November of last year I took in an underfed beagle/rat terrier mix that I found on my lawn. At the time he was 2 lbs more than my mini doxie of 9 lbs. He is now about 20 lbs! He looks like a huge tootsie roll. He is seriously too big for his frame.
I'm going to take him to the vet next pay check, but what I can I do get a head start? How much dry food and what are some good exercises (other than obvious walking)? He also sleeps the majority of the day/night. He does like to play with other dogs though.
All 4 of my other dogs are perfect weights and are almost pure muscle. My vet always compliments them, so he is definitely the odd one.
What ever kind of dog food you are feeding, read the directions. It will tell you how much to feed him according to his weight. I have a 70 lb German Shepherd, he gets 3 cups of dry dog food a day. No more. Since you think this little guy might be over weight, they have lite dry dog food. Might give that a shot. Walking at least 15 to 45 min a day or more.
Sounds as if he needs more exercise above all = take him for walks more often.
As to how much dry food – look on the back of the package of kibble, it gives you size charts (what your dog should weigh, not what he does) and that will tell you how much to feed.
References :
What ever kind of dog food you are feeding, read the directions. It will tell you how much to feed him according to his weight. I have a 70 lb German Shepherd, he gets 3 cups of dry dog food a day. No more. Since you think this little guy might be over weight, they have lite dry dog food. Might give that a shot. Walking at least 15 to 45 min a day or more.
References :
http://cesarmillaninc.com/newsletter/index.php
My dog has never eaten anywhere near the recommended amounts on the back of the dog food labels. Those are just guidlelines. If the pup is that huge, I would cut down his food portion by 1/4, so that he is only getting 3/4 as much food as he used to get and see how he does. Then if he still isn't losing enough weight, I would cut him down to half of what he used to eat. When my girl was going in for cruciate ligament surgery my vet said he wanted her to lose about 4lbs before surgery (and keep it off), so I cut her food by 1/3 for the month before her surgery and cut her food by 1/4 for good, but I had to get the weight off fast and she couldn't really exercise and she has kept it off.
References :