Pet Obesity: Why and How Pets Become Obese

Key Points

• Nearly 50% of all indoor dogs and cats are overweight or obese.
• It is easier for domesticated animals to become obese because of a sedentary lifestyle and constant access to food.
• Certain breeds of dogs and cats are more prone to becoming obese than others because of genetic factors or having low energy levels.

Pets are one of the greatest joys a family or individual can have in their life. Dogs provide unconditional love for their owners, cats treat their human servants with admiration for tending to them, and small animals like rats and ferrets make for fun and mischievous children. Owning a pet is equivocal to raising a child. Any pet owner would agree that pets are their children and will do anything to keep them safe and healthy.

Which is why it is very unfortunate that many pets are obese. According to Forbes, 66% of American households have a pet as of 2023. And nearly 50% of those pets are obese. Parents love their pets with all their heart, so it seems inconceivable they would allow their children to become unhealthily overweight.

How are these pets getting so fat? Why are they getting fat? What can pet parents do to help them lose weight? Get ready because this article will answer all those questions and more so every animal can live their best life.

What Is Pet Obesity?

Obesity is not the same as being overweight. An obese pet is when a pet has too much body fat that it negatively impacts their overall health. The excess weight damages their energy levels, body, and general welfare, and leads to a low or poor quality of life. Obesity is described as a pet having 30% more than their ideal weight.

Now, being obese is different from being overweight. Humans and pets can live a perfectly healthy and happy life while being overweight. Being overweight is described as being approximately 10% over the ideal weight. The key difference is that the extra weight negatively affects the body.

Negative Effects of Obesity

When describing the negative effects of obesity, it means that the excess weight the pet has is harming their health in some way, shape, and form.

Clear examples of negative effects on the body due to obesity are:

• Diabetes is due to improper nutrition from glucose and glandular complications.
• Respiratory issues arise from the body needing more oxygen to move their larger bodies.
• Risks of heart disease increase because the heart is working harder to pump blood and oxygen through the heavier body. Additionally, unhealthy foods clog arteries, making it even harder to pump blood.
• Additional stress on the body from the heart leads to high blood pressure.
• Arthritis forms because the joints struggle to support the excess weight.
• Gastrointestinal issues (GI issues) because of poor diet and nutrition lead to vomiting, diarrhea, smelly poops, or colon complications.
• Combining all these complications with old age, pets are left vulnerable to cancers in their spleen, liver, or digestive tract.
• Obese pets have a lower life expectancy because of several health issues being affected at once.

How Do Pets Become Obese?

Honestly, the most common cause of obesity in pets is overfeeding. However, the problem is more than just watching portion control. Different pets require different amounts of food to fuel their bodies, and not every animal has the same nutritional needs. For example, small dogs like a cocker spaniel or chihuahua should not eat as much food as a German shepherd or Greater Swiss Mountain dog.

There are several reasons that when combined, lead to pet obesity.

Overfeeding

As we said, overfeeding is the first cause of pet obesity. This is a simple idea that is overlooked because it is easy to leave a full bowl of food for our pets to help themselves so owners can continue with their busy day. Dry food makes feeding pets easy, but that solution is also the problem.

Dogs love to engorge themselves on food, some of which are unable to stop themselves from eating. Free-feeding pets allows them to eat their fill until they become overweight and obese. This habit of overfeeding is common in lizards, small mammals, and ferrets too.

Poor Quality Diet

A poor quality diet is another component of pets becoming obese. When pets are fed an unhealthy diet, they will have smellier poops and turn more unhealthy carbs into fat. The fat is stored in the body, leading to weight problems and dental problems, (depending on the food).

A common myth that dry food is slimming for pets when it is filled with so many preservatives and carbohydrates, that continuous feedings may lead to weight gain. It is the old adage “you are what you eat.” When a pet eats a poor-quality diet with synthetic nutrients, preservatives, and artificial chemicals, then they will suffer from a poor quality of life.

Too Many Treats

Free feeding is the continuous method of gaining weight, but providing constant treats increases their weight much faster. A few treats every couple of days in the week is fine, but offering multiple treats every day is similar to eating candy and fatty snacks every day. It may taste good, but it comes at the cost of one’s health over time.

Offering treats like table scraps, jerky treats, milk bones, and other common treats found at pet stores or at home increases the pet’s chance of becoming obese.

Again, some treats sprinkled throughout the week are okay, but too many in a given day will cause problems.

Minimal Exercise

Domesticated dogs and cats are spoiled where they do not need to hunt for their food anymore. In the wild, animals are constantly on patrol or looking for food, keeping their bodies fit and slim because a slow animal without proper self-defense mechanisms is easy prey.

Modern pets lounge in beds and comfy furniture all day, napping intermittently and waking up to eat, stretch, and go back to sleep. Without a consistent level of physical activity and mental engagement, the food they constantly eat turns to fat and is stored in their body.

It is the same lesson doctors tell patients, if they overeat and do not work out, they will gain weight.

Medicine and Disease

There is a medical component to pets becoming obese. Older animals may succumb to glandular diseases like hypothyroidism (the disease where the adrenal glands do not produce enough thyroid for the body). These diseases may have side effects including weight gain which can lead to becoming overweight or obese.

Certain medications like Prednisone (a common steroid medication used to help patients with allergies or inflammation issues) have side effects linking to an increase in weight.

These are not the pet’s or the owner’s fault but may just be part of an unfortunate situation where the pet was suffering from one health issue, which connects to another.

Genetics

Unfortunately, some pets are genetically more likely to become obese than others. This could be from the pet’s parents being obese or the efficiency of the pet’s body absorbing nutrients as they age.

For example, several dog breeds like golden labs, Labrador retrievers, cocker spaniels, dachshunds, beagles, boxers, pugs, and bulldogs have a higher risk of becoming obese as they age because their bodies slow down while they continue eating the same amount.

