Posts tagged "PetObesity"

Things are looking up for Taz! Australian scientists have discovered a colony of Tasmanian devils with an apparent immunity to the cancer that has severely reduced the population of the furry little animals. Currently an endangered species, Tasmanian devils spread the deadly cancer when they bite each other's faces. Hopefully this colony will give researchers answers on how to keep their brothers and sisters healthy.

Move over, Ken. Barbie's got a new love in her life. Russ is unveiling the Barbie Pet plush collection, which will include three pets: Sequin, a white poodle; Blissa, a kitten; and Lacey, a chihuahua puppy. Each pet has a story explaining its friendship with Barbie.

Is your Fido a fatty? Obesity isn't just a problem for humans. Pet obesity in the United States is growing. While that pun is intended, the situation is far from funny; obesity is now the single biggest pet health threat in the U.S. It's unlikely to turn around anytime soon, either, since owners of larger dogs like Labradors and golden retrievers tend to believe their pets are a normal weight when, actually, they're fatty boombalatties.

This dog's a lifesaver. A boy in Connecticut suffers from epilepsy, but thanks to his best friend -- a specially trained dog named Alfie -- his seizures can be predicted and more safely managed. Tonic has the scoop on this touching story.

Wherein I try to get my pets to a healthy cat weight.

After finally accepting the fact that Tino and DeeDee must lose weight, I made an appointment with the obeasts' vet for advice on a game plan.

It had been a little over a year since the two had officially been weighed and I knew both had added on some chub. It wasn't until they got on the scale that it became obvious just how much had been added to their heft. DeeDee weighed in at over 19 pounds -- a pound or two up from last year. Tino, meanwhile, was over 18 pounds -- less than DeeDee, but considering he was 14 pounds just last year, that meant he'd put on about 30% of his body weight. Ruh-roh!

In medical terms: "That's insane," according to my vet.

Game Plan
I was asked, how much was I feeding them? Brace yourself. They split a can of wet food at night, and then have a "couple of scoops" of dry stuff throughout the day. My vet asked me how big a scoop was, then winced when I held up a one-cup measure. I was then informed that DeeDee and Tino should only be getting the canned food plus a 1/4 cup of dry food each. Oops!

I mentioned that Tino had been drinking more water than usual, so the vet tested his blood sugar, as weight gain and water drinking can be a sign of diabetes. Sure enough, his sugar was off the charts, meaning not only does Tino need to be on a diet, but he needs insulin injections and urine monitoring. Fun.

With this diagnosis, she recommended that the cats be switched to only wet food (a suggestion many of you made in the comments last week).

Health Stats
Diabetes is far from the only risk for fat cats. Veterinary researchers at Cornell University found that obese cats are also more likely to suffer from lameness due to arthritis or muscle injuries and non-allergic skin conditions. Read: Two things I'll have to be on the lookout for.

Even scarier? The report also found that fat cats are "twice as likely to die in middle age, which for cats is 6 to 12 years." Tino and DeeDee just turned 10, so they really have to pull it together! Diet starts today.