Good news for obese dogs with osteoarthritis – weight loss works!
In an interesting collaborative study between the Universities of Glasgow and Utrecht, obese dogs with clinical osteoarthrtis were monitored by a number of subjective and objective testing criteria over a 14 month period. With just a 7-8 % loss of bodyweight, they noticed a dramatic improvement in lameness and mobility. You can read the article abtract by clicking on the link below:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20237844
So whilst getting those extra pounds off is never going to be easy, this study should help to motivate us as owners to address the weight issue. Our own black Lab, Jasmine, has always had a bit of a weight issue – largely because she can be fed at least an extra meal a day if one of the children doesn’t realise she has already been fed ! She also has hip osteoarthritis which occasionally requires a short course of anti-inflammatories.
‘Fat Jaz’ as she is afectionately known, stole a chocolate pizza from one of the children’s bedrooms on Christmas Day – bad idea. Not only will those extra calories not her help weight struggle but one of the ingredients in chocolate can be extremely toxic to dogs. Many dog owners are now aware of this but if you want to know more about chocolate toxicity in dogs here are a couple of links to help explain exactly why chocolate is not only bad for dogs but potentially lethal
Click the link below for a really helpful guide on chocolate toxicity. No substiute for contacting your vet but it will give you some useful guidance.
Here is another useful link:
http://www.vetrica.com/care/dog/chocolate.shtml
Anyway, you will be pleased to know that , using the above calculator, we realised Jasmine was at risk of mild toxicity. We watched her carefully and although she was a bit sick, you wouldn’t have known there was anything wrong by the next day.
Typical Labrador!