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Killing Our Pets with Kindness We have all been there --we are eating our morning toast and these sad brown eyes are looking up at us and of course, we succumb. Unfortunately you are probably not the only member of the family who does and worse, we do it frequently during the course of the day. The result, according to the PDSA, 55% of dogs and 40% of cats in the UK are overweight or obese. Mary Lloyd tells us more 20
Why Does it Matter? Overweight pets are prone to the following health problems: • Lethargy • Lameness • Diabetes • High blood pressure • Heart disease • Certain cancers
How Can you Tell if Your Pet is Overweight With cats and dogs, you should be able to feel the outline of their ribs with any excess fat being present. The waist should be discernible when viewed from above and the tummy should definitely NOT be SAGGING! If in doubt, let you veterinary surgeon weigh them and they will tell you if they are overweight.
29 JANUARY – 29 FEBRUARY 2021 RESCUE AND ANIMAL CARE
Effect of Breed on Weight Certain breeds of cats and dogs are more prone to excessive weigh gain than others:
DOGS
CATS
Labradors Dachsunds Bassett Hounds Rottweilers Ragdolls
British Shorthair Russian Blues Main Coons Persians
Females are more prone to excessive weight gain than males and neutered pets are more susceptible than entire ones.
The Solutions Dogs should only be fed once per day and cats twice. Overwieght pets consumption should be reduced by at least 10% and the level of exercise www.rescueandanimalcare.com