Obesity in
the dog
€? J. Markwell, W. van Erk*, G. D. Parkint, C. J.
Sloth#andT. Shantz-Christienson
Waltham Centre for Pet Nutrition, Waltham-on-the-Wolds,
Freeby Lane, Melton Mowbray, Leicestershire LE14 4RT, UK;
*Vrouwgelenweg 26, Hendrik Ido, Ambacht, The Nether-
lands: tAshton House Veterinary Hospital, 69 Westgate End,
*
Wakefield, West Yorkshire, UK, and Skovlunde Dyreklinik,
Skovlunde Byvej 53,2740 Skovlunde, Denmark
Journal ofSmal1 Animal Practice (1990) 31,533-537
ABSTRACT ~~
Canine obesity is a common condition in vet-
erinary practice, and has been associated with a
number of serious medical conditions likely to
reduce the length and quality of a pet’s life.
Therefore, it represents an important condition
for the veterinarian to manage. This paper reports
a study conducted by veterinarians in practice
using controlled calorie reduction for the man-
agement of overweight dogs. In the study weight
losses of 14 per cent were achieved over a 1 2
week period. Details of this study are discussed.
This paper was presented at the Waltham symposium number
13,1989
INTRODUCTION
Obesity has been defined in man as an increase
in bodyweight of 10 to 1 5 per cent above the nor-
mal weight for an individual (Craddock 1969).
While this definition could be applied to dogs,
lack of baseline data for some purebred and all
crossbred animals, makes such application diffi-
cult. An alternative approach which has been
applied to the study of obesity in man is the use
of criteria such as skin fold thickness, girth
measurements and body density. However,
when examined in relation to the dog, these
were found to be inappropriate or impractical
(Anderson 1973).
As a result of this, most studies of obesity in
dogs have relied on assessment by largely subjec-
tive criteria. In spite of this limitation a number
of interesting surveys have been conducted in
practice, and the results of these are given in
Table 1. Because these surveys were conducted
in veterinary practice the numbers may not be
representative of the population as a whole, but
it seems reasonable to conclude that between
one-quarter and one-third of dogs presented are
overweight.
Certain subpopulations of dogs appear particu-
larly likely to be overweight. Edney and Smith
(1986), in their extensive survey of dogs pre-
sented to practices, found that neutered females
were about twice as likely to be obese as entire
females, and a similar trend was evident in
neutered males. Certain breeds also appeared
particularly prone to obesity, including the
labrador retriever, Cairn, cocker spaniel, long-
haired dachshund, Shetland sheepdog, cavalier
King Charles spaniel and beagle.
An interesting, and alternative definition of
obesity, is that it is a pathological condition char-
acterised by an accumulation of fat much in
excess of that necessary for optimal body func-
tion (Mayer 1973). Implicit in this definition is
the concept of obesity as a condition detrimental
to an individual’s health. The lack of objective
studies in dogs makes a clear demonstration
of a link between obesity and disease dif-
ficult, and many more conditions have been
implicated as linked with obesity than have been
Table 1. Obesity in dogs
Percentage of dogs, presented to veterinary practice,
classified as obese
I I
Mason (1970)
Anderson (1973)
Steininger (1981)
Edney and Smith (7986)
*Includes dogs categorised as obese or gross
533
 P. J. MARKWELL AND OTHERS
demonstrated. However, canine obesity appears
to be linked with a decreased resistance to infec-
tious disease (Newberne 1966), diabetes mellitus,
articulo-locomotor problems (Edney 1974), circu-
latory problems, at least in dogs classified as
gross [Edney and Smith 1986), and increased sur-
gical risk. Other conditions may well be linked
with obesity but Edney and Smith (1986) failed
to demonstrate a relationship between obesity
and skin or reproductive problems or neoplasia.
On the basis of these studies it seems reasonable
to suggest that obesity is detrimental to the
health of the dog and may result in shortening of
the dog’s life and reduction in its quality of life.
Obesity is actually caused by the dog’s energy
intake exceeding its requirement at some stage
during its life. Positive energy balance results in
the dynamic phase of obesity, which may be fol-
lowed by the static phase, where the dog is over-
