Obesity affects approximately 40-60% of UK companion dogs and cats. Prevention through appropriate nutrition and exercise dramatically improves quality of life and longevity.
Companion animal obesity is a welfare crisis that owners often create inadvertently through overfeeding and anthropomorphic responses to pets seeking food. An overweight dog struggling to exercise, with arthritic joints and laboured breathing, is experiencing reduced quality of life that the owner may not recognise because the animal appears content. Preventing obesity requires treating food as medicine rather than love - appropriate portions, no table scraps, and active exercise regardless of the animal's apparent reluctance. The welfare returns of healthy body weight are enormous and lifelong.