My inactive Labrador is overweight. How much food should I cut?

First of all i would not recommend soaking any dog food in water. if she is just slightly overweight you can put her on an over the counter reduced calorie dry food, you can chose the same brand you are using at the moment or any other brand that you find in your pet shop. if she is more than a little bit overweight then she will need a prescription low calorie food from your vet. for each food the quantity will be different but it will be written on the food label with clear instructions.

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.

It depends on what food you are feeding, since the amount of calories per cup can vary tremendously from one brand or formula to another. If Zoey is a bit overweight, I would recommend feeding a weight control formula made by a good quality brand like Royal Canin or Purina ProPlan. These foods are designed to help with weight loss, and will have instructions on the bag for how much to feed each day based on your dog's target weight.

I think cutting the food in half may be a bit drastic at first. You don't want the weight loss to happen too quickly. I suggest you start by cutting the food by 25%. So, give her 3/4 cup twice a day and then weigh her after 4-6 weeks to see if you are making any progress. Keep in mind that any treats will increase her caloric intake so be careful and don't give her too much (if any). This is where I would start. Hope this helps. Best wishes!

Hello. In bad weather, just do the best you can. Walking in the snow actually burns quite a few more calories then an easy stroll in the grass. Even just walking around the house or up & down stairs is great exercise ( if Simba has no problems with his hips ). Just like in people, it is not what you eat, but how much. You can easily control how much he eats, but you can also switch him to a weight control diet. There are many available, some you can just pick up, others like Hills w/d or r/d require a prescription from your veterinarian. Cut out all treats & table scraps & if Simba begs for treats you can give him a couple of baby carrots, or a few tablespoons of salt free canned green beans. With time, the weight should come off. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

Figuring conservatively, if we say that his target weight is about 30 kg and we want to feed 3% of that daily, this works out to 900 total grams of food per day. So you may want to increase to 300 grams, three times daily for now. Then weigh him in 30 days to see if you're making progress, and adjust accordingly.

Hi there and thanks for posting on Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! 3/8 of a cup twice daily for a growing labrador sounds a little under the calories he should be getting daily. He should be consuming closer to 2 cups of the royal canin maxi food daily. Chicken stew and rice are not good sources of nutrients for a growing dog and should not replace eating his regular puppy food and should be discontinued. Just feeding more of his puppy food will help him grow and put on healthy weight. Thanks again for posting!