Southeastern Guide Blog

Weight Control for Your Guide Dog - Third of four articles

In both the previous articles we covered the dangers of obesity to your dog's health and ways to tell by touch, if your dog is obese. Three main components determine whether your dog will maintain a healthy weight; nutrition, age and exercise. Let's discuss a few dietary tips that may help your dog.

Your veterinarian can determine the food and quantity that best meets your dog's nutritional needs. It is up to you to stick to both and maintain your guide's optimal dietary needs. Your dog's meal portion is relatively easy. It is when treats enter the picture that it gets dicey.

Just to give you an idea of calorie contents of dogs treats here are a few.

Science Diet Canine Life Treats-15 calories Bonz for medium dogs-70 calories
Large Milk Bone Dog Biscuits-115 calories

The items below are absolutely not for your dog. When you see the calorie content you will see why.

1 slice medium pizza-259 calories
Small order fries-399 calories
McDonald's Quarter Pounder with Cheese-525 calories

You can see how quickly little "rewards" can total up. A moderately active adult dog needs roughly 1,725 calories per day. A leftover slice of pizza and some fries can equal 75% of your dogs calorie intake for the day. This is definitely not the way to a slim, trim guide dog.

Instead, think of feeding your pooch vegetable treats like baby carrots, green beans, celery, and snow peas. They really do like them! One medium baby carrot is only 3 calories. A whole cup of canned green beans is only 25 and is very filling.

Think of yourself as the gatekeeper to keep your dog out of Obesity Park. You hold the key by feeding Fido only low calorie rewards.