Harvey was neutered 7 weeks ago and all in all I'm pleased that I went ahead with the op as he has calmed down so much and is now even more of a joy to own however, I am worried about him gaining weight. He used to be so picky with his food, I struggled to get him to eat and he looked quite thin but now since being neutered, he is eating well and I have noticed that he has put a little weight on which is fine as I would say that he now looks just right but I don't want him to gain any more. I am feeding him 80g Arden Grange Prestige per day which is the lowest feeding amount for a dog 5-10kg (Harvey was 6.7kg when he had his op) and he also has 4 pedigree gravy bones as treats throughout the day which he loves - for anyone who doesn't know, each gravy bone is about the size of a ladies little finger.  I want to use the prestige up as I have half of a 7.5kg bag left but I am wondering whether I should change him over to the normal Arden Grange food when I'm ready for a new bag as the only reason that I initially put him onto the Prestige was because I didn't need to get him to eat much in order to get a decent meal into him - he was so picky. Just wondered what others would do?

Thanks

Hayley

Haley

Weight gain is normal when you neuter :)

All I would do is cut the amount you feed him and bulk it up with veggies :)

Maybe increase the amount of excercise as well :)

Glad he has calmed down

Lucy
xx

Our dog was neutered 5 months ago and hasn't put on any weight. He is very active but still on the 5 minute per month of age exercise rule. He is raw fed so not sure if that makes any difference. :)

How much exercise does he get? I would up the exercise before i cut back the food.Most dogs get fat,not from too much food,but not enough physical activity,and rather than take them out more some owners put them on those awful lite diets.Even if the dog is on a minimal amount of food,he will still put on weight if the input is higher than the output.Besides, an extra walk,preferably off lead run per day would more fun than cutting back food and healthier for him and you.

Not sure which dogs "Prestige" is aimed at, having never fed AG.  However, I would not feed a neutered dog a diet which had previously helped to put weight on for the following reason.

As you know, feeding more and more of the same food is not a good way to get weight on a dog and at a certain point, it is more effective to change to a different diet.  Conversely, for keeping weight down, although I might try reducing the food (and making sure the dog had sufficient exercise) to begin with, if the dog still put on weight, I would change to a different diet.  This would hopefully also avoid the problem of scavenging, depending on the dog, some do it anyway :-)

Forgot to say, could you use something else for treats?  Dog biscuits are great for putting weight on ...

When my boy was neutered 2 months ago, I immediately reduced his food by about 15-20%. I did this because their metabolism slows down after neutering, and its easier to stop the weight going on rather than try and get it off once they've put it on :rolleyes:. He is still the same build, but I keep an eye on it to make sure I'm not over or under-doing it. I want to err on the side of lean anyway as he will start learning agility soon.
Kat

Also, meant to mention - sea biscuits are good as a treat, as they're made with fish, so no carbs or fat.
K

Hayley,

In answer to your question, switch to the regular Adult Maintenance, it's lower in kalories than the Prestige.   If he does not like the Adult Maintenance as much as the Prestige, than he's solved the problem of watching his waistline for you.  :-) 

I'd drop the quantity down slightly while he's still on the Prestige, even if he is at the bottom of the recommended range.