Certified staff help owners get their animals to lose weight

Sep 7, 2012 20:01 GMT  ·  By

According to studies recently carried out, obesity in the US is no longer a problem affecting only adults and children. Quite the contrary: pets are also starting to put on quite a lot of pounds, more likely because city life does little to promote exercise and a well-balanced diet.

Hoping to deal with this problem, the Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine at Tufts University decided to set the basis for the nation's first obesity clinic aimed at helping animals deal with their weight issues in a safe manner that does not involve any crash diets or the like.

Newswise informs us that the cats and dogs which are to become patients at this clinic will benefit from expert advice, as the person who will be in charge of overseeing their new diet, Deborah E. Linder, is a well-trained and certified veterinary nutritionist.

Commenting on this project, Dr. Deborah E. Linder made a case of how, “By employing sound, research-proven methods, Tufts' Veterinary Obesity Clinic will help owners achieve safe and effective weight loss for their pets.”

She further elaborated on this issue as follows: “While the common perception leans toward overweight pets being happy, research has proven otherwise, and we hope to effect change in the obesity epidemic among companion animals.”

In case one was thinking that Dr. Linder’s choice of words (i.e. obesity epidemic) might be a bit far-fetched, it seems that official numbers back up her claims quite nicely.

Thus, one of the latest surveys carried out to assess the health of the pet population in the US indicates that as many as 60% of the cats and dogs presently living in this country are struggling with being overweight, and sometimes even with health conditions brought about by their body size.

As veterinarians explain, diabetes, orthopedic problems and respiratory complications are some of the most frequent health issues these pets display.

Losing weight can prove to be as difficult for pets as it is for people, but Dr. Deborah E. Linder hopes that, with the help of their owners, some of the animals that come to see her will soon begin improving on their body condition.