weight but no longer gaining weight. Obesity has
been associated with a wide range of endocrine
and other problems in man, although these prob-
ably account for a minority of cases. Armstrong
and others (1951) considered that the excess
weight, in at least 95 per cent of cases, was
accounted for by overeating. While similar data
do not exist for dogs it is unlikely that the pro-
portion of cases associated with endocrine causes
is greater. Therefore, the vast majority of cases of
canine obesity encountered by the veterinarian
are likely to result from overfeeding.
The frequency with which canine obesity is
observed, and its association with serious medi-
cal conditions, ensure that it is an important
challenge to the veterinarian. The fact that most
cases are associated with poor feeding practices
means that a programme of controlled calorie
reduction can be utilised for management of
overweight dogs. The objective of this paper is to
report the results obtained with such a
programme.
CLINICAL STUDY
This study was conducted by veterinarians in
three private practices and was designed to
reflect what could be achieved in practice, rather
than under laboratory conditions. The protocol
used was similar to that described by Edney
(1974) which had been used for the successful
management of obesity in a series of dogs. Each
dog was recruited for the trial based on the clini-
cians clinical examination and on their subjec-
tive assessment of the dog’s body condition. The
owner was then counselled about the problems
associated with canine obesity and their coopera-
tion sought for the trial. The importance of obser-
vance of the protocol was stressed to the owner.
The dog was then weighed and a target weight
534
was determined on an individual basis. Results
from a series of dogs targeted for bodyweight loss
of up to 16 per cent of starting weight will be
considered here.
The dogs were prescribed a low calorie, com-
plete canned food (Canine Low Calorie Diet;
Effem, Austria]. The amount of this diet allocated
represented approximately 40 per cent of the cal-
culated maintenance requirement of the dog at its
target weight. It was considered impractical to
expect owners to accurately weigh food and
therefore the amounts to be offered to the dog
were approximated to the smallest unit of one-
quarter of a 410 g can. The exception to this was
for two very small dogs, where one-third and
two-fifths of a can were recommended. Several
dogs were also offered lower amounts, but the
results for these will not be considered further in
this report.
Owners were given a letter reminding them of
the importance of obesity and of following the
regimen accurately. They were also asked to com-
plete a simple record chart detailing their dogs
daily food intake, on the basis of 0 , one-quarter,
one-half, three-quarters or all of the food offered
being eaten. They were asked to return to the
clinic every two weeks for the dog to be
reweighed, and for discussion and assessment of
the dog’s progress and the level of feeding.
Where it was not possible for the owners to
return at precisely two week intervals the
weights recorded have been approximated to the
nearest two week period.
Assessments of the rates of weight loss of
neutered and entire bitches and dogs were made
using regression analysis of individual body-
weight changes. Regression coefficients were
compared using Student’s t test.
RESULTS
Results from 34 dogs targeted for a bodyweight
loss of 16 per cent or less, and followed for up to
1 2 weeks, are presented in Table 2. This table also
gives details of the breed, age, sex and target
weights for each of the dogs. The starting weights
varied from 3.5 to 48.4 kg and the targets for
weight loss from 7.3 to 15.9 per cent of initial
bodyweight. The ages of the dogs varied from one
year to over 11 years. During the period of the
study 20 of the dogs reached or passed their target
weights, although on one occasion a small weight
gain was noted on a subsequent weighing. The
table also shows the mean and standard deviation
of the bodyweight changes of the dogs being
weighed on each occasion during the study
period. The results show a mean loss of 14 per
cent of initial weight had been achieved by the 24
dogs still being followed at the end of the study.
 Obesity in the dog

