Night Elf Posted February 11, 2017 Share Posted February 11, 2017 My dachshund is overweight. The vet recommended reducing his food and padding his meal with green beans. So a half cup of green beans is about 30 calories. He's a small dog. I normally feed him 1/4 th cup of his dog food twice a day. So if I half that to 1/8 th of a cup of crunchies, can I give him 1/2 cup of green beans or is that too much? The vet didn't give me exact details so I'm trying to guess. He gained 1.5 lbs. in two months. That's my fault, obviously. I need him to lose all of that. Too much weight is bad for his back. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pawz4me Posted February 11, 2017 Share Posted February 11, 2017 It should be fine. Green beans are extremely low calorie. If you're using canned make sure you get the kind w/o added sodium. Of course also watch the treat intake. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Night Elf Posted February 11, 2017 Author Share Posted February 11, 2017 Thank you! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ktgrok Posted February 12, 2017 Share Posted February 12, 2017 I would NOT cut his kibble that much that fast. reduce by much less or you'll mess with his metabolism. Better yet, work changing him to a lower calorie dog food. If you just cut back the regular dog food he'll get less calories, but also be at risk of not getting all the nutrients he needs. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StephanieZ Posted February 12, 2017 Share Posted February 12, 2017 Yep, green beans are magic diet wonders for dogs (and cats!!! Our fat cat loves them!) (Dh is a vet. The green bean method is a tried and true and very healthy method for dogs, and also works for cats who will tolerate them.) I'd try reducing his kibble (high quality!) by 1/3 and adding in the beans. You should be able to get the calories from the dog food bag, and just aim to be cutting his calories by, say 1/4 for now. Do that for a month, then weigh your dog and see if you're making progress. If you're making progress, keep going until you get to the goal weight. If you don't make headway with that level of reduction, then reduce a little more . . . etc. (Many vets will gladly allow you stop by for a no-charge weight check and/or "body condition check" by the DR or a nurse. They'll also usually gladly coach you on amounts of the food/beans/etc.) Definitely use no-salt canned beans or frozen beans. Our fat cat loves frozen beans. Popsicle treats, lol. Nice and crunchy! (You can thaw them if your pet prefers, but many dogs like the crunchy frozen ones.) The green beans give lots of good nutrition to dogs -- like they do for us humans (not for cats so much, as cats are biologically carnivores, whereas dogs are omnivores like us) and also lots of bulk and fiber to fill them up so they don't get so stressed out about being hungry (and drive you nuts about it). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Night Elf Posted February 12, 2017 Author Share Posted February 12, 2017 We use A Taste of the Wild per my vet's recommendation. I'd rather not try to change foods. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sarahbobeara Posted February 12, 2017 Share Posted February 12, 2017 Our chiweenie is about 4 years old but we've had to take a few pounds off him here and there. We cut back on kibble a tiny bit and he gets whatever veggies hit the ground (or that I'm preparing). Lettuce, raw carrots, frozen broccoli florets, frozen peas. The vet also suggested making him work harder for treats, like doing 3 or 4 tricks instead of a 1 trick to 1 treat ratio. He will work very hard to earn that carrot or pea. I've even sliced up a baby carrot for training purposes. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ktgrok Posted February 12, 2017 Share Posted February 12, 2017 We use A Taste of the Wild per my vet's recommendation. I'd rather not try to change foods. Maybe look at the various formulas to see if some are lower calorie than the others? But cutting in half is very drastic and not a great idea...just like you wouldn't cut your own intake in half suddenly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Selkie Posted February 12, 2017 Share Posted February 12, 2017 Maybe look at the various formulas to see if some are lower calorie than the others? But cutting in half is very drastic and not a great idea...just like you wouldn't cut your own intake in half suddenly. :iagree: Why not talk to the vet again and get specific instructions on type and quantity of food and how much exercise he needs, instead of trying to guess? