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Large for the Breed

DSB Cavs

Active member
I have two Cavaliers that I know are large for the breed. They have the same father; different mothers. Basil, my male weighs 30 lbs. He's built like a Thoroughbred. Sasha, my female weighs 33 lbs. Yep, you read that right! :biggrin: She's built like a Quarter horse! Basil is neutered and Sasha has been spayed.

Sasha is definitely overweight! I looked at the pictures in this article and Sasha looks just like the last picture.
http://roycroftinformationcenter.com/Roycroft Cavaliers/Roycroft Cavalier Care Feeding new.html

Both of them go with us for a one hour 3.5 mile walk every morning. We give them apple treats on the walk, and bits of broccoli when we get home. I have been feeding them 2/3 cup Eukanuba Wild Salmon & Rice food twice a day. Based on what I reading in these forums, that's probably too much; although Basil is not overweight at all. I purchased Dick Van Pattens Natural Weight Control food and I've transitioned Sasha over. She's now getting 1/3 cup of the DVP food with 1/3 cup of green beans for filler. Does this seem like a reasonable plan?

Also, I read in the article to put water on the food. I did that with Sash's food this morning and she seemed to be very bloated. Same tonight. Is the water a good idea with the weight control food?

This is a great forum! Thanks in advance for your advice! cl*p
 
Hi and welcome!

We have lots of big-size cavaliers here; I am sure other owners will say hi. :) It's funny how two dogs can get the same amount of food and one ill gain weight and another do well -- but then people are the same I suppose. icon_whistling

One thing to be sure about is that your girl isn't more coat than fat -- I have one very fluffy female who looks slightly overweight but when she is wet you can easily see she is quite fit. That said, it sounds like you are taking the right approach, though to me it also doesn't sound like you are feeding an excessive amount at all given their size. I have a 16.5 lb cavalier who gets about 2/3rds of a cup daily and is very fit on that. You are giving lots of great exercise too. But all dogs have different metabolisms...

One thing to watch for is unexpected food sources -- such as dogs that snack out of cat litter boxes or cat poop in the garden... :grnyuk: ... family members that sneak treats, toddlers that drop food, etc. If your girl doesn't drop some weight on that diet I'd really keep a close eye on them to be sure they aren't eating anything from other sources, and if not, and your female isn;t losing some weight, I'd get your girl to the vet for a chat as a thyroid problem for example could possibly be a problem.

I don't add water to the food for my dogs and if you are finding yours get bloaty, I'd go back to no water as that worked better for you.
 
Update: Sasha has definitely lost weight. I can feel her ribs now without searching for them. :) We've cut down on the snacks too. I stopped putting water on her food and she is not as bloated.

Someone else suggested a thyroid problem as well. I'm going to ask about this the next time I take her to the vet. But for now it appears that she just needs less to eat! ;) It's hard because we love to give them treats!
 
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