Weight Management

You may think an extra pound or two can’t hurt that much, but a pound is not just a pound.   While two or three additional pounds may have very little effect on you or me, they can be quite serious for your pet.  Three extra pounds on a fifteen pound dog is equivalent to a one hundred and fifty pound person gaining thirty extra pounds, and three extra pounds on a ten pound cat is equal to forty-five extra pounds on a one hundred and fifty pound person! 

How can you help keep your pet healthy?  We use something called the body condition score to assess a pet’s weight, as there can be quite a range of “normal” weights for a specific dog breed. Body condition score is a way to judge how much fat or muscle is on an animal and is more accurate than weight in judging an animal’s body composition. It is based on a 1-9 scale, with a 4-5 being a healthy weight.

 

To score body condition we look at:

• Are the bones visible?  Bones such as the ribs, spine, and hip bones should not be visible in most dogs and cats. Some breeds are naturally leaner and in them it may be normal to see the bones.
• How easily are the ribs felt?  They should feel as though you are running your finger over the back of your other hand’s fingers. There should be a slight fat covering, but you should not have to push hard to be able to feel the ribs.
• Is there a tuck of the abdomen visible from the side of the animal?  There should be a nice tuck visible.
• Is there a waist visible when viewing the animal from above?  There should be a waist visible. See http://www.purina.com/dog/weight-and-exercise/bodycondition.aspx for dogs BCS
  See http://www.purina.com/cat/weight-control/bodycondition.aspx for cats BCS