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Research Finds 1 In 3 American Cats and Dogs Are Overweight (arstechnica.com)

Posted by BeauHD on from the time-to-hit-the-treadmill dept.

After surveying 2.5 million dogs and 500,000 cats in the U.S. last year, a group of researchers found that about one in three were overweight or obese. "Looking over data from the last decade, the researchers say the new figures reveal a 169-percent increase in hefty felines and a 158-percent increase in chunky canines," reports Ars Technica. From the report: All the data is from researchers at Banfield, which runs a chain of veterinary hospitals across 42 states. The researchers surveyed animals that checked into one of Banfield's 975 locations, putting them through a five-point physical and visual exam. Animals were considered overweight if their ribs were not clearly visible or easily felt and if their waists were also hard to see. Pets were dubbed obese if their ribs couldn't be felt at all and they had no visible waist. As in humans, being overweight makes pets more prone to chronic health conditions. Also similar to humans, doctors blame pets' weight problems on overfeeding and lack of exercise. Other contributing factors include genetics and health issues such as arthritis, which can make play painful. Last, some pet owners may not be able to spot weight issues in their pets -- particularly because so many more dogs and cats are now overweight, making chubby pets the new norm. Dog breeds with the highest prevalence of obesity are Labrador Retrievers, Cairn Terriers, and Cocker Spaniels, the researchers report. For cats, the fattest breeds are Manx and Maine Coons.

11 of 177 comments (clear)

  1. Really? by Circlotron · · Score: 4, Informative

    Stuff that matters alright!

  2. Not really surprising by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    In families with at least one obese person, usually EVERYONE in the family is obese - even small children, who obviously aren't making their own dietary decisions. It doesn't surprise me that the pets are obese, too.

    1. Re:Not really surprising by guises · · Score: 5, Insightful

      My father's perspective has become skewed enough that he doesn't understand what a healthy weight looks like. It's not surprising to me that his dogs are all fat, though he denies it and decries other people for under-feeding their dogs because, "You can see their ribs."

    2. Re:Not really surprising by sound+vision · · Score: 4, Insightful

      That's an almost fourfold increase, it sounds more like you're minimizing.

    3. Re:Not really surprising by c · · Score: 5, Insightful

      A big part of it is that people are incredibly ignorant of how much exercise a healthy dog actually needs. They think that if they walk until the human is tired then the dog got a good workout. Which is a bit like an olympic athlete training for an event by going for a walk with his grandmother.

      A large part of the problem, though, is pet food feeding guidelines. If you feed a typical pet what the bag says, 90% of the time you'll get an obese pet. Heck, if you feed most active dogs what the bag says, you'll get a fat dog.

      --
      Log in or piss off.
  3. And yet more fit than the owners by twein · · Score: 5, Informative

    https://www.niddk.nih.gov/heal...

    1. Re:And yet more fit than the owners by ls671 · · Score: 4, Informative

      Damn, you just beat me to it ;-(

      I was about to post the same link:

      Fast Facts

      Data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, 2009–2010 2, 3

              More than 2 in 3 adults are considered to be overweight or obese.
              More than 1 in 3 adults are considered to be obese.
              More than 1 in 20 adults are considered to have extreme obesity.
              About one-third of children and adolescents ages 6 to 19 are considered to be overweight or obese.
              More than 1 in 6 children and adolescents ages 6 to 19 are considered to be obese.

      --
      Everything I write is lies, read between the lines.
    2. Re:And yet more fit than the owners by BarbaraHudson · · Score: 4, Insightful
      And you're a troll. So what? Even 50% of adults (who should know better) underestimate their child's weight, and 14% think their overweight kids are normal weight. And over 15,000 subjects is hardly a cherry-picked microscopic sample size. You're just SO full of shit you must look really, really obese.

      Why should they know better? Because when they were younger they had more examples of normal-weight kids around them. Their perceptions are like the frog sitting in a pan of progressively hotter water.

      It's the same with kids opinions about their being overweight or obese. Many kids just don't see it. They think of obese as normal. And why wouldn't they - they see it everywhere now, so being overweight or obese has been normalized.

      A fifth (20 per cent) had a BMI in the overweight category and seven per cent were categorised as obese.

      Of these, around 40 per cent thought they were about the right weight.

      And it's not getting better.

      f parents are to be part of the solution to childhood obesity then parental recognition of overweight and obesity must be improved, they said. Dr Angela Jones, who carried out the study, said that part of the problem was that their had been a shift in what was considered "normal" weight in the last few years.

      Only extremely overweight children were recognized as having a problem. The findings were mirrored by a study in the Netherlands which found three quarters of parents did not recognize their children as overweight and half of those with children that were obese.

      Why do you think you're seeing all these ads now telling both adults and kids that they're perfect even if they're obese? And the whole "don't body-shame" thing? Shaming works. It worked with tobacco addiction, where smokers over the decades went from being normal to being pariahs, and nothing less will work with obesity. As long as everyone keeps pushing the message that it's okay, people won't feel the pressure to change. It's the "new normal."

      --
      "Transparent" is a shit show that trades on every stereotype going. A man in drag is NOT a transsexual.
  4. And in other news... by hyades1 · · Score: 4, Funny

    Korean Air is offering deep discounts to Americans who want to bring their overweight pets along on vacation, along with free copies of "100 Ways to Wok Your Dog".

    --
    I've calculated my velocity with such exquisite precision that I have no idea where I am.
  5. Cat food lobby by Kergan · · Score: 4, Interesting

    The industrial cat food you find in stores is choke full of nutrients that are pointless for obligate carnivores. It's akin to feeding kids with cookies and candy bars on grounds that there's a bit of flour and nuts in them.

    Not to mention the severe lack of water in the case of dry food. Cats get the bulk of their daily water intake through their food, and only partially compensate the lack of intake by drinking more if you give them dry food.

  6. My girlsfriends cat... by unique_parrot · · Score: 4, Interesting

    ...was overweight too. Until we got a tip to look out for sugar in the food.
    It wasn't easy to find a cat food without sugar and we were worried that he - the sugar junkie - wouldn't like it BUT he loves it!
    I think the meat must be better (didn't taste it).

    Now he is back to normal and way more active (immediately after the food change).