Good dogs deserve treats.
But veterinarians across the country say all those yummy
rewards along with a lack of exercise could be causing
an epidemic of pet obesity.
It's definitely been rising in the recent years
and there's what's called a normalization of excess weight.
It's happening in people and in pets
that because it's becoming more and more common for pets
to have the excess weight, we're kind of getting this bias
of what we consider normal
for what's the healthy weight of the pet.
Dr. Emi Saito says in 2017, one out of every three pets
that came into her hospitals were considered
overweight or obese.
Jeff Cornell says he had no idea his dog Callie
was considered to be too heavy.
We were kind of mortified when we found out our groomer
who was her breeder told us that she was borderline obese
when we picked her up.
And we were horrified and traumatized.
We were like how do we do this? How did this happen?
She's still a puppy.
Michelle Slater-Young says she too
was concerned when she found out her dog
Bernie Sanders was overweight.
She said he seemed skinny when she rescued him
and she may have been too generous with treats in an effort
to comfort him.
He was missing half of his fur when I adopted him
so I also thought he was a lot skinnier than the he really
was just because he didn't have fluffy fur
to make him look bigger.
So basically when he gained weight, how he looked different
was that I couldn't feel his ribs like they gained weight
in their mid area and you can always kind of tell
by feeling their abdomen, at least that's what I thought.
Dr. Saito gas advice for how to tell if your pet
is gaining too much weight for its body type.
Something else owners can do is they could just put
their hands around their pet's chest and you want to be able
to feel their rib without trying too hard.
You don't wanna be able to see the ribs
but you wanna be able to feel them.
So if as a pet owner you're starting to not be able to feel
them because you have to feel like you have to dig
a little bit to find the ribs, or you're just not seeing
that waistline when you're looking down on your pet.
Chances are good that your pet
is starting to put on some excess weight.
She also says that even treats that seem small
can be high in calories that can really add up
when it comes to small pets.
She advises increasing your pet's physical activity
and avoid getting them into habits where they expect food.
The big thing too also not getting your pet in that habit
that if I begin I get food or I get treats
because that's a hard habit to break.
So when you need to have that pet lose weight
it's harder for the pet to understand
why are you not giving me as much rewards.
Owners who are trying to improve their pet's
health say it's been an adjustment and some report
that putting their animals on a diet has been challenging.
A couple nights ago I heard a big bang in the kitchen
and I got up at 2:00 a.m. and my cat had somehow
found a way to get into the cupboard and had knocked
a package of turkey jerky out of the cupboard
and was trying to gnaw into the plastic.
There were puncture marks in the plastic.
I've never seen him like this.
But other pet owners have found other ways
to treat their pets without food.
I think I did what a lot of pet owners do
that I kind of equate love with giving him treats
and so I wanted to feed him and give him treats
and show him I love him.
So I stopped doing that and instead showing love to him
in other ways like playing with him and taking him for walks
and snuggling him, things like that.
Like I did before.
After all, giving your pet the best
possible care is the ultimate expression of love.
For InsideEdition.com, I'm Mara Montalbano.