Forums
New posts
Search forums
What's new
New posts
New profile posts
Latest activity
Internet Search
Members
Current visitors
New profile posts
Search profile posts
Log in
Register
What's new
Search
Search
Search titles only
By:
New posts
Search forums
Menu
Log in
Register
Install the app
Install
Forums
General Discussions
The Watercooler
Is Dog Whisperer methods too harsh?
JavaScript is disabled. For a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser before proceeding.
You are using an out of date browser. It may not display this or other websites correctly.
You should upgrade or use an
alternative browser
.
Reply to thread
Message
<blockquote data-quote="Marguerite" data-source="post: 296981" data-attributes="member: 1991"><p>MWM, on the subject of dogs needing to lose weight:</p><p></p><p>We pet-sit for friends nearby and I CAN'T get through to them that their animals need to be separated to eat. They get on OK, they're good friends, but the dog is getting fat and the cat is getting thin. They feed the dog cat food (because they say for some mysterious reason, she prefers it). And I keep getting told, "That cat - she is a glutton! She heads for her food and gets stuck in, she eats far too much. It's amazing how quickly she goes through her food. Never leaves a scrap."</p><p></p><p>I tried to say, "Your dog is getting fat because she eats the cat's food."</p><p>I got told, "The dog can't eat the cat's food because the cat always finishes it all."</p><p></p><p>But I've stayed to watch - the cat's food is always finished, sure - because THE DOG pushes the cat aside and finishes off the cat's food, after her own. And of course, because the cat is eating pure protein, the dog has developed a taste for the pure protein food too and isn't eating the more omnivorous diet a dog should have.</p><p></p><p>I can't convince them. And so the cat gets thinner and looks malnourished, while the dog is increasingly pudgy and wheezes around everywhere.</p><p></p><p>What we do when we pet-sit - we tag-team. We keep the dog outside and feed the cat first. While the dog is making a fuss outside the cat doesn't eat well so we take the dog for a LOOOONG walk. Then when we get back - I keep the dog outside, go inside to see how the cat is going, then any food left in the cat's bowl gets put back in the fridge. Often I found that the cat had only eaten less than half the food I put out for her. Then I feed the dog in the dog's bowl. I've never seen the cat eat any of the dog's food. And I do stay and watch.</p><p>We often take the dog back to our place - at which time I put the cat's food back out for it.</p><p></p><p>There have been a few times when the dog has rushed in and I couldn't stop her, and if there is any food in the cat's bowl, the dog wolfs it all down really quickly and licks it all clean.</p><p></p><p>The owners just don't believe me; I can't get through. I try to explain and all I get is, "Yep. That cat sure eats a lot for a cat, she's a pig."</p><p></p><p>last time we were pet-sitting, we had the animals for a week and the owners hadn't left enough food. So I went to the store and bought DOG food for the dog and made sure she had nothing else to eat. And - she liked it!</p><p></p><p>I watch the dog eat and she finishes her portion off really fast, then looks up for more. She's an appealing thing, has a pretty face and big eyes so I suspect she's been playing on her owners to spoil her. But they still insist on feeding both animals side by side in the kitchen at the same time, then they walk out of the room. They come back in and find that no matter how much food tey have put down for the cat, it still acts like it's ravenous even though its bowl is empty. So no wonder they think thr cat is a glutton!</p><p></p><p>idiots...</p><p></p><p>Poor dog - if you feed a dog only protein, it can do so much damage to them. The poor thing was getting no fibre to speak of so pooping was a problem. It also affects their bladder too. We'd take her for a walk and see the poor thing trying to strain and produce nothing.</p><p></p><p>So a strong suggestion - if you can't work out why your dog is overweight and can't lose no matter how much you exercise her, check what food is available for the dog to eat. Does she clean up the bowls of the other animals? If she gets out of your yard, check if neighbours leave food out for their pets and if their animals are eating more than they think is reasonable.</p><p></p><p>I had a pet kitten back before husband & I married; the cat was always hungry. We lived over the road from a fish market and I would buy fish scraps for the kitten. One day the kitten ate a filleted whole fish that was bigger than it was. It was the only time I heard the cat purr...</p><p>Then the kitten would go next door and get fed leftover Big Macs, then would visit a little old lady over the back fence who fed every cat in the neighbourhood on tinned sardines. </p><p>My cat went missing (on a number of occasions) and I would go track him down and find a number of neighbours each of whom thought he was THEIR cat, because they fed him regularly.</p><p></p><p>Eventually he never came home again. He was wearing a name tag with my phone number (but that never seemed to stop other people calling him their cat). I did get a phone call from someone who lived with the little old cat lady, telling me to come get my cat and take him home. But every time I did, my cat would leave again. So I let him. I'd had him neutered anyway, I often wondered if that was when my cat stopped trusting me...