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View Full Version : Bears weight loss!!!



king2005
03-12-2007, 08:34 AM
Since I see Bear everyday, its honestly really hard for us to notice how much weight she has lost.

When I was outside with the neighbours son-in-law (read my post about Bear & the Toddler) he said she has lost a lot of weight. He said "when you first got her from the pound I remember her having this tiny head & a HUGE HUGE HUGE body, she looked so silly!!"... He said now she looks a lot more normal, Just a little chubby...

He couldn't understand how her old owners could have allowerd her to get so obese. He said he remembers when she would try to walk she was straining & tripping a lot.. He said hes seen her prancing & bouncing in the front lawn with no problems. He was very proud of her weight loss & said she looks like shes lost 40lbs or more & congradulated us on a job well done. He asked if she was still on her diet & I said yes. She'll be on it until shes about 100lbs, then she'll be on just Senior food (shes on the Diet & Senior 50/50, cause we're not gonna waste Mr. Biggles bag of food & its good for her joints)...

Its wonderful when someone can point & say "wow shes lost a lot of weight, congrats!!!" The feeling was so wonderful!!

Honestly she hasn't gone for a walk in about a month, as its been too cold icy for her (her joints aren't strong enough for ice yet) & shes still loosing a lot of weight. I couldn't risk her falling & hurting herself, as I cannot lift her. So we just play with her inside the house (tug-of-war, play fighting, fetch...)... what this proves is what a decent diet & a little vet care can do in a matter of months to a dog.

finn's mom
03-12-2007, 08:36 AM
Congrats on the improvement, she's a much healthier dog now because of everything you all are doing. :)

JenBKR
03-12-2007, 08:42 AM
Good for you for making her healthier, I know it's not always easy. Good job!! :)

king2005
03-12-2007, 09:00 AM
Good for you for making her healthier, I know it's not always easy. Good job!! :)


Its soooo hard not spoiling her with treats, but when you see her struggling to do normal dog things, like walking & sleeping, its enough to make you want to cry. When we first got her we thought she was going to suffocate in her sleep, as she could hardly breath. it was so scary for us. Thats why Chad would put pillows all around her to help her breath & then tuck her in with a blanket to keep her that way all night.

When shes at a healthy weight (100lbs), she'll be spoiled rotten (in low doses of course lol)... I really want to work on faster command responses, but I use treats to aid in training, then wean the command off treats, but her weight loss is FAR more important then training right now. I cannot wait until I can get her to come, sit, lay down & stay in a timely fashion or just doing it lol She knows all those commands except for stay, she doesn't run away either, but will ignore us when called to come when shes in the front yard :P

cyber-sibes
03-12-2007, 09:58 AM
Way to go, Bear!
Congratulations, it must be heartwarming to see her getting active & happy. Rewards don't always have to be food treats - most dogs welcome attention & toys as much as edibles. Star prefers something that squeaks over anything else, and I'm working with my "Mr.Chubbs" to be less food-oriented too. :rolleyes:

king2005
03-12-2007, 10:12 AM
Way to go, Bear!
Congratulations, it must be heartwarming to see her getting active & happy. Rewards don't always have to be food treats - most dogs welcome attention & toys as much as edibles. Star prefers something that squeaks over anything else, and I'm working with my "Mr.Chubbs" to be less food-oriented too. :rolleyes:

Bear is fairly stuborn at times & food gets her attention. Food lets me know when she has learned a command, other wise I'd never know lol My old dog was stuborn too.. so I used treats to teach him commans & tricks, once he was a pro, I weaned him off treats 100%, as I knew he knew the command.=, so if he ignored me, I'd make him to the command... eventually he became less & less stuborn & enjoyed the attention :D Bear has pretty much the same personallity as my old dog, so I'm hoping it'll work with her too.

Pawsitive Thinking
03-12-2007, 10:40 AM
Well done you! A healthy dog is a happy dog :D