Obesity in your Yorkie- part 1, definitions

Humans have a means to measure obesity with Body Mass Index- or BMI. If a human has a BMI within 18.5- <25, a person is within a healthy weight. BMI’s that fall within >25-30 range, are classified as overweight. And those with BMI’s that are > 30 are considered obese.

Dogs are measured with a Body Condition Score. There are 2 scoring ranges for BCS’s. Some veterinarians use a 1-5 scoring method and others use a 1-9 scoring method. Some prefer a 1-9 as it provides room to categorize subtle changes in weight. I will show a 1-5 scale image:

It is estimated that 59% of pets are obese. Here are some ways to check your pet:

•  Ability to feel ribs, lower spine and bony prominences
•  Ability to see a ‘waist’ – tucking in of the abdomen after the ribcage when looking at your dog from above
•  Ability to see an ‘abdominal tuck’ – tucking up (upward slant) of the abdomen after the ribcage when looking at your dog from the side. (taken from first vet)

If you have a dog with a long/fluffy coat- it would be best to assess them when they are wet.

Sadly, there are health conditions associated with obesity in Yorkies- just as there are in humans. Similarly- there are methods for weight loss in your Yorkie- just as there are in humans. As many as 37% of puppies that are 6 months old, are overweight. And overweight owners are more likely to have overweight pets.

I am going to inject my own personal experience here. My husband loves to eat.  He LOVES food. To him, food is happiness. How do you think that behavior affects our dogs? They have him trained. When he gets home and they jump on him, excited to see him- he thinks they are telling him “I am hungry”. So they have trained him to feed them when they jump on him. Likewise- my husband thinks every time he is hungry- the dogs must be hungry. You can only imagine the (same) conversations we have had since we started breeding. So- I truly understand your challenges. Sometimes it is best to start a conversation when you are watching a movie, sitting outside, riding in the car- about the plan to help your pet lose weight. Bring up the recommended feeding for your breed and size of dog. Make a plan to walk your dog daily- set a time. Maybe the family takes turns so that I walk them on Tuesday and Thursday; teenager does Monday and Wednesday ; and husband does Friday and Saturday.

Or if you have mulitiple dogs- it is SOOOOOO nice to have family time walking multiple dogs. This is one of my favorite things. You can have a nice conversation while walking- AND you feel good that your dogs get stimulating exercise. And you will be so surprised how worn out your dog will be after a long walk.  If I can walk my dogs,  and have an influence on my husband- I KNOW YOU CAN DO IT. I have faith. 

I will continue to post about methods of losing weight, health conditions, and other similar topics about obesity. Until then- stay healthy my friends.