Obesity/being overweight
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Being overweight can contribute to an animal's level of pain, as extra
weight inevitably puts extra strain on injured or diseased limbs and
back. If animals that have painful conditions are dieted, their need
for pain relief often drops as their level of pain diminishes, so it is
always worth checking that pets and horses aren't overweight. Obesity
also causes breathing difficulties and can predispose to heart and lung
disease, skin and liver conditions and hormonal illnesses.
In all species, the ribs should ideally be able to be felt easily but
not seen, and there should be a 'waist' between ribs and hips. Weight
gain also causes a change in profile, with a broader and more pendulous
abdomen, and can make it hard to feel any of an animal's bones through
his skin.
Weight loss generally requires a combination of less food and
more exercise, though the latter can be difficult in animals that
already have mobility problems. Calorie intakes normally have to be cut
by at least 1/3 before any weight loss is seen; this can be achieved by
cutting out treats and reducing the amount of normal food fed, or a low
calorie diet may be used. Exercise should ideally be taken several
times daily- most pets benefit from two or more walks daily, and even
horses lose weight faster if they are exercised more regularly and more
than once a day.
It is estimated that around 1/3 of pets are overweight- is yours?