The Overweight Standard Poodle

Is my Standard Poodle Overweight?

Your Poodle is considered overweight if it has an excessive amount of body fat and weights 20 percent or more over its ideal body weight. This means that your Poodle is taking in more calories than it is expending on a daily basis.

A good way to tell if your dog is overweight is to observing and feeling its body. Your Poodle is considered at an ideal weight if its ribs can be easily felt and the waist and belly area between the ribcage and rear end are noticible but not prominent. Your Poodle should have a thin layer of fat over its ribs.

Recognizing whether your Standard Poodle is overweight and taking the steps to correct the situation is important, but preventing your Poodle from getting obese in the first place is even more important.

Overfeeding, genetic predisposition and hormonal disorders are the three general causes for obesity in dogs.

Overfeeding is the most common cause of obesity, due to the fact that we as humans, cannot resist giving in to those looks our Poodles give us when they want something that we are eating. I’m also guilty of calling my dogs inside with a treat when they don’t want to come when I want them to!

Fortunately, Poodles are not generally genetically predisposed to becoming overweight. That doesn’t mean that it can’t happen, so maintaining a healthy weight means paying closer attention to the amount of food and exercise your Poodle receives.

Diseases that cause hormonal imbalances in your Poodle such as thyroid or pituitary glad dysfunction can cause weight gain. Spaying and neutering can cause hormonal imbalances as well, which means controlling the food intake and increasing the exercise.

Contrary to popular belief, a healthy dog doesn’t have to eat everyday! The pet food industry has ingrained that notion into our heads. If you feed your dog a good nutritional food and plenty of water, it will eat when it is hungry and probably be better off than if you try and make it eat.

What do I do if my Poodle is Overweight?

The first thing you’ll want to do before putting your Poodle on any kind of diet is to visit your veterinarian. He can rule out any medical conditions such as Hypothyroidism, which is a common cause of weight gain in dogs.

Start your Poodle’s weight loss plan by recording its pre-diet weight. Next, you’ll want to reduce its daily total food intake by one-third. This includes all treats, snacks and leftovers if you plan on continuing these.

Re-weigh your Poodle after two weeks. If it has lost any weight at all, that’s great and you can keep on this same schedule. If it hasn’t lost any weight, reduce its daily intake by another one-third. Weigh your Poodle again in another two weeks and depending on the results, either keep feeding this amount or reduce the amount again by another one-third.

Keep in mind that most dogs will need to be kept on a weight reducing program for 8 – 10 months to reach goal weight.

It’s not a good idea to feed your Poodle “Reduced Calorie” or “Lite” diets. Although they are lower in fat, they make up for it with an increase in carbohydrates. The increased carbohydrates stimulates additional insulin secretion which tricks the body into storing unused calories as fat! Many dogs have actually gained weight on those so called “Reduced Calorie” or “Lite” foods.

You need to feed your Poodle a high protein meat-based diet, low in carbohydrates. Protein isn’t stored as fat. Make sure that everyone in your family is cooperating in your Poodle’s weight loss. You don’t want someone sneaking “just a little extra” here and there and ruining your efforts.

If you want to continue giving your Poodle treats, consider using low calorie dog treats like Charlee Bears and Simon & Huey treats.

Maintaining your Poodle’s Weight

To maintain your Poodle’s ideal body weight, feed a high quality, meat-based food, control the food portions, watch the amount of treats and snacks and increase the amount of exercise. Following the above steps should allow your Poodle to live a long and more enjoyable life.

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