Controlling your dog’s weight can immediately help reduce the pain and swelling that accompany dog arthritis. But controlling your dog’s weight can be a challenge if you don’t have a plan.
When you reduce your dog’s weight, it reduces stress on joints and leg muscles. This help the joints regenerate and also provides increased mobility and reduced pain for your dog. It also reduces the amount of fat in the system that is now known to stir up inflammatory problems like arthritis.
Dogs are affected by the same weight-related issues that we are. And while you can make intelligent eating decisions for yourself, your dog is 100% at your mercy when it comes to what he is going to eat and how much.
Just like people, dogs are affected by these three weight-related issues:
- Diet
- Exercise
- Healthy weight loss habits
Diet
Control what your dog eats and you control how much weight he gains or loses. You want to make sure you feed foods with high nutritional content and a low amount of fat-based, high calorie fillers.
Dog Diet Tips for Dog Arthritis Sufferers
- Give your dog several small meals throughout the day instead of a large morning and evening feeding.
- Feed him meals that are high in protein and fiber so he’ll feel fuller after each meal and also get his daily nutritional requirements..
- Be aware of the calorie and fat levels in the food. You want food that is low in both but still reasonably high in protein to preserve muscle mass.
Exercise Tips for Dogs With Arthritis
Dogs are no different than us. The older they get, the less exercise they get. This is a problem, however, because older dogs are also likely to come down with dog arthritis.
Here’s how to ensure your dog gets the exercise he needs:
- Take your dog for a walk two or more times per day.
- If your dog is friendly around other dogs, take him to a dog park and let him run.
- Let your dog go swimming.
- Play fetch and other dog games.
- Dance with your dog.
Healthy Weight Loss Habits
Your dog can’t develop healthy weight loss habits, but you can do it for him. Here’s how:
- Dogs like to eat when they have other dogs or people around them. Try to feed your dog somewhere private where he is by himself.
- Stress causes dogs to eat more. You can help reduce stress by making sure your dog gets the proper amount of exercise.
- Dogs enjoy eating. They look forward to it. If you want your dog to eat less, you’re going to have to control his diet.
Although proper exercise and diet are not a cure for 'dog arthritis', your dog will be happier, more mobile, and experience less pain if you help him keep the weight off.
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