Two of the dogs which had not achieved their
target weights were followed for an extended
period. One of these dogs, for which no record of
food intake is available, achieved its target
weight loss (14.1per cent) by the 22nd week. The
other dog was followed for 15 weeks and by this
time it had only lost 9-2 per cent of its starting
weight. The owner’s record indicated that the
dog had frequently eaten less than its full
allowance of food, so a greater rate of weight loss
might have been expected to occur. However, the
owner also recorded food being stolen by the dog
on two occasions, so it is possible that the low
rate of observed weight loss could have been due
to more frequent (but unobserved) theft of food.
Table 3 presents data from the 31 dogs for
which information is available, detailing sex and
whether the animal was entire or neutered. Statis-
tical comparison of the data for the entire bitches
and the spayed bitches showed that there was no
significant difference between these two groups
in their rate of weight loss. A similar comparison
of the entire and castrated dogs again showed that
there was no significant difference between the
rates of weight loss of these two groups.
DISCUSSION
The results from this study show that substan-
tial weight reduction can be achieved in over-
weight dogs, in a practice situation, using a
programme of controlled calorie reduction. The
results also indicate that it is reasonable to

Table 2. Data from dogs in weight reduction trial

I Age of Percentage of starting weight after

i
Enti dog Start 2 4 6 8 10 12 Target
Breed Sex neut yearsrnonths wt(kg) weeks weeks weeks weeks weeks weeks weight (kg)
~~

Yorkshire terrier M E 9 3.5 91.4 91.4 82.9 3.0t

Pomeranian F E 7 3.95 89.6 81.8 80.5 75.9 75.7 72.2 3.35
Yorkshire terrier F N 7 7 5.1 96.1 94.1 92.2 86.3 86.3 4.4
Poodle F N 10 6.4 90.6 89.1 84.4 82.8 5.4
Terrier F E 9 10.6 94.3 90.6 86.8 83.0 83.0 80.2 9.0
West Highland white F N 9 10.8 95.4 93.5 91.7 91.7 88.9 88.0 9.1
Pomeranian M E 10 11.4 96.5 93.0 89.5 91.2 87.7 87.7 9.7*
Poodle F N 12 11.6 96.6 93.1 93.1 89.7 87.9 89.7 9.9*
Schnauzer M E 2 12.4 91.9 88,7 83.9 82.3 79.0 77.4 10.6
Crossbreed F N 8 6 16.7 95.8 92.8 91.6 91.6 88.0 15.0
Cocker spaniel M E 5 7 17.0 96.5 91.2 84.7 84.1 82.4 14.4
Spaniel F N NS 17.1 92.4 91.2 86.5 83.0 81.3 79.5 14.5
Americancocker F E 5 5 18-4 95.7 94.6 92.4 93.5 93.5 90.2 15.8
Border collie F N 6 19.1 96.3 96.3 90.1 86.4 17.3
Fox terrier M C 8 21.2 95.3 91.0 92.5 91.0 87.7 88.7 18.0+
Crossbreed F N 7 21.3 96.7 93.9 93.0 91.1 89.2 19.1
Rough collie M E 2 6 28.3 95.8 93.6 91.2 87.6 25.0
Collie F NS 9 28.6 98.6 92.3 88.1 83.2 24.3
Cocker spaniel M C 2 29.4 89.8 86.4 87.1 81.6 78.2 78.2 25.0
Retriever F E 7 30.8 94.2 94.5 90.9 88.3 88.0 84.4 27.0
Collie F E 6 31.2 98.7 94.9 92.9 91.7 90.4 89.1 26.5
Labrador F N 4 31.2 95.5 92.9 90.4 26.5
Labrador F N 11 6 31.3 99.0 97.4 94.9 94.9 93.9 90.4 28.2
Labrador M C 11 11 31.4 97.8 95.5 94.3 92.4 29.1
La brador F NS 1 32.8 99.1 96.6 94.8 94.5 92.1 91.2 28.2
Labrador cross M C 1 4 35.0 96.9 92.0 90.6 31.8
Dobermann F N 4 36.2 94.5 92.3 89.5 89.0 84.5 86.7 31.0
Springerspaniel M C NS 36.5 97.5 95.3 92.6 91.5 89.9 86.6 31.0
Springerspaniel M C 6 2 38.9 95.1 95.4 95.3 95.1 92.0 90.7 32.7
Collie M C 5 40.2 95.0 94.0 90.0 87.6 85.1 84.6 34.0
Retriever F N 11 41.6 98.1 96.9 93.8 92.8 90.9 90.4 35.0*
Retriever M NS 4 6 45.4 97.4 97.4 96.5 94.7 94.7 95.2 39,0*
Boxer/la brador M C 4 46.7 92.5 89.1 87.8 85.2 84.4 81.4 39.7
Retriever M E 9 48.4 98.1 96.9 95.9 92.1 92.6 91.7 41.0

n= 34.0 34.0 34.0 32.0 30.0 27.0 24.0 34.0

Mean = 25.0 95.4 92.9 90.4 89.1 87.0 86.0 21.6
SD= 12.9 2.6 3.3 4.0 4.6 4.9 5.4 11.1
I

*Food allowance reduced during study M=Male C=Castrated

tWeighing stopped after six weeks by error F=Female N=Neutered
E=Entire NS=Not stated