</p><p></p><p>Yeah, anyway. So check what your dog is REALLY eating. Be prepared for the dog to be devious about it, too. They will go bury food for later consumption, we had one dog that used to steal what food it could get and go bury it. Come to think of it, she had a weight problem too...</p><p></p><p>Marg</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Marguerite, post: 296981, member: 1991"] MWM, on the subject of dogs needing to lose weight: We pet-sit for friends nearby and I CAN'T get through to them that their animals need to be separated to eat. They get on OK, they're good friends, but the dog is getting fat and the cat is getting thin. They feed the dog cat food (because they say for some mysterious reason, she prefers it). And I keep getting told, "That cat - she is a glutton! She heads for her food and gets stuck in, she eats far too much. It's amazing how quickly she goes through her food. Never leaves a scrap." I tried to say, "Your dog is getting fat because she eats the cat's food." I got told, "The dog can't eat the cat's food because the cat always finishes it all." But I've stayed to watch - the cat's food is always finished, sure - because THE DOG pushes the cat aside and finishes off the cat's food, after her own. And of course, because the cat is eating pure protein, the dog has developed a taste for the pure protein food too and isn't eating the more omnivorous diet a dog should have. I can't convince them. And so the cat gets thinner and looks malnourished, while the dog is increasingly pudgy and wheezes around everywhere. What we do when we pet-sit - we tag-team. We keep the dog outside and feed the cat first. While the dog is making a fuss outside the cat doesn't eat well so we take the dog for a LOOOONG walk. Then when we get back - I keep the dog outside, go inside to see how the cat is going, then any food left in the cat's bowl gets put back in the fridge. Often I found that the cat had only eaten less than half the food I put out for her. Then I feed the dog in the dog's bowl. I've never seen the cat eat any of the dog's food. And I do stay and watch. We often take the dog back to our place - at which time I put the cat's food back out for it. There have been a few times when the dog has rushed in and I couldn't stop her, and if there is any food in the cat's bowl, the dog wolfs it all down really quickly and licks it all clean. The owners just don't believe me; I can't get through. I try to explain and all I get is, "Yep. That cat sure eats a lot for a cat, she's a pig." last time we were pet-sitting, we had the animals for a week and the owners hadn't left enough food. So I went to the store and bought DOG food for the dog and made sure she had nothing else to eat. And - she liked it! I watch the dog eat and she finishes her portion off really fast, then looks up for more. She's an appealing thing, has a pretty face and big eyes so I suspect she's been playing on her owners to spoil her. But they still insist on feeding both animals side by side in the kitchen at the same time, then they walk out of the room. They come back in and find that no matter how much food tey have put down for the cat, it still acts like it's ravenous even though its bowl is empty. So no wonder they think thr cat is a glutton! idiots... Poor dog - if you feed a dog only protein, it can do so much damage to them. The poor thing was getting no fibre to speak of so pooping was a problem. It also affects their bladder too. We'd take her for a walk and see the poor thing trying to strain and produce nothing. So a strong suggestion - if you can't work out why your dog is overweight and can't lose no matter how much you exercise her, check what food is available for the dog to eat. Does she clean up the bowls of the other animals? If she gets out of your yard, check if neighbours leave food out for their pets and if their animals are eating more than they think is reasonable. I had a pet kitten back before husband & I married; the cat was always hungry. We lived over the road from a fish market and I would buy fish scraps for the kitten. One day the kitten ate a filleted whole fish that was bigger than it was. It was the only time I heard the cat purr... Then the kitten would go next door and get fed leftover Big Macs, then would visit a little old lady over the back fence who fed every cat in the neighbourhood on tinned sardines. My cat went missing (on a number of occasions) and I would go track him down and find a number of neighbours each of whom thought he was THEIR cat, because they fed him regularly. Eventually he never came home again. He was wearing a name tag with my phone number (but that never seemed to stop other people calling him their cat). I did get a phone call from someone who lived with the little old cat lady, telling me to come get my cat and take him home. But every time I did, my cat would leave again. So I let him. I'd had him neutered anyway, I often wondered if that was when my cat stopped trusting me... Yeah, anyway. So check what your dog is REALLY eating. Be prepared for the dog to be devious about it, too. They will go bury food for later consumption, we had one dog that used to steal what food it could get and go bury it. Come to think of it, she had a weight problem too... Marg [/QUOTE]
Insert quotes…
Verification
Post reply
Forums
General Discussions
The Watercooler
Is Dog Whisperer methods too harsh?
Top