Lily's weight check

Whoohoo go Lily :*nana: Your new Mamma loves you and you're doing soooooooooooooooooo well Bet those furry brothers love you too :flwr:

Karlin:

Can you reiterate again what type of diet you had her on? I've cut back my Sophie's kibble(Reduced Calorie Natural Balance) and supplemented with fr. green beans/canned pumpkin/shredded carrots/apples. I still don't think she's lost much weight at all and she really, really needs to lose! (I keep telling her that we'd both feel better if we lost 10 lbs!)

Sheri

Moviedust said:

I wish a diet would cure Willow's snoring!! Unfortunately, she's not overweight. She's just a piggy. I wake her up several times a night to get her to change positions. Works for a few minutes, then she falls asleep again. :roll:

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My parents started using separate bedrooms because of something like this.

Karlin said:

I actually had to tell me neighbours what all the noise was... I was afraid they would think I was hiding away some man who they never saw, but who spent most of the day sleeping and snoring... 8)

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:rotfl:

seriously, great work getting the weight off, i'm sure she'll reach her goal, will there be before and after photos, complete with waist shot?

It's striking, the difference it's made in her breathing. that should add years to her life. Good work!!

Can you reiterate again what type of diet you had her on? I've cut back my Sophie's kibble(Reduced Calorie Natural Balance) and supplemented with fr. green beans/canned pumpkin/shredded carrots/apples. I still don't think she's lost much weight at all and she really, really needs to lose! (I keep telling her that we'd both feel better if we lost 10 lbs!)

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I'm feeding her normal kibble and the stews etc that I feed the two boys (I don't like low cal food for either animals or people -- just my own perspective. Life is too short to eat margarine and low-cal mayonnaise). She just gets *very small amounts*. She gets maybe a third of a cup of 'real' food a day plus some veggies -- frozen beans, or chopped cooked broccoli; veggie snacks like pepper slices and broccoli stems. She went from not being remotely interested in the veggies to hoovering them up. She gets a piece of dog biscuit about the size of my thumbnail as her 'good night' treat. She gets four walks a day with at least one or two a week being about minimum two mile walks.

I based how much food she gets on what my two eat -- about three fourths of a cup of food daily -- and what my mom's cavalier gets -- about a third of a cup. Her cavalier, Lucy, weighs about 13.5 lbs, which I estimated was in the region of what Lily should weigh (actually Lily should probably more around13 lbs or even 12.5, I'd guess now). Leo weighs about 14.5 lbs and gets more than double that amount of food as he gets lots of exercise and is young and has a good metabolism. Lily is far more sluggish, not least because she was so fat!

So it is a matter of

1) figuring out her metabolism -- is she gaining weight on what you are normally feeding? Maintaining weight? Losing weight?
2) figuring out what she would be eating to maintain her current weight.
3) cut that amount IN HALF and that's your dog's daily meal.
4) NO SNACKS except occasional veggie treats
5) more exercise

So if you have a dog who is barely shifting weight on what is currently being fed, then halve the total amount per day and give the dog at least one extra walk of 30 minutes daily or 30 minutes of fetch.

Consider feeding one single meal a day. When you are feeding so little the tendency , as Laura Lang says, is to add some more food because half of a little bit looks like nothing. Get a smaller feeding bowl as well so that psychologically you aren't tempted to top it up. Put the entire kibble meal into a treat ball and make your dog work to get the food. This gives extra exercise and makes the meal last longer and is fun for the dog.

From Laura's feeding manual at http://www.roycroftcavaliers.com/manualfeeding.htm :

As adults some Cavaliers may only eat 1/2 cup of food per day, others may eat as much as 1 full cup of food per day. I do not suggest feeding an adult Cavalier twice a day even though it is best for the dog. Cavaliers do not eat much! Half of very little is almost nothing! Nearly every owner I've known who tried to feed an adult twice a day ended up with an overweight Cavalier. When they try to divide 1/2 or 2/3 cup of kibble into two servings the amount barely covers the bottom of the pan--so they add just a little bit more so they don't feel as though they are starving their Cavalier. A little bit more every meal eventually ends up being a lot more! And their Cavalier becomes overweight. With one meal a day the amount looks to our eyes as though it is a half way decent amount and we are much less likely to add just a little bit more each day.

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And:

HOW MUCH DO I FEED AND IS MY DOG OVERWEIGHT?
There is no way to tell you just how much your dog will need so far as quantity of kibble. Cavaliers vary GREATLY in their activity level. I know some 20 lbs. dogs that only need 1/2 cup of food a day and others that need a full cup or even more. I know some 10 lbs. dogs that only need 1/3 cup of food a day and others that need a full cup or even more. It is too dependent on the metabolism and activity level of each individual dog. You will have to use a hit and miss approach to figure out which amount is right for your dog. Try 2/3 of a cup to 1 full cup per day for an adult Cavalier over 1 year of age and watch to see if the dog is gaining weight or losing weight. Adjust accordingly. If they seem to be getting heavier, cut back. If they seem to be getting lighter, feed more. Also most dogs will need more food when the temperature outside is colder...

snip

HOW DO I GET MY DOG TO LOSE WEIGHT?
The same as humans--less food and more exercise!

Less Food: cut back to about 1/2 of what you had been feeding. If you are feeding kibble, take 1/2 of what you plan on giving your dog and soak it long enough so that it expands. Mix the dry in with the wet expanded food. The expanded food will help your dog feel a bit more full right after eating. Then add about 1/2 cup of green beans---fresh or thawed frozen (canned has too much salt) to the top and feed. The green beans are a very low calorie filler and quite good for your dog too!

If the dog isn't losing weight within 2 weeks, cut back on the food even more.

