient. Sometimes it can take 6 months to a year to see change.
As for overweight dogs it seems to be an owner issue. It’s easy to control a dog’s weight as the owner is in control of the dog’s food. Feed less, exercise more. If dog seems hungry supplement their kibble with cooked green beans, give carrot sticks as snacks etc. Dogs beg and are experts at looking hungry and sad. For some people that is hard to not give in to. You must be strong!
Our weiner dogs are very close in age. The oldest one is 3 years old. He is the biggest and very lazy. The vet says to walk him every day. We get half a block away from the house and he lays down on the sidewalk and that is the end of the walk. LOL
I adopted my daughter’s fat Boston Terrier, Lucy, to save her from my grandson’s teasing. I solved her weight problem. I feed her less.
She’s looking svelte now, and really sticks by my side, hoping to get a doggie treat. Makes training very easy. There’s nothing like hunger to get a dog’s attention, LOL!
At the advice of several freepers, I switched to a dog food brand called Innova Evo. No wheat products, high protein and high fiber. Oh, and the best part ever -- No Melamine or lead! Poo on YOU, China!
She's now back to a perfect weight (perfect for her since she's very petite) of 75 lbs, and her fur is amazing. Personally, I think she was just reacting to the ridiculous amount of refined carbs in her Science Diet.
Oh, and we started walking late at night.
Oh, how sad the picture of that dog is!! How could they allow that?
Laughing about your ‘thieving beagle’!
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My hunting hound would eat some high protein Hunter Mix andleftoves but would also go after rabbits, etc. every few days and stayed lean and powerful and happy
Tex was no fatty and he was King of the Territory as the larger dogs that ganged up on him when hewas a growing pup found out when he matured
All the so-called “guard dog” and all the larger/largest breeds quickly became notched ear buddies of Tex
Outdoor dogs are seldom fat, it’s the ones kept inside and overfed on people food I think.
I’ve had three dogs and have never once set out their food at a specified time, it’s there and they’ve eaten when they’re hungry. The dogs I’ve seen that are the biggest are the ones that get fed at a specific time and then they attack it like, well, animals. Hahahaha. I go with the, they know when they’re hungry theory.
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Tex was good with smaller dogs
He also protected the kid’s pet rabbit “Thumper” in his raised cage from neighborhood dogs
That’s interesting, isn’t it. If he would kill wild animals you’d think he’d go after very small ones.
Maybe Thumper never got loose, lol.
They say not to let Yorkies get around hamsters, gerbels, etc!!
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The kids would put Thumper out on the grass lawn once in a while with a tiny orpthaned wild baby rabbit that we found that we put in Thumper’s cage until the wild rabbit got big enough to set loose
Tex never messed with them
But Tex would shred those big hostile dogs from miles around if they bothered him or came near our property
They used to run loose in packs but Tex spoiled their fun
Sounds like Tex knew who his real opponents were and took care of them!! Nice he wouldn’t hurt the rabbit.
A diet for obese dogs has been developed by veterinary scientists......
Teaching owners to say no?
FOUR of them!? How fun!! Silly dogs, they are. Adorable! I had one once, name was Shelly. Loved her to bits but boy was she the little goofball. And yes, a real starving Armenian all the time. LOL I miss the goofy little thing.
Yowch. Vet bills can just do you in at times. AND as you say, it’s a hassle as I’m sure the dog was not too cooperative to having test samples on his skin. LOL
We had a cat once that had allergies and yes, it was unbelievably expensive. But in the end, the decision was to put him on steroid injections regularly and it worked like a charm. No more biting at his fur and ripping it out in patches. Was a much prettier cat after that. LOL
Doggie Prader-Willis!
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