In a recent article from the LA Times, a Dutch study revealed that overweight dogs tend to have overweight owners. According to the study, dogs seem to take after their owners whether they are couch potatoes or regular joggers.
However, this correlation was not found between cats and their owners. Cats tend to self-satisfy their exercise needs whereas dogs are more dependent upon their owner for walks or play sessions.
The folks at Dogster make a good point:
|
But we see no reason why overweight dog owners would feed their dogs too much, while overweight cat owners wouldn’t. So perhaps it really boils down to walks. Cats don’t usually get them, need them, or want them. They can exercise themselves all they want by chasing imaginary objects around the house. Or if they’re indoor-outdoor cats, they walk themselves. But dogs need their walkies. And it’s been shown that obese human-dog pairs don’t exercise as much. |
Obesity can cause many harmful health problems to your pet (Learn more). So get in a few extra walks every week, for the sake of both you and your dog’s health. Your dog really does make a great exercise buddy!
*Photo courtesy No More Treats.com
It makes perfect sense, I have four cats and I use one of those automatic dog feeders. My cats run around the house all day and haven’t become obese. Then on the other hand my friend who has 4 chihuahuas limits the amount of food his chihuahuas get and lets them out in the yard. They are all very obese and pretty funny looking if you ask me. They kind of look like little piggies with a chihuahuas face.