Obesity in cats and dogs: simple things you can do

Obesity in cats and dogs, is a complex and incurable (but treatable) disease which negatively affects quality and longevity of life. The rising trend is concerning for both pet owners and the veterinary profession. This disease can feel an overwhelming one to tackle at times but there are some simple steps that can be implemented to make a difference. Talking openly about pet obesity, without judgement can improve trust with pet owners, making conversations about cats and dogs with obesity easier. Weighing and body condition scoring pets regularly, from early on in life and recording these values allows trends to be spotted more easily. This means any reactive nutritional recommendations and/or feeding behaviour changes can be made and implemented earlier. Recommending a diet appropriate to the pet's caloric needs, while ensuring meal satisfaction and limiting food seeking behaviour, can go some way towards achieving or maintaining a healthy weight and owner compliance. Combining these nutritional recommendations with daily weighing of the recommended diet on digital scales can also be beneficial. If we all implement some small changes in the way we approach cats and dogs with obesity or indeed those at risk of having obesity, we can make a difference.

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Body Condition Scoring bei Hunden

Veterinary Focus ◽

10.1055/s-0035-1570578 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 27.2 (02) ◽

pp. 10-11 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Stefan Störk

Keyword(s):

Body Condition ◽

Body Condition Scoring

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Relation of Automated Body Condition Scoring System and Inline Biomarkers (Milk Yield, β-Hydroxybutyrate, Lactate Dehydrogenase and Progesterone in Milk) with Cow’s Pregnancy Success

Sensors ◽

10.3390/s21041414 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 21 (4) ◽

pp. 1414

Author(s):

Ramūnas Antanaitis ◽

Vida Juozaitienė ◽

Dovilė Malašauskienė ◽

Mindaugas Televičius ◽

Mingaudas Urbutis ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Lactate Dehydrogenase ◽

Reproductive Success ◽

Milk Yield ◽

Body Condition ◽

Body Condition Score ◽

The Body ◽

Time Analyzer ◽

Condition Score ◽

Pregnancy Status ◽

Body Condition Scoring

The aim of the current study was to evaluate the relation of automatically determined body condition score (BCS) and inline biomarkers such as β-hydroxybutyrate (BHB), milk yield (MY), lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), and progesterone (mP4) with the pregnancy success of cows. The cows (n = 281) had 2.1 ± 0.1. lactations on average, were 151.6 ± 0.06 days postpartum, and were once tested with “Easy scan” ultrasound (IMV imaging, Scotland) at 30–35 d post-insemination. According to their reproductive status, cows were grouped into two groups: non-pregnant (n = 194 or 69.0% of cows) and pregnant (n = 87 or 31.0% of cows). Data concerning their BCS, mP4, MY, BHB, and LDH were collected each day from the day of insemination for 7 days. The BCS was collected with body condition score camera (DeLaval Inc., Tumba, Sweden); mP4, MY, BHB, and LDH were collected with the fully automated real-time analyzer Herd Navigator™ (Lattec I/S, Hillerød, Denmark) in combination with a DeLaval milking robot (DeLaval Inc., Tumba, Sweden). Of all the biomarkers, three differences between groups were significant. The body condition score (BCS) of the pregnant cows was higher (+0.49 score), the milk yield (MY) was lower (−4.36 kg), and milk progesterone in pregnant cows was (+6.11 ng/mL) higher compared to the group of non-pregnant cows (p < 0.001). The pregnancy status of the cows was associated with their BCS assessment (p < 0.001). We estimated that cows with BCS > 3.2 were 22 times more likely to have reproductive success than cows with BCS ≤ 3.2.

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Comparison of a classical with a highly formularized body condition scoring system for dairy cattle

animal ◽

10.1017/s1751731114001888 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 8 (12) ◽

pp. 1971-1977 ◽

Cited By ~ 8

Author(s):

A. Isensee ◽

F. Leiber ◽

A. Bieber ◽

A. Spengler ◽

S. Ivemeyer ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Dairy Cattle ◽

Body Condition ◽

Scoring System ◽

Body Condition Scoring

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Validation of a Commercial Automated Body Condition Scoring System in Dairy Herds and its Comparison with the Visual Method

SSRN Electronic Journal ◽

10.2139/ssrn.4003940 ◽

2022 ◽

Author(s):

María Victoria Lucas ◽

Mariana Lucas ◽

Marina Snitcofsky ◽

Laura Araujo

Keyword(s):

Body Condition ◽

Scoring System ◽

Dairy Herds ◽

Visual Method ◽

Body Condition Scoring

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Persistent Leptospiruria in Five Dogs Despite Antimicrobial Treatment (2000–2017)

Journal of the American Animal Hospital Association ◽

10.5326/jaaha-ms-6882 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 55 (1) ◽

pp. 42-47 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Tara Mauro ◽

Kenneth Harkin

Keyword(s):

At Risk ◽

Polymerase Chain Reaction ◽

Antimicrobial Treatment ◽

Renal Tubules ◽

Chain Reaction ◽

Polymerase Chain Reaction Testing ◽

Pet Owners ◽

Zoonotic Risk ◽

The Face ◽

Polymerase Chain

ABSTRACT In dogs with leptospirosis, doxycycline therapy is recommended as the preferred therapy for its ability to eliminate the organism from all tissues, including the renal tubules. Elimination of organisms from the renal tubules terminates leptospiruria and prevents transmission of the organism. This report describes the discovery of persistent leptospiruria in the face of therapy with doxycycline in four dogs and enrofloxacin in one dog. Leptospiruria was confirmed by polymerase chain reaction testing for pathogenic leptospires in all five dogs. In two dogs, leptospiruria resolved after a change in therapy to enrofloxacin. In three dogs, doxycycline and/or enrofloxacin were ineffective at eliminating leptospiruria, which then resolved after therapy with clarithromycin. Pet owners could be at risk as persistent leptospiruria poses a potential zoonotic risk. The potential reasons for persistent leptospiruria as demonstrated by polymerase chain reaction testing are discussed.

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