Weight Management

KEY PRINCIPLES

• Tailored Nutrition Plans: We recognize that each pet is unique, and their dietary requirements vary based on factors such as species, breed, age, and health conditions. Our veterinary team is dedicated to crafting tailored nutrition plans to suit your pet's individual needs.
• Quality Nutrition: Vets in Frankston advocates for high-quality pet food that aligns with your pet's specific nutritional needs. We prioritize whole, quality ingredients and avoid fillers or harmful additives.
• Portion Control Guidance: Overfeeding is a common concern that can lead to obesity and related health issues. Our experts provide guidance on appropriate portion sizes based on your pet's size, age, and activity level.
• Educational Resources: We offer educational resources and advice to help you understand the do's and don'ts of pet nutrition, including the dangers of feeding pets from your table.
• Exercise and Health: In addition to proper nutrition, regular exercise is key to maintaining your pet's weight and overall health. We provide guidance on incorporating physical activity into your pet's routine.
• Consultation and Support: Our experienced veterinarians are here to support you. If you have concerns about your pet's weight or nutritional needs, we offer consultations to devise a tailored diet and weight management plan.

What to Feed

The Trials of Dieting

Losing weight involves a change of lifestyle for your pet, including both an increase in exercise, if possible, and a change in diet. Weight loss should be accomplished slowly with a nutritionally balanced diet. Pets must be retrained to eat moderate amounts of food one to two times daily—Without Any Snacks in between. It will usually take between four and eight months to achieve normal weight.

All members of the family should be aware of the necessity for your pet to lose weight. One person feeding extra can undo all of your good work!

Less of a Normal Diet
This is the easiest, but also the slowest and least effective. To try to convince your pet that the same amount of food is still being fed, it often helps to add extra bran to the diet. This will maintain the volume of the food while decreasing the calories. Start by just adding a pinch of bran to the diet to get your pet used to the taste. Then gradually increase the amount while decreasing the amount of normal food. Sometimes you can get up to 20% bran in the diet. You should be aware that adding extra roughage to the diet will produce more faeces that may be a bit softer.

Special Prescription Diets
Just like the human obesity epidemic, over 55% of the pet population is overweight. Even a little extra weight can impact a pet's quality of life and relationship with family as the extra weight can reduce play time, impact mobility and affect the lifelong general health of your pet. Maintaining an ideal weight can help impact life expectancy by reducing the risk of weight-related conditions.

There are several prescription dog & cat foods designed specifically for weight reduction.  Feeding this as the sole diet will definitely help your pet to lose weight. We have several different brands available, both in tinned & dry forms, so every taste is usually catered for.