Okay, so I took Jackal to get his rabies vaccine (it wasn't due until May, but he got in a scuffle with a raccoon so I decided to go ahead and get it, he's fine by the way) and they weighed him.... SIXTY THREE pounds!!!!! What the heck?? I shouldn't make excuses, but I'm going to anyway... with Storm being sick and me never sleeping because of it, moving, building the house, me getting injured, the horrible winter weather, etc. I just haven't been doing much exercise with him, but I didn't realize it was that bad. The vet said on his records that he was 45 pounds for a long time, so he's almost twenty pounds overweight. That's like a human being 200 pounds over weight.. every pound overweight on our dogs is like ten pounds on us. I feel awful for letting his weight get so out of control. :( I guess I was as blind to his weight gain as I was to Storm's aging...
I've always given my dogs pieces of what I'm eating (if it's not dangerous or unhealthy), but my grandmother has been giving him snacks (even though I told her not to... oh and it's cat food of all things grr) and he also cleans up the dog food my mom's dog leaves behind (he scatters his food all over the floor so it gets under and behind things and Jackal can find anything), so he's been getting considerably more calories than he's supposed to. :(
So as of right now Jackal gets ZERO snacks, treats or human food. All he gets is his raw diet. And we have to start walking every single day again... the vet said no chasing things, jumping, etc. or he could blow out his knee, so right now it's very short walks. I'm actually thinking of doing the Couch to 5k with him since I'm around ten to fifteen pounds overweight myself, but I'll see what he's up to. I don't want to overdo it with the warmer weather coming.
Anyway I'll keep you guys updated on how his (or our) weight loss goes. I'll post pictures of him on here to keep my motivation up. :)
P.S. This was his first time visiting our new vet and he liked him. He found all of Jackal's itchy, ticklish spots hehe. :D
Uh oh. It's going to be tough. Just remember that he actually will be hungry and not just faking it. Don't want to lose that weight too fast. Hopefully the good weather will promote healthy exercise as well.
ReplyDeleteSounds like a great vet.
Mango Momma
I've had that happen. We just feed a tiny bit more dog food with each meal and next thing we know Scrappy is a blimp. I wish losing the weight went as fast as gaining it. Good luck.
ReplyDeleteGood luck with the diet! I should also go on one :P But it's not nice to do it alone. I need someone who would come to walk with me. Preferably some furry one xD
ReplyDelete-Lilli-
I had a different parent-related problem. When my dad died, I got his dog all to myself. I kept feeding her the same as he fed her. She has a very furry coat, so it is hard to see how much she weighs.
ReplyDeleteWhen I took her to the vet for shots, she had gone from 39 pounds to 31 pounds! Turns out my dad was giving her a lot of snacks! I guess the snacks can really add up!
The vet was pleased with her weight and told me what to feed her to maintain it. We have had no surprises since.
Thanks for the comments guys.
ReplyDeleteMM, don't worry I won't starve him. He has a really good way of telling me if I'm not feeding him enough.... he regurgitates empty tummy bile... yeah gross, but effective lol. Right now I'm not cutting back his breakfast and supper, I'm just taking everything out from in between. It kills me. That face he give me when I'm having my supper.... so... hard... to... say... no...!!
NM, it is so easy to overfeed!! I never had a problem with Storm because she had an amazing metabolism, but with Jackal's Beagle genes it's a very fine balancing act. I'd done great with it for most of his life, but as things got more stressful (and sleepless) with Storm's declining health I just let it all go. I hate that poor Jackal suffered the ill effects of my neglect, but I hope I can fix it before it causes any permanent damage. He has all of my attention now. :)
Lilli, it is no fun at all losing weight alone!! That's why I'm trying to convince my parents and hubby to join me with Jackal's walks hehe.
Judi, that's crazy that in between snack and treats can make such a huge difference but it really can!! I'm glad she's at a good weight though. :) I know Jackal really packed on the pounds when we moved here and the only thing that really changed was the cat and dog food he was snitching at my parents and grandparents houses. Well and I was probably overindulging him with meal handouts too because I was feeling sorry for Storm as she got sick.
I'll try to update at least once a week with our progress. Thanks for reading and commenting guys. You're all great. :D
You can do it!!! My Aussie/Lab mix got almost that much overweight due to being on steroids when we lived in Alabama (allergies). When we got to Korea, my vet woke me up to it (funny how when you see someone every day, you don't notice things sometimes!) - and we went on a diet/exercise regime. He did GREAT and took all the weight off in about a year's time. It was hard work - but a great payoff! Wishing Jackal similar success!!!
ReplyDeleteKZK
Thanks for the encouragement KZK! I knew Jackal was getting a bit chubby, but I didn't realize how obese he actually was (is) until I took him in! My jaw almost hit the floor! I know a big part of it is because I was spoiling Storm because I knew I didn't have much longer with her and I was giving him the same treats to keep it fair, but I shouldn't have done that. I've just been very out of it for a long time now because of everything with her that I didn't realize what was going on. It's not too late though. I can get him back in shape and myself too hehe. :)
ReplyDelete