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pawz4me Posted February 12, 2017 Share Posted February 12, 2017 Maybe look at the various formulas to see if some are lower calorie than the others? But cutting in half is very drastic and not a great idea...just like you wouldn't cut your own intake in half suddenly. Yes and no. If the dog were being fed just a wee bit over the amount needed to maintain weight then a reduction by half would be drastic. But if he's being fed an amount that's leading to relatively fast weight gain then a reduction by half may not be drastic at all. It's sort of like if I were eating 3000 calories a day and cut my intake to 1500 that sounds pretty dramatic. But in truth 1500-1650 is a maintenance amount for me, so not dramatic at all. My Shih Tzu doesn't eat kibble but if he did one fourth a cup twice a day of a "premium" food would be plenty for him. Probably too much. A few years ago when he was eating kibble he maintained right around 15 pounds on one third of a cup per day. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Night Elf Posted February 12, 2017 Author Share Posted February 12, 2017 Maybe look at the various formulas to see if some are lower calorie than the others? But cutting in half is very drastic and not a great idea...just like you wouldn't cut your own intake in half suddenly. Don't worry, I didn't actually do it. I didn't have the heart. Instead of filling it to the top, I just lowered it a little so I could see the sides of the cup. However, I have to stop all snacks I used to give him and lower his treats to two small ones per day. He gets a hollow bone with peanut butter and I greatly reduced the amount I put in there. He also gets one small milk bone to get him back into the bedroom at bed time. He should lose weight that way. Stopping the all day snacking alone should help. I used to give him a bite or two of everything I ate. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Night Elf Posted February 12, 2017 Author Share Posted February 12, 2017 Yes and no. If the dog were being fed just a wee bit over the amount needed to maintain weight then a reduction by half would be drastic. But if he's being fed an amount that's leading to relatively fast weight gain then a reduction by half may not be drastic at all. It's sort of like if I were eating 3000 calories a day and cut my intake to 1500 that sounds pretty dramatic. But in truth 1500-1650 is a maintenance amount for me, so not dramatic at all. My Shih Tzu doesn't eat kibble but if he did one fourth a cup twice a day of a "premium" food would be plenty for him. Probably too much. A few years ago when he was eating kibble he maintained right around 15 pounds on one third of a cup per day. My dachshund is supposed to weigh 15 lbs. I feed him a total of 1/2 cup a day per my vet's instructions and that seems a good amount for him. If I keep it at that. As I said in my previous post, I was giving him bites of food all day so it's possible I was feeding him twice as much as he was supposed to be eating. Also, I told DH we need to be careful of how much we give him. The crunchies should fill the cup, when he's on full ration that is, not mound up. We're not consistent. We will try to be better once we get him back down to 15 - 16 range. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ktgrok Posted February 13, 2017 Share Posted February 13, 2017 Don't worry, I didn't actually do it. I didn't have the heart. Instead of filling it to the top, I just lowered it a little so I could see the sides of the cup. However, I have to stop all snacks I used to give him and lower his treats to two small ones per day. He gets a hollow bone with peanut butter and I greatly reduced the amount I put in there. He also gets one small milk bone to get him back into the bedroom at bed time. He should lose weight that way. Stopping the all day snacking alone should help. I used to give him a bite or two of everything I ate. Something I used to advise people to put out in the morning, in a baggie, all the treats for the day. (or a bowl, or whatever). That way you have a visual of how much you have given, how much is left, etc. And if more than one person is giving the dog treats this way you don't accidentally double feed. Everyone gives treats out of the bowl/bag. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ktgrok Posted February 13, 2017 Share Posted February 13, 2017 My dachshund is supposed to weigh 15 lbs. I feed him a total of 1/2 cup a day per my vet's instructions and that seems a good amount for him. If I keep it at that. As I said in my previous post, I was giving him bites of food all day so it's possible I was feeding him twice as much as he was supposed to be eating. Also, I told DH we need to be careful of how much we give him. The crunchies should fill the cup, when he's on full ration that is, not mound up. We're not consistent. We will try to be better once we get him back down to 15 - 16 range. You could pre measure the food and put it in snack size baggies so hubby just has to dump a baggie into the food bowl, rather than measure and give too much. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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