We often show our pets how much we love them with extra treats and table scraps, not realizing that their weight is becoming a problem until it’s too late and a twenty-pound cat (who should only weigh 14 lbs), is staring back at us with forlorn eyes and arthritis.
Too much love can lead to excessive weight gain and health problems. The most loved dogs and cats often suffer from diabetes, heart, and joint problems due to excessive weight gain.
[note icon=”yes”]This post is sponsored by Hills Pet in coordination with BlogPaws. We received payment for this post, but Petsweekly only shares information we believe is valuable to our readers. [/note]So we withhold treats, and then we think they don’t understand how much we love them. The last thing we want is for our pets to feel like they are being punished merely for withholding treats!
It’s time to learn new ways of love. There are many methods available to communicate with our pets, including the simple solution of finding healthy new treats. It doesn’t have to be so difficult…
Reward behavior with Healthy Treats
If you have a dog or cat who is motivated by treats, you don’t have to stop feeding them treats. Just choose beneficial treats. Check out Hill’s® Prescription Diet® Canine Metabolic Advanced Weight Solution treats.
They also have a line of food that your dogs and cats will love, that actually assist your pet in losing weight – even while eating.
Learn new communication skills
Your dogs and cats want to please you and verbal praise can go a long way towards showing love. Your pets may also enjoy a new sport, such as herding or earthdog sports. You may have a Frisbee star in the family! Cats and dog can participate in agility and it’s not only healthy, it’s a great way to bond and really show your love.
Other things you can do to help your pets lose weight without reducing their food intake is:
Read food labels
Be aware of what is going into your pets body! Here is a handy pocket chart we put together to help you do this. Click on it for the full pdf.
Exercise more
This is one of the single most important things you can do to socialize your pet, expose them to new stimuli, help them lose weight, and most importantly – show them you love them.
Monitor your pets weight
Think about picking up a device that shows your pets activity. There are many great gadgets that helps you track your pet’s activity levels, sleeping and eating habits to create a detailed health profile. Many also allow you to transmit records of your pet’s progress to your veterinarian.
BONUS: TELL A FRIEND PROGRAM
We want to help you pay it forward through the Tell-a-Friend Program. The Hill’s® Prescription Diet® Metabolic Advanced Weight Solution $25 Wellness Visit Rebates is a new program that can help you get your pets on the right track for health. Share it with your friends and all will receive valuable $25 rebate for Hill’s® Prescription Diet® Metabolic. Instructions are on the rebate. In addition, the lucky friends will receive a valuable $25 rebate for Hill’s® Prescription Diet® Metabolic Advanced Weight Solution food.