My overweight dogs won't eat their new diet food. Is that okay?

Toki is used to getting extra food, so of course he's hungry when he's getting the correct amount of food. It's good for him to lose weight and not be overweight; being overweight leads to additional health problems. Don't feel guilty, you are doing the best thing for him!

Although pictures can be deceiving,they do not seem to be underweight, ribs or spine are not visible. Dogs generally will not starve themselves unless unwell and 5-7days of fasting is generally accepted as safe. I recommend offering food for 20mibs, 4times a day initially but variety is your enemy here. I recommend choosing a high quality, tasty complete formula and use this for training treats also

It sounds like ZZ has you very well trained! If he is overweight he is likely getting plenty of calories even if he doesn't seem to like what you offer him. You may need to tolerate a few days of him not eating, but I would go back to the original kibble and stick with it so that he will learn to eat what you offer him.

I would recommend converting them to a specialist weight loss diet (many 'light' diets are designed to prevent weight gain and maintain a target weight rather than actually shed the excess). My preferred option is the hills metabolic range which provides guidelines for feeding to target weight (for dogs more than 30% overweight) and also on adjusting feed volumes if combining the wet and dry food

Hello. Thank you for using PetCoach. Great question! I don't know what this "man's" background is but I don't suggest you take advice from someone who likely knows nothing about nutrition in dogs. This includes many pet stores employees, breeders and people that do internet research from sources with no factual background. Dry food is just fine for dogs and you don't have to use an expensive food. Just don't use a super cheap food (like Ol' Roy). If you are looking for a good dry food that is reasonably priced then I would use Purina One. I would use a weight control diet (it is fine to feed that to both dogs) and be sure you are feeding the correct amount based on their IDEAL weight (not the current weight). You really need to get some weight off the big dog. Minimize treats and it is suggested you not feed any people food when trying to get a dog to lose weight. This is going to be very bad for his joints as he gets older. ( https://www.purinaone.com/dogs/products/dry-dog-food/smartblend-healthy-weight ) Hope this helps. Best wishes.

You can keep him on his regular diet, just feed less of it and increase his activity. The general guideline is 1 cup of dry food per 30lbs of body weight. You can divide it into 2 or 3 meals. Limit treats and do not offer any table food. If he continues to gain, consider an exam with your veterinarian. Blood work may diagnose endocrine disorders such as hypothyroidism which can cause weight gain.

Hello. This is a great question! She should be eating about 500 -550 calories PER DAY which includes all food and treats. She can eat any food as long as she stays inside that calorie window. If you feed her a lower calorie diet then she will get to eat more food and be less hungry. Purina ProPlan Weight Management Dry Food is 337 calories per cup so if you feed her this food she can eat 1.5 cups per day with a little left over for a treat or two. http://www.petsmart.com/dog/food/dry-food/purina-pro-plan-weight-management-formula-adult-dog-food-5148013.html?gclid=CKrvp4aRkdQCFZBgfgodPccMzA If you don't like this food you can use any diet. Just check the bag, it will tell you how many calories per cup. Take the 525 (using the middle of her calorie range) and divide it by the number of calories in each cup of food and that will tell you how many cups of that food she can have PER DAY. Example as above 525 / 337 = 1.55 cups I hope this helps. Best wishes. Dr. Amber