Eating healthy also good for pets during holidays
The holidays can be a time for packing on the pounds. And while people are expected to fill out during the holidays, it is a little-known fact that household pets will also experience expanding waistlines around Christmas time.
Dr. Bob Watson of the Brookhaven Animal Hospital said people tend to project human qualities on their animals, thinking that if they are partaking in holiday feasts, their pets need treats, too.
“We tend to drag them into our same habits, more or less,” he said. “For example, we gain weight during holidays since there’s an abundance of snacks, and we think if we’re hungry and in need of a snack, so’s the dog.”
For humans, controlling their eating over the holidays is simply a matter of willpower, Watson said. But for a dog or cat, it’s about accessibility.
“We are in 100 percent control of their diet,” he said. “If someone was in total control of our diets all the time, would we be an obese nation?”
And of course, for a pet to maintain a healthy weight, he should be fed strictly pet food. Watson said another way to pack the pounds on your pet is to stay inside during the holidays.
“There are always a lot of Christmas meats around, turkey and ham and such, and even a little of those things aren’t good for pets,” he said. “Couple that with the fact that typically this time of year you’re indoors more with the animal so the temptation is to feed them more.”
Watson said pet owners don’t need to be worried they’re cheating their pets out of something good, as pet foods today are much more advanced than in past years. He said by eating most pet foods on the market today, dogs and cats are actually getting a much more balanced diet than most humans.
“It’s really really true they eat a more balanced diet than we do, which is something else that’s part of the problem. We as people don’t like to eat the same thing every day,” he said. “We just assume, and wrongfully so, that neither do the pets.”
Another problem pet owners have is that they let their pets train them, which is especially bad with the high-density foods that tend to fill homes during the Christmas season. Watson said in 15 years of veterinary practice, it always amazes him that people actually believe their dogs “just won’t eat dog food.”
“I tell them, ‘That’s because he’s smarter than you.’ People think if he doesn’t eat for a few hours, you need to give him chicken or hamburger, so then he’s effectively trained you,” Watson said. “When you get ready to give the little guy something, he’s thinking, ‘Alpo or hamburger? Alpo or hamburger?’ So he’ll wait until you give him the hamburger.”
He said dog owners should just realize if they don’t feed their animals table scraps, they won’t run into that problem.
“My advice this time of year is the same as it is all year long: put the dog in the back room while you eat,” Watson said. “You can’t refuse those big brown eyes and you’ll feed him a little. Put him back there until you finish eating and then let him out.”
But if you feel your dog needs a snack or a reward, Watson said, dog food is as good a treat as any.
“I never advocate people food, so certainly don’t allow that, and you also certainly want to control their intake,” he said. “If you really want to give them a snack, give them two or three kernels of dog food one by one. Or, most retail stores and certainly vet clinics have low calorie snacks.”
By: THERESE APEL, DAILY LEADER Staff Writer
www.zwire.com
