My Golden Was Getting Chunky – Here’s What We Did
Alright, so I wanted to share a bit about what happened with my Golden Retriever, ol’ Buddy. He’s a good boy, always has been, but man, he started to really pack on the pounds a while back. It wasn’t overnight, you know? It kinda creeps up on you.
First, I noticed he wasn’t as keen to run around. We’d go to the park, and he’d be panting hard after just a few throws of the ball. Used to be he’d outlast me, easy. Then, it was the little things. He’d struggle a bit getting up onto the sofa – which, yeah, maybe he shouldn’t be on, but that’s another story. And when I’d give him a good petting, I realized I couldn’t really feel his ribs like I used to. It was just… soft. Too soft.
That’s when I knew we had a problem. I mean, you read about it, dog obesity, but you never think it’ll be your dog, right? I felt a bit guilty, to be honest. Like I’d let him down. My wife noticed it too, and we both agreed, something had to change for Buddy’s sake.
So, the first thing we did was book an appointment with the vet. Dr. Evans, she’s great, no-nonsense. She put Buddy on the scale, did her checks, and then just laid it out straight: “He’s overweight. Significantly.” No sugar-coating it. She explained all the risks – joints, heart, all that scary stuff. It was a wake-up call, for sure.
She gave us a plan. It wasn’t rocket science, but it wasn’t going to be easy either. Here’s kinda what we had to do:
- Cut down the food. Like, seriously measure it out. We were definitely overfeeding him. Turns out those “scoops” I was giving were more like “shovels.”
- Change his grub. We switched to a lower-calorie dog food. Still good quality stuff, just less of the bits that were making him chunky.
- No more table scraps. This was a tough one. Buddy’s got those eyes, you know? But we had to be firm. The whole family had to be on board.
- Treats got a major downgrade. Instead of big biscuits, he got tiny pieces of carrot or a small, low-cal training treat. And way less often.
- More exercise. This was key. Longer walks. More playtime. We started with gentle increases, didn’t want to overdo it at first.
The first few weeks? Man, it was rough. Buddy was NOT happy about the smaller portions. He’d look at his bowl, then at me, like, “Is that it? You kidding me?” And the begging! He really laid it on thick. My kids, they struggled too, wanting to sneak him bits. We had a lot of family meetings about being strong for Buddy.
We stuck with it, though. We had to. Slowly, and I mean slowly, we started to see changes. He started having a bit more energy on walks. He could play fetch for longer. He seemed a bit… lighter on his feet, if that makes sense. We’d go for weekly weigh-ins at the vet at first, then monthly. Seeing those numbers go down, even just a little, was super motivating.
It probably took a good six, maybe eight months, to get him to a healthy weight. There were plateaus, times when we got a bit frustrated. But Dr. Evans kept encouraging us, reminding us it was a marathon, not a sprint.
Now? Buddy’s like a new dog. He’s got his spark back. Runs around like a pup again, well, almost. We can feel his ribs, in a good way. We’re still careful, of course. Portion control is a permanent fixture in our house now, and exercise is non-negotiable, rain or shine. It’s just part of our routine.
So yeah, if you’re seeing your furry friend get a bit too round, tackle it head-on. Talk to your vet. It’s not easy, takes commitment, but seeing your dog healthy and happy again? Absolutely worth every single bit of effort. Don’t wait until it’s a bigger problem. We learned that the hard way, but thankfully, we got there.
