Your Dachshund is a bit too fat… He has accumulated a few extra pounds… Be careful! The consequences could be critical (cardiovascular diseases, increase of his dysplasia, joint problems or any other health problems…). If you prefer to preserve a better life expectancy of your Dachshund and this in full form, it is better to make him lose weight. We will discover in this file how to make your Dachshund lose weight, what are the best ways to make your Dachshund lose weight? You will see that just as with men, there are 2 ways to lose weight: by developing physical exercises while maintaining a proper diet.
Table of Contents
Dachshund weight loss – Determining the weight to lose
To determine your Dachshund’s ideal weight, you can either ask your veterinarian or get information on the web according to its age, breed and weight. Once you know, you will have to make a simple subtraction to know the number of kilos to lose: Starting weight – ideal weight = weight to lose.
Make your Dachshund lose weight – Increase his physical activity
Compared to his usual level of activity, it is up to you to set up the increase of physical activities according to what you will be able to do and what your Dachshund will be able to do. It’s up to you to choose between: fast walking, slow walking, twenty minutes, one hour, a few hours, running following you on foot, swimming, ball games, agility lessons…
Making your Dachshund lose weight – Changing his diet
In order for your Dachshund to lose weight, it is important to combine an increase in physical activity with a reduction in energy intake from his diet. Decreasing your Dachshund’s caloric intake should not be done by simply decreasing the amount of food he is given each day. Obviously, you could starve your Dachshund, or even not cover its nutritional needs sufficiently… The reduction in caloric intake must imperatively involve a sufficient, well-dosed and less energetic diet.
Homemade food should be eliminated because it is difficult to evaluate the fat, protein, sugar and fiber content… It is essential that you feed your Dachshund regularly and steadily, using kibbles that are essentially designed for overweight dogs. In this way, your Dachshund will be able to benefit from a quality diet, in appropriate quantities and with a reduced kcal content. And between the light kibbles, you should choose a premium quality among the “veterinary” brands.
In practice, these kibbles have high quality nutrients with an advantageous dosage of proteins and are adapted to each type of doggie with respect to its size, breed or level of physical activity. During the diet phase, you should only give your dog 80% of the daily portion recommended on the kibble packet. Important: It is imperative to stop giving your Dachshund treats and other delicacies if you are used to giving them to him… It is advisable to save a certain number of kibbles for your Dachshund out of the total daily dose that you will be able to give him as a reward if you are in a learning phase for example.
Attention: In order to prevent your Dachshund from suffering from digestive problems or intestinal disorders, when you change the type of kibble you give him, you should do so gradually by introducing low-fat kibbles and reducing the others.
Losing weight in your Dachshund – How long does it take?
Losing weight in a Dachshund is a slow process that usually takes several months. You should therefore be patient and make sure to weigh your Dachshund every month in order to measure its weight loss. Of course, once your Dachshund reaches his ideal weight, it is necessary to give him 100% of the daily portion recommended on the kibble package. However, I recommend that you continue to give him the same low-fat kibble. In fact, you will have to stabilize his weight by keeping a strict diet and continuing physical activities on a regular basis. This way, your Dachshund will not gain back the weight he lost so painstakingly…
Make your Dachshund lose weight – Which kibbles to choose?
You can either ask your veterinarian directly for advice, or you can buy them on the web from brands recommended by veterinarians: Hills, Advance, Purina Proplan or Eukanuba. Here is the brand that we have selected because these kibbles are well adapted, tolerated and especially ideal to make your Dachshund lose weight: Advance Veterinary Diets Croquettes for Obese Dogs.
Hill’s Science Diet Adult Perfect Weight Small & Mini Chicken Recipe Dry Dog Food
