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Health of my dog
So my dog is small and fat. He was the runt in his family.
I don't want to lose him so soon. I realize he's not a baby anymore, but I don't want him to die because of his weight.
So is there anything I can do for him?
He will no longer eat people food.
I really can't go walk him in my area though.
I don't have much time to and my neighborhood is not a good place to do so (druggies, sex assaulters)
Well, I'm just afraid, you know?
So in my free time (which is about 2 hours) Should I play with him (with balls/toys)? Would that even help? Run around the yard with him or something?
Is there anything good for him to eat?
He eats cat food (he grew up eating it before we got him, we tried dog food.. he didn't eat it)
I just want him to be himself again. All happy and hyper. His weight is holding him back.
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Wow. First of all, kudos for choosing health over "omgcute!" So many people want their dogs to be cute, and somehow fat=cute in animals in our society.
First of all, this is going to sound mean, but take the food up. Unless he's a toy breed puppy, he can survive not eating a day. The next day, give him some wet dog food. If he eats, praise him like he saved your life. (If not, pick it up after 15 minutes. Put it down like 3 hours later. He'll eat eventually. when he does, praise him like he saved your life)
When he's eating the wet food regularly, mix in high quality dry food. High quality foods are slightly more expensive, but they contain less fillers, and that means more nutrients, so he'll eat less to get what he needs. Innova is a wonderful food, almost perfect, but Natural Balance is also wonderful, and it's cheap and more readily available. That's what I feed my dog. Now, ask your vet how much of the dry food you should be feeding your pup. Explain that you're trying to help him lose weight. Don't be surprised if the number is very low. Dogs need a lot less than we think. My heeler mix, at 56 lbs, eats two cups, two and a half on a very active day.
As for excersise, playing ball is a wonderful activity! It's a blast for him, and you'll have fun as well, knowing your pup is having fun and losing weight. Also, try out a laser. Some dogs (toy breeds and terriers, I've noticed, but probably others) LOVE to chase lasers. The good thing about this is that you can play with him while you're doing homework. Write with one hand and laser with the other :) Or when you're watching TV or playing on the internet, you can just wave the light around. Another fun thing is if you ever get a chance to take him to a lake or river or pond or something, you can let him swim! That's always fun. The ultimate fun play time, though, is playing with other dogs. Introduce them properly, and then if they like each other, let them loose in the backyard. Dogs can play with each other like you wouldn't believe. It's crazy! They'll go on for hours!
Sorry this is so long. :P
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Stop feeding your dog cat food.
It's not good for him. Cat food is much higher in protein than dog food, and it will cause bladder stones in dogs. Another side effect of a dog eating cat food is weight gain.
Bite the bullet and take away the cat food. Get a good quality dog food and offer it to him. If he doesn't eat it, just give him water until he eats the dog food. When he gets hungry enough, he will eventually eat the dog food. Don't feel sorry for him and give in, this is for his own good. If you start to worry, call your vet.
As far as exercise, if he's a small dog, playing fetch and running in the yard should be fine, if done regularly. But the most important thing is to get him off of that cat food, asap.
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