535
 P. J , MARKWELL AND OTHERS
Table 3. Percentage weight changes in dogs during weight reduction trial
Percentage of starting weight (fSD)
I
Weeks
on trial
Entire
females
Neutered
females
I 0 100 (5) 100 (12)
2 +
94.5 2.9 (5) 95.6f 2.2 (12)
4 91.3 f 5.0 (5) 93.6? 2.3 (12)
6 88.7+- 4.6 (5) 90.85 3.0 (11)
8 86.5f 6.4 (5) 90.25 3.3 (10)
10 86.1 f 6.2 (5) 87.4& 3.6 (10)
12 83.2? 6-6 (5) 87.3 3.5 (7)
i L u m b e r s i n brackets refer t o number of dogs weighed at given times
expect most overweight dogs to achieve on aver-
age a weight loss of approximately 14 per cent
over a 12 week period when following this regi-
men. This information is clearly of value to the
veterinarian at the beginning of the trial when
discussing the condition with the owner, and
later, when monitoring the progress of the dog.
A considerable degree of individual variation
in weight loss was expected, and has been noted
in previous trials (A. T. B. Edney, personal com-
munication). Much of this variation is likely to
be associated with differences in energy require-
ment between individuals, due to factors such as
temperament and amount of exercise. Some of
the variation was likely to have been associated
with differences in food intake, and the owners’
records, although providing very approximate
data, can be of considerable value to the veteri-
narian in this respect. Another factor to be con-
sidered, is that in a practice situation it is not
always possible to weigh a dog at the same time
of day on each occasion, although it is desirable
to do so. These factors may account not only for
some of the variation seen, but also for the level-
ling off of weight loss (or slight weight gain)
noted at various times during the trial in approxi-
mately half of the dogs, and it may explain why,
in many cases, further weight losses were noted
without reduction in the food allowance.
The owners’ records can provide valuable data
about food intake when reassessing cases and
also when considering reductions in food
allowance. In some of the cases noted here,
reduction of food offered to the dog actually
made little difference to its overall recorded
intake. Indeed in one case an increase was noted
from an average consumption of approximately
0.7 cans per day to one can per day when the
amount of food offered to the dog was reduced!
This also serves to emphasise the importance of
individual assessment of cases.
Obtaining and maintaining the owners’ interest
and enthusiasm for the trial is a key factor in suc-
cess. Owner compliance was generally good,
although an additional four dogs targeted within
536
- results grouped by sex
Entire
males
Neutered
males I
100 (6) 100 (8)
i
95.0 5 2.5 (6) 95.0 k 2.5 (8)
92.5f 2.5 (6) 92.35 3.1 (8)
88.0 f 4.6 (6) 91.3f2.7 (8)
87.5 k 3.8 (5) 89.2f4.3 (7)
85.4k 5.2 (4) 86.2f 4.4 (6)
85.6f 6.0 (3) 85.0k 4.2 (6)
I
the range considered here and fed as described,
started the trial but stopped after varying periods
of time. Three of these dogs had actually lost
weight initially before weight gain was noted,
presumably because the owners started but then
abandoned the feeding regimen. One additional
dog selected for inclusion in this trial refused to
eat the food over the first four days and was
withdrawn. One other dog was actually fed more
by the owner than the food allowance in the lat-
ter part of the trial, although it still achieved
its target weight loss. Overall this, and other
trials (A. T. B. Edney, personal communication),
indicate a number of factors that may help in
contributing to owner compliance.
These factors include a detailed initial consul-
tation, discussing the clinical problems associ-
ated with obesity and the importance of its
control. A realistic initial target, and guidance as
to the time expected to be taken in reaching that
target is also important. Too large an initial target
may lead to the owner giving up, whereas once
one target is achieved and the benefits noted,
another can always be set. The regular revisits to
the surgery are also of value, both to monitor
progress and to reinforce the importance of
adherence to the feeding regimen. Use of a sim-
ple graph to follow weight changes may be bene-
ficial, particularly in the early stages, where
changes in the dog may not be very evident. Use
of a palatable diet is also valuable, as the owner
is likely to abandon the regimen if the dog
refuses the food.
The comparison of weight losses of neutered
and entire dogs and bitches were interesting, par-
ticularly considering the much greater propensity
for neutered animals to be obese (Edney and
Smith 1986). The reasons for this increased risk
of obesity are not entirely clear, but the factors
that are involved might have been expected to
contribute to a slower rate of weight loss in the
neutered animals. Although this was not
observed in this study, further investigation in
the area of energy requirement and expenditure
of neutered dogs is clearly needed.

CONCLUSION
In summary, canine obesity is an important
clinical challenge to the veterinarian. This study
has shown that it can be managed successfully in
a practice environment by a programme of con-
trolled calorie reduction.
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