04/22/2025
❗️Pet Health Tip: Pet Obesity❗️
The most recent survey from The Association for Pet Obesity Prevention in 2022 showed 59% of dog and 61% of cats are overweight or obese.
Overweight pets can be at risk for serious health problems.
Obesity not only affects their quality of life but can lead to things like
⚠️ Joint Strain/injuries: obese pets have more weight on joints. This makes them more likely to suffer from joint strains, sprains, and ruptures. Achy joints then have more weight to carry, which compounds the problem. Further, adipocytes (I.e., fat cells) are pro-inflammatory; this is another mechanism whereby these animals are predisposed to osteoarthritis.
⚠️Heart problems: Obesity increases the risk of heart disease, which can become a life-threatening emergency.
⚠️ Diabetes: Obesity increases the risk of developing diabetes. Just like in humans, this is a chronic disease that can be difficult to treat, requires ongoing management, and can lead to serious complications if not treated properly.
Causes:
🔺Most cases of obesity are caused by diet. This is an enormous topic, which we’ll try to cover on another day.
🔺Low exercise can also be a contributing factor.
🔺In some cases, there is underlying pathology such as hypothyroidism or Cushing disease; in these cases, obesity may be the first symptom of a more serious underlying condition.
‘Body condition scoring’ is a system used to evaluate your pets body condition using a numerical score from 1-9, with 1 being too thin and 9 being obese. A score of 5 is the ideal marker. Check out this chart by Purina for reference. During your pet’s visit we try to determine your pet’s current BCS and recommend any changes if needed.
Thanks for taking the time to learn more about your pets health.
☎️Call us today to Schedule an appointment
If you’re concerned about your pets weight.
