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Vet Said My Lab Is Too Fat :-(


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Well just found out today apparently half a 1.2kg can of dog food at night and dry in the morning is too much for a 2yo lab! She weighs in at 29kg and the vet said that is too heavy (up from 25 kg a few months ago).

What do all you other lab owners feed and how much? She gets heaps of exercise - doesn't look fat as such but is a small (runt) girl so I guess is too heavy for her size. Here i was thinking i had it down pat - people always comment on her " oh.. she is a skinny labrador" etc.. so im guessing there are a lot bigger fatter ones out there than her!

Anyone have any tips to keep her royal highness a bit less chubba - vet suggested just dry food - but i know after a few days she isn't too impressed - tried that once before!

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Its not how much a dog weighs but how if feels that's the most important IMHO.

You may find the article below useful. Do the flab test and see how she rates. Most people expect pretty hefty labs - you'd be amazed how many don't recognise a lab in true 'working condition' as the breed of dog it is. Friend of mine with a chocolate lab is constantly told he has a nice GSP. :)

http://www.caninesports.com/fatdogs.html

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hiya,

we are the owners of a fiery lil 9 week old lab pup.......suffering from bites & nips :)

Rolex thinks everytime i go to the cupboard or fridge Im getting something for him.so typical of the breed eh.

maybe you could try some alternative like the sardines in jelly (cat food).....has no preserves...not fattening as far as i am aware.no expert thu.

the breeder we got him from suggested that hills science diet dry food <very expensive stuff but good>, alternate meals of sardines in jelly <cat food> & marrowbones for a special treat. he is currently on 3 meals a day.plus training treats of the hills dry which he seems to really like.

I think down the track i would like to get him on the BARF diet that is Bones & raw foods.

Canned dog food can contain a lot of preservs & stuff..same deal with a lot of the dry foods.

good luck with your girl....do you have pix you can post of her??

:) please please please..

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Oh my, don't feel too bad...Ralphy weighed in at 38kgs last vet visit and was told he was 'obese' :):) He is on a diet now....BUT

he was only getting 2 cups of dry food a day and some treats in his kong!

Ralphy is a very big boy, has fat on him....but is more 'stocky' than flabby.

So i agree, i think it comes down to how they 'feel' rather than how much they weigh.

Edited by Ralphy'sMum
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hehe well looking at her now.. she doesn't seem "big" or fat to me - doesnt look any chubbier since our previous vet visit when they said she was in perfect condition lol I have a biased opinion tho!

here is a pic of the princess. I was laughing when Scott told me what the vet said, said " if i feed her any less I won't be feeding her at all!" hahah (pic is a few months old)

She is a real fit little thing - will keep her exercise up and cut back even more on her food and see how she goes :-)

post-22-1122364358.jpg

post-22-1122364358.jpg

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Very hard to tell anything (other than she's cute :) ) from that picture. I'd say if the vet thinks she's overweight then try to get some weight off her. People are often used to seeing Labs carrying a lot of weight, so seeing one in good or lean condition may cause people to comment.

My Lab was a big boy and weighed 30-31kg at his ideal weight.

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Anyone have any tips to keep her royal highness a bit less chubba - vet suggested just dry food - but i know after a few days she isn't too impressed - tried that once before!

Well thats one way to make a fussy dog lose weight :)

But seriously, I'm not sure what you're feeding her, but have you ever thought that if you cut out the canned food you can spend your savings on a better quality kibble? After all, canned food is junk food for dogs, not good for them, and it costs a bomb!

I can't comment on her weight from just that picture, she doesn't look obese, but thats not to say she isn't "chubby" - I can't really tell by just a photo. Some people have a different view on fat than others, people who say she is lean may just be used to seeing obese labs, which is sad because those are the ones that suffer a mine field of health problems :)

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After all, canned food is junk food for dogs, not good for them, and it costs a bomb!

That's SO true.

In our house we call it 'Maccas'

I have 2 cans in the cupboard for emergencies.

If, once in a blue moon, we have to feed it to him, we tell him it's 'maccas' tonight!!

EFS

Edited by Ralphy'sMum
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Royal Canin labrador retriever is pretty good, I feed that to my goldie. We switched him to this (accompanying meat, vegies and raw bones, never canned food) when we were trying to get some weight off him. He has slimmed down, he certainly isnt skinny but he's not fat now either and no one has said he's overweight.

There was a huge difference in his temperament actually. He used to get Supercoat occasionally - he acted like a little brat on red cordial!!! Kaden used to turn his nose up a bit at dry food but now when I give him just meat and vegies he looks at the window and begs for some of his dry food.

So if you're still feeding dry food, I could recommend RC Lab food (we get a 3kg bag and it lasts ages, not the suggested week because we feed it with other stuff). Try replacing some of the canned food with some nice raw meaty bones.

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I thought labradors meant to weigh the same as golden retrievers or aren't they related i always got told that they were related

Blasphamy! hahah kidding

There is usually a noticable difference in size between goldens and labs - they are not the same. They have the same shape bodies and same digestive systems though, they are related I'd say but I wouldn't keep them at the same weight, I have seen some Goldens (in particular the european style of the very large cream ones) much bigger than labs. Heck I've seen other goldens that tower over my golden! It's very much to the individual dog in a breed that has become so popular that there can be a huge variation between two dogs.

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29kg hey...well thats as much as my boy weighs and he is 580mm at the withers...a bit too tall for standard. HE is in great shape, in proper working condition. My little girl who is 11months old weighs 20kg and she is little, she is only 500mm at the withers. So if I am picturing your dog right (cos its too hard to tell from the photo), I would say that she probably is overweight. I was mortified when a girl at work told me about her male pup who is the same age as my girl weighed 38kg!!!! OMG!!! She kept saying to me, he's such a big boy... well he may be big in height but he definitely has to be fat to be that heavy.

I think the weight range for males that are to standard in height should be only 32kg at a max!

HO Hum, yet another fat labrador..... GOldens are totally different dogs to labradors when it comes to weight. BUt Mel774, you are right in saying that it does come down to individual dogs.

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well he may be big in height but he definitely has to be fat to be that heavy.

I wouldn't say it's a 'definite' thing...i had a vet tell me that about my Bronx, he saw the age and weight details before he saw my dog (while me and dog were still in the waiting room) and decided he was obese and proceded to tell me his thoughts in detail. He went on to tell me that GSD's should weigh, at most, 20-25kg's at my boys age instead of the 39kgs that he actually weighted in at. My pup has always been lean and was actually a touch too ribby at the time. The vet made a point of doing the rib test etc with a disappointed sounding 'oh...he's not too bad' before we managed to leave.

ETA - I do realise my dog is of heffalump size but he's not overweight :rolleyes:

Edited by KitKat
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