Cocoa the true trooper
After two weeks of portion control and mild exercise, Cocoa has shown great improvement. Her levels of activity have increased to the extent that a game of fetch is a lot more fetching.
Can your hound handle the heat?
Like us, our furry friends are prone to boredom. Without the option of turning into a couch potato, pets instinctively resort to destructive chewing, hyperactivity, garbage raiding and on occasion the ‘I’ll dig a hole in the lawn if you won’t play with me’.
Bearing this in mind, the only logical explanation is to tire your pets out as you would a child who found the cookie jar hidden under the sink.
In last week’s edition of Cocoa’s attempt to beat the bulge, we came to the conclusion that exercise is essential for pooches on the plump side. In was further established that physical activity should be gradually introduced into a pet’s daily routine, rather than sending them straight to boot camp.
The benefits of integrating exercise into your pet’s routine are endless. Keeping your dog healthy and happy helps eliminate behavioural problems like whining, unruliness and barking bouts that cause the neighbours to contact the SPCA on a Sunday.
After two weeks of portion control and mild exercise, Cocoa has shown great improvement. Her levels of activity have increased to the extent that a game of fetch is a lot more fetching.
Incorporating her favourite toy into her exercise routine seems to have done the trick for this dashing dachshund. If you are anything like me, nothing makes a pet owner more proud than the moment they bring the ball right back to you and anxiously await the next ‘fetch girl’.
A 10-minute game of fetch every afternoon has also worked wonders for Cocoa’s mobility. She is no longer barred to her basket and spends her day patrolling the ‘battlegrounds’ like a true trooper.
What remains worrying is Cocoa’s difficulty in breathing. Her prominent panting, much like the shortness of breath of a smoker, cannot be ignored. ‘Step 4: Easy does it’ applies here. Setting realistic goals for this furry friend has never been more necessary.
Although a complex, in-depth exercise plan is probably what Cocoa needs at this stage, the complications cannot be overlooked. She will just stick to good old-fashioned portion control and low-intensity exercise until she is ready for the next level of her weight loss lap.
See next week’s edition of the Newcastle Advertiser for an update on Cocoa’s progress and whether or not slow and steady really is the name of the game.
