Veterinary Service: Overweightness in Cats and Dogs
Overweightness is the most common nutritional disorder in cats and dogs. Overweightness is the accumulation of excessive amounts of adipose tissue in the body. There have been many studies done that show Overweightness can have damaging effects on the health and longevity of cats and dogs.
At Grah Kingston, we are
providing quality Veterinary Service.
We are known as one of the Best Nutrition Service in Kingston at vet clinics in
Kingston open 7 days a week.

There are a few reasons why our
companions gain their weight; it is up to us to be able to identify when it
becomes a problem. Pet Food is probably the most obvious reason. We like to
give our pet treats for coming inside, before bed, while they are in their
crate, etc. However, we tend to forget our ‘treats’ are extra calories and
empty calories with no nutritional value in them. Many pet treats also have
more calories in them then what your pet needs in total for one day. In which
case, with these additional calories is where the accumulation starts.
Pet Treats are an important part
of the training, but treats need to be limited and carefully picked for each
pet. For my dog whose breeds are prone to becoming obese, I carefully choose dog
food and pet treats by choosing lower-calorie treats and also pet treats that
beneficial to him.
By beneficial we mean helping struggle
problems such as dental and joint problems. We also know a lot of people feel
the need to give their dog’s human food; this is ‘okay’ in moderation. If you
would like to give your dog human food, stick to acceptable fruits and
vegetables which are much lower in calories.

Another reason is when your pet
is spay neuter, their metabolism changes due to the lack of estrogen and
testosterone. We always recommend you switch their food to a weight
management diet after surgery and anesthesia.
Very few spay-neuter pet can tolerate high-calorie pet foods. After switching
foods, we recommend you monitor their weight in case you need to increase or
decrease the amounts or switch to a lower calorie pet food.
Lack of exercise could also
contribute to weight gain, and we do hear this quite a bit. We usually hear
this a lot right around this time when people blame it on ‘winter.’ We do agree
winter can sometimes interfere with our outdoor activities especially when it
is icy or minus 40 outside. It is a pretty good excuse. However, there are
plenty of indoor games you can play with your dog. For cats, there are plenty
of games we can do with them too, to get them moving.
Unfortunately, there are
consequences when we overfeed our pet. The added weight on their joints is hard
on them. They can suffer from arthritis earlier than normal; in a sense, they
are aging faster. Also, some cancers are more prevalent in obese pets. Some
things may not consider are our pet being clinically depressed because they gain
weight and are unable to do some of their natural behaviors such as cats
grooming themselves or dogs exercising and running around.

These activities take a lot more
effort when they are carrying extra weight. A couple of diseases we also want
to try and avoid are diabetes and hypothyroidism. If you are concerned about
your pet’s weight, we are always here to help guide you and educate you. A good
thing to remember is, if you can see your pet’ ribs or spine, they are too lean
and if you can’t palpate their ribs or spine with a slight fat cover, then they
gain weight.
Pet owners are welcome to visit our Animal hospital in Kingston. We have the best nutritionist at an affordable veterinary clinic with years of experience who have done their jobs in the Nutrition Service incredibly.