Overweight dogs and cats 'a big problem' says Winnipeg Humane Society

When Daniel Ashton and Kristie Bailey were looking for a dog, they had no idea it would come in such a large package.

"We were looking for a dog for awhile, and Dan met this one and fell absolutely head over heels in love," said Bailey.

That love was for a 33-kilogram English Bulldog named Nala.

Overweight dogs and cats 'a big problem' says Winnipeg Humane Society

8 years ago

Duration 1:02

Nala weighed 33 kilograms when she was adopted in February of 2015. She has since lost about 9 kilograms.

"She's an English Bulldog.Being English myself, I saw something of her in me.We've been inseparable ever since," said Ashton.

Nala had been rescued from a puppy mill and had been through a couple of homes when she found herself at the Winnipeg Humane Society.

She was known for having accidents around the house and suffered from arthritis when Bailey and Ashton took her home last February.

"When we had picked her up she was really sore in the hips and really sore in the knees. She was just carrying around so much extra weight that it was a struggle for her," said Bailey.

"We wanted to make sure that she got the best life possible."

For the first few months, Nala's owners brought her back to the humane society every weekend so she could go for walks indoors.

"She's not really super motivated or super outdoorsy," said Bailey.

Slowly she built up her stamina, and as the weather got warmer outside, she was able to go for walks in her own neighbourhood.

The seven-year-old pooch was fed hypoallergenic dog food and given only fruits and vegetables for treats.

It took her about six months to lose ninekilograms, but now, Nala can jump onto the couch or into the car, somethingshe couldn't before.

She's also not having any more accidents in the house.

Now that Nala is more mobile, she can take car rides to the dog park.

"Her social life has changed.Her activity levels have changed her arthritis isn't acting up half as much," said Bailey.

Half of all pets are obese

To mark National Pet Obesity Awareness Day, the Winnipeg Humane Society (WHS) is reminding pet owners it's important to keep your pet at a healthy weight.

"Pet obesity is a big problem with pet health, and part of the issue is that people express their love for their pets with treats," said veterinarianErika Anseeuw, director of animal health at the WHS.

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"There's a lot of health issues associated with obesity. There's diabetes in cats. Orthopaedic issues are huge. It's something that needs to be talked about so that pet owners are aware," said Anseeuw.

Anseeuw says about 40 to 50 per cent of owned pets are overweight, and about 25 per cent of the total dog and cat population is carrying around some extra pounds.

"We get a lot of strays that are undernourished, but a lot of the owned ones are overweight," she said.

Anseeuw says the best way to keep your pet trim is to keep them active and not feed them too many high-calorie treats.

Dogs love carrots and celery or pieces of fruit as treats. For cats, you can switch them to an all wet-food diet.

Anseeuw says lots of people think of wet-food as a treat or that it's high in fat, but it's actually high in protein and low in carbohydrates.

"If you want to feed dry food buy, the best quality dry food you can afford. The good news about wet food is pretty much any old canned wet food is good quality," she said.

Anseeuw says it's important to consult a veterinarian before putting your pet on a weight loss plan. A checkup can help rule out other health conditions that might be contributing, and for cats, it can be hard on theirliver if they lose weight too quickly.

She says overweight petscan also develop unwanted behaviours.

"They're big and heavy, and they're having trouble getting up and going to the bathroom, and when the cat or the dog starts peeing in the house where they're not supposed to, often times that's the end of the relationship unfortunately," said Anseeuw.