Some Ideas for More Exercise: try to take your dog for a walk daily, especially if you don't normally do so. If you can't do that for whatever reason, attempt to play fetch or whatever with your dog for 15 minutes a day. Tether your dog to you while you are working around the house so the dog has to go with you instead of sleeping on the couch. Try a buster cube with a few treats inside. That might help keep the dog busy for a bit. Throw the dog's kibble so it has to go and get it--either the treats or even the dog's entire meal.

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I'm a tough task-master for Lily... 8)

Wow Lily is loosing weight sooo fast, well done
Molder needs to lose weight, he was five years old when he comes to us and than he was fat but he has lost some weight now but still he needs to lose more! Can you tell me more about your plan?
What food are you feeding her on? How much food is Lily getting? Are you giving her the food in one or two meals? Is a part of her food vegatable or are you just feeding her on her food?
Sorry all these questions I just need some very good tips to get him to lose some weight. Many thanks in advance!

Karlin said:

I actually had to tell me neighbours what all the noise was... I was afraid they would think I was hiding away some man who they never saw, but who spent most of the day sleeping and snoring... 8)

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:rotfl:

So glad to hear Lily is losing more weight! She's an adorable little girl, and really looks happy.

When she is at her correct weight, can we see a photo of her? I would love to look at her 'before' and 'after' side by side.

Hi Sunna -- some of the answers are in my long postjust above yours. She gets about a fourth to a third of a cup of food every day; I used to only feed one meal a day but now give them most of their meal in the morning and then a mini second meal in the evening because Leo has a problem with throwing up and the advice is to not have him have an empty stomach. I am testing this to see if it works for him.

I feed a dry food called James Wellbeloved at the moment but before that Royal Canin. I mostly give the dogs a homemade diet and add some dry food just to give some crunch. I make stews usually with chicken, or cook some ground beef and mix with vegetables. Once a week they get sardines mixed with dry food.

I am used to feeding a homecooked meal so have a good idea of amounts to feed my two boys. If they are getting a bit thin I feed more; if they gain some weight I feed a bit less.

There are some homecooked recipes in the Caring for your Cavalier section.

PS yes I'll post some before and after pictures. She is so shaggy though that it can be hard to tell her actual size!!

For a sense of how big she was, this is an 'above' view when she had been with me about a week, 10th of June -- she'd already lost some weight by then:



And here she is looking up; about 12 days later, 22nd June, amd still fat but not as enormous!:

Lily...you are beautiful!!!!!!!!!!!!

Wow, you really cleaned her up in just 12 days! By now she has got to be absolutely beautiful!

Excellent job Karlin!! Wow, those pictures speak volumes. Great example of lack of waist. Way to go Lily!!!!

Karlin,

If I travel to Ireland would you be willing to put ME on one of those diets?! Lol you've done such a good job with Lily!!

Are you keeping her?

I'm keeping her at this time, but not necessarily long term. If exactly the right family comes up, I will rehome her; probably to friends where I'd know her circumstances. I enjoy having three but I am not really in a living situation where managing three is necessarily what I want to be doing long term if there is a really good option for her, but we shall see.

Oh my god Lily is so beautiful :flwr:
Thank you very much for these answers

Thanx Karlin for the diet regime. I currently have Sophie on 1/3 cup kibble AM/PM supplemented with only froz. green beans/carrots/apples/little banana bits on occasion. At least 2 walks per day (I work 2 jobs so time is limited for me) but my daughter gets a walk in for her in the evening if I'm unable to. Unfortunately, with our triple digit temps of late, it's hard to get an evening walk in that she isn't about ready to collapse after 1/2 block. She gets so short winded that she can hardly go very far, and I'm so worried she'll just collapse on the sidewalk!

Since I don't think I can cut her kibble down much more, I definitely have cut out her daily snacks - in fact since my Sasha can't eat big treats of any kind, I have taken some soft treats and cut them in tiny bits - that's what Sophie is getting as well. I also have some type of popcorn (airy) treats that I give each of them half when I leave in the morning, very low in calories.

I'll keep at it - maybe getting a treadmill isn't a bad idea for the entire family :lol:

Sheri

Why not cut back to just the 1/3rd cup kibble once per day, rather than twice? That's all my mom's cavalier gets normally -- she weighs about 13.5 lbs as her normal weight, and that is her normal meal. That's also all I am giving Lily.

Also make sure there aren't supplements coming from unexpected places. I realised at one point that Lily was 'snacking' from the cat litter box. :yuk:

Then I suppose if there's still little change I'd want the vet to check thyroid, and whatever else might be relevant, to make sure there isn;t a metabolism problem making weight loss very difficult.

Lily that's gross...no snacking from the litter box.

Also make sure there aren't supplements coming from unexpected places. I realised at one point that Lily was 'snacking' from the cat litter box. :yuk:

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ooooh Lily, you rascal.
karlin, if i may ask, what measures did you take to keep that from happening?
and how did you catch on? was it the breath? :yikes

Well, the fact that she had sawdust cat litter around her mouth was a tip-off... :yikes :lol:

Actually my house is small and the litter box is in the bathroom and I could hear her banging around in there. It is very hard to prevent her going in -- because Quincy, one of my cats, has only three legs and the missing leg is a front leg (harder for them to balance than losing a back leg) my options are limited with the litter box -- I can't just put it up higher. I have a bucket as a kind of noise barrier so I can hear her is she tries to get to the box. Also I try to take out the poops right away. She tends to go searching when she can tell a cat recently used it.

A baby gate would work well but is a pain as I only have the one bathroom. Also you can buy cat litter boxes that have top entries and are built into a kind of dog proof box. If Lily stays here I may have to consider something of that sort.

Both my other dogs eventually lost interest in the litter box so I am hoping she will too.

She gets spayed on Wednesday BTW.