Domestic shorthair and longhair cats are equally as likely to become obese because they live a sedentary life. Main Coons naturally have larger bodies, but they can also become obese by pet parents not recognizing if their cat is generally large or they are overweight.

How to Tell If a Pet Is Obese

Determining whether a pet is obese or overweight is an exceptionally fine line. Veterinarians are trained to understand the slight differences in pet weight, and pet scales can be found online to help detail the ideal weight for specific breeds and species. Pet parents need to communicate with pet care professionals regarding what the ideal weight for their pet should be.

Typically, an easy way to tell a pet’s weight is by looking for these signs:

Severely Underweight

• Bones and ribcages are easily seen and felt.
• There is little to no muscle mass on the body.

Underweight

• Ribs are slightly visible, and easily felt.
• Wait and abdomen are noticeably seen.

Healthy Weight

• Ribs are not seen but can be felt with petting.
• Little to no body fat deposits.
• Noticeable waistline and curve of the body from ribs to hips.

Overweight

• Ribs are not seen and are slightly difficult to feel.
• The waist is barely visible with the contour of the body being straight across.
• Sides thicker with some fat.

Obese

• Also called grossly overweight.
• No waistline at all.
• Large fat deposits across the body.
• Distending or hanging abdomen
• Ribs cannot be felt.

Helping An Obese Pet Lose Weight

It is not an easy task to help a pet lose weight. A lot of work needs to be done to gradually lose weight to better the pet’s life. Losing too much weight at once can harm the pet’s metabolism, causing other health complications. The pet gained weight over time so their body adapted to the change, so they need to lose weight at a steady pace so the body can adapt.

The following tips are a starting point to help a pet lose weight. Pet parents should speak with their veterinarians to discuss how these tips can be implemented effectively to fit their pet’s needs.

Portion Control

First, stop free feeding and schedule meals for pets. This will be exceedingly difficult since pets will whine, cry, and moan to get more food since they are used to eating more regularly. Schedule feedings in the morning and at night. Allow the pet to eat for 10 to 15 minutes, then remove the bowl when the time is up. This will teach them to eat within the time and manage the rest of the time.

Treat Management

Remember, treats can be healthy if they are nutritious. For example, blueberries, wedges of watermelon, apple slices, pear slices, and bananas are perfectly healthy treats for pets that are delicious and nutritious. Offering them small slices of these treats every few days is perfectly safe and good for their coat.

In turn, stop offering table scraps or high-fat treats like milk bones or processed jerky.

Increase Physical Activity

Motivate the animal to have more physical activity in their day. Typically, dogs should go for two or three walks a day, each for 15-30 minutes, depending on the breed and their tolerance. Older dogs or dogs with breathing issues may not be able to go for long walks. For them, try playing small games indoors on level ground to help them move their muscles. Understand the limits of what the animal is capable of and work with what they can offer.

Cats are tricky since convincing them to do anything is hard. Engage their natural instincts to hunt by playing games, getting them new toys, or hiding small pieces of food around the house to make them hunt for their snacks. Cats naturally sleep 12-16 hours a day, so enticing them to hunt while they are awake may take some trial and error.

Find Healthy Foods

The quality of food is equally as important as how much food the pet is eating. Heavily processed food contains artificial preservatives to maintain shelf life and does nothing for the pet. Providing a pet with an all-natural and healthy diet will dramatically support a pet’s weight change.

Consider it like eating fast food every day to eating a healthy diet. There is a noticeable quality difference between fast food and a home-cooked meal.

Veterinarians often agree that wet food is better for pets because it has more hydration in their meals to help with better coat care than dry food. Holistic vets praise raw food as the ultimate pet food because it mimics what they would have naturally eaten in the wild but with healthier ingredients. Human-grade pet food is equally as nutritious and comes in a variety of proteins, often fresh from farm-range animals.

Have Patience

Losing weight is a long game. It takes time, patience, and a strong conviction to know pet parents are doing what is right for their pet. The animals will cry and whine often. Dogs may try to sneak food when owners are not looking, and cats may misbehave because they are not getting what they want anymore.

There is nothing wrong with spoiling our pets occasionally, but constantly spoiling them with food leads to their current obese predicament. Pet parents have to remember that what they are doing is for their pets to live a long and healthy life.

Stop Promoting Obesity As Cute

Again, there is nothing wrong with being overweight. Animals and people can live a happy and healthy life with some extra pounds. Obesity is when the extra weight negatively affects the body, causing health problems. Social media likes to show off obese pets waddling with their chonky bodies and begging for treats. While it may seem cute and harmless on the surface, it ignores the health risks to the pet for the sake of views and likes.

It may seem fun to show off a pet being cute or doing something cute, but portraying an obese pet as something to be proud of is not tending to the pet’s needs properly. When a pet’s health is at risk, pet parents have to spend hundreds or thousands of dollars helping their pet with medical complications. Then, the cute chubby puppy that was getting likes from strangers, is now a costly responsibility with several trips to the veterinarian.

Being overweight is perfectly acceptable, but pet parents should not try to portray an obese dog as a star for having health issues.

Speak with Veterinarians or Nutritionists

Owners should speak with pet care professionals like veterinarians or animal nutritionists to help them devise the perfect feeding schedule and nutritious diet. Pet parents do not have to do this alone, nor should they feel alone in this process. Help is available as emotional support and guidance.

Pet obesity is an epidemic affecting thousands of pets across America. While it is cute to see chubby animals on social media and pet parents cannot stop themselves from spoiling their pets with constant food and treats, limits need to be placed on pets to ensure they do not become obese. Otherwise, they will greatly suffer when they get older, to the point they may be gone sooner than expected.