Animal Information > Dogs

Overweight Dogs - A National Problem

Take a look around at the dogs in your neighbourhood and the chances are you'll see at least one dog that's grossly overweight and several that could do with being put on a diet. Sadly, this nation of animal lovers has developed into what's fast becoming a dog's worse enemy.

Obesity amongst dogs is a steadily increasing problem that simply isn't taken seriously enough by owners. By offering our canine companions all kinds of titbits, we may believe we're being kind but the truth is we're slowly killing our faithful friends.

Dogs Are Natural Scavengers

Life in the wild is often a matter of feast or famine. Because wild dogs never know when the next food shortage will be, their instincts tell them they need to build up a fat reserve in order to survive periods where food is in short supply. The result is that they'll feed whenever food's offered, even when they've just fed.

Of course, our domestic pets never need this reserve but still they continue to eat whatever's offered, eventually developing health problems such as arthritis, heart disease and respiratory problems. Overweight dogs are also less resilient towards disease and infection and have a significantly shorter life expectancy.

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