Monday, October 8, 2007
Doggone Diet!
If you watch CBS 5 Morning News regularly, you know Mike's a cat person, and I'm a dog lover. As office spouses, that's just one way our opposites attract.
My Rottweiler, Onyx (seen here playing with my husband) is 11 going on 12 years old now.. which is pretty old for dog years, and extremely old for Rotties. As you can see from the picture- he's one heavy boy- 155 pounds. Our vet advised we get him on a diet and try exercising him more so he can shed some weight, making life a little easier on his old man hips. Since he's a bit of a beast who was never raised to swim, and running him may only hurt those hips more, my husband and I began to look for other ways to help ease his pain. I recently did a story on canine cancer and met some great dog lovers who had some advice to help my "Ox" lose a little weight. I figured I'd pass- on the good word since most dog lovers love to spoil their babies... here's something you won't feel guilty about in getting them to diet.
We always give Onyx treats when we come home & through out the day (okay, whenever he begs for one). This became a bad habit fast with those fatty jerky treats dogs love. How about this- try carrots! It's true- not only is my dog the size of a horse, we've trained him to dance around the fridge for carrots- thinking it's a forbidden treat!
As for the tip I just got that's tricked him into even better health... it's all about the green beans!
Cut your dog's diet by a cup & replace it with canned green beans. I thought I'd be pushing it- but was I ever wrong- they're a HUGE hit! So much so, he dances around as soon as I pull out a can- he knows the goods are on the way! Poured right over his dry food, I'm told it fills them just the same, but does a great job helping them diet. I've heard other veggies work well too, but haven't had much success otherwise. The celery gets a sniff, the broccoli got spit right out... but I'm a believer- treat it like a treat, and they'll really look forward to it! Wonder if that works on kids?
Email me if you have a fun story to share or want to know more ncrites@kpho.com
My Rottweiler, Onyx (seen here playing with my husband) is 11 going on 12 years old now.. which is pretty old for dog years, and extremely old for Rotties. As you can see from the picture- he's one heavy boy- 155 pounds. Our vet advised we get him on a diet and try exercising him more so he can shed some weight, making life a little easier on his old man hips. Since he's a bit of a beast who was never raised to swim, and running him may only hurt those hips more, my husband and I began to look for other ways to help ease his pain. I recently did a story on canine cancer and met some great dog lovers who had some advice to help my "Ox" lose a little weight. I figured I'd pass- on the good word since most dog lovers love to spoil their babies... here's something you won't feel guilty about in getting them to diet.
We always give Onyx treats when we come home & through out the day (okay, whenever he begs for one). This became a bad habit fast with those fatty jerky treats dogs love. How about this- try carrots! It's true- not only is my dog the size of a horse, we've trained him to dance around the fridge for carrots- thinking it's a forbidden treat!
As for the tip I just got that's tricked him into even better health... it's all about the green beans!
Cut your dog's diet by a cup & replace it with canned green beans. I thought I'd be pushing it- but was I ever wrong- they're a HUGE hit! So much so, he dances around as soon as I pull out a can- he knows the goods are on the way! Poured right over his dry food, I'm told it fills them just the same, but does a great job helping them diet. I've heard other veggies work well too, but haven't had much success otherwise. The celery gets a sniff, the broccoli got spit right out... but I'm a believer- treat it like a treat, and they'll really look forward to it! Wonder if that works on kids?
Email me if you have a fun story to share or want to know more ncrites@kpho.com
Posted at 8:49 PM by Nicole
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