Weight Management

Obesity is the most common nutritional disorder in dogs and cats. This condition can seriously affect your pet’s quality of life. Dogs that are athletic in shape tend to live several years longer and develop orthopaedic issues (such as arthritis) several years later.

Obesity occurs when an animal consumes more energy than it needs, and excess energy is stored as fat. The number of fat cells an animal has depends on how much fat they had during their growth phase. Once the fat cells are formed, they are permanent and weight loss occurs through the reduction of fat cell size rather than fat cell number. The result is that animals with more fat cells have a greater minimum fat content than animals with fewer cells. Animals that become overweight during their growth phase have the greatest trouble controlling their weight for the remainder of their life. 

Pre-disposing factors that can lead to obesity and/or weight issues include old age, free feeding, more than 10% of diets is treats, genetics, obesity in puppies/kittens and more than one pet in household. Obesity can then lead disease such as high blood pressure, immune suppression, diabetes, hepatic lipidosis in cats, orthopaedic issues, increased risk in surgery and under anaesthesia and respiratory difficulties. 

Our clinic is compassionate and supportive when it comes to the long-term health of your pet and have several resources available to help. If you need help with weight management in your pet or just a general weight check, our team is happy to help. During these tough times with COVID19 we unfortunately can’t allow people to do weight checks, but once we as a community make it through these difficult times, we will be waiting on the other side with our doors wide open to help you! 

Remember to stay active during these restrictions. It is for the benefit of you and your pet!