Code2High
Ridgecrest, CA
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Dogs are not really designed to run on a lot of carbohydrates and will often tend to pork up when fed commercial diets that are full of them. If you feed low fat, inevitably you're feeding higher carb and more often than not, you end up with a hungry animal that doesn't like the food it eats, often doesn't lose weight, and poops continuously. A better bet would be an "Atkins" type plan, based on protein and fat and in controlled portions. When you feed them non-garbage, filler free foods, the quantities needed are quite small, but satisfying.
Short of that, cutting back on amount of food the dog is getting is a better idea in my experience than feeding a reduced calorie food. Also cutting back on treats, breaking them up into smaller bits through the day, is a good plan. Some dogs will eat veggies (green beans work well) in their food and enjoy that. Some will also enjoy raw baby carrots as treats, though that is often a learned behavior. You might half cook a baby carrot to get the dog interested in the smell, then transition to raw... you don't want to feed a lot of cooked carrots since they are high in sugar and once they're cooked the dog can actually digest them and absorb the sugar.
susan
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sue.t
Vancouver Island, BC, Canada
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gosh, don't tell my 100 pound fellow that your small gal gets a cup a food a day and only needs to walk a couple of miles for it!
Poor ol'Jake gets 1 cup of dry food at breakfast and 1 cup at supper, plus a bit of cooked ground bison meat (he's allergic to many foods and bison is one he can tolerate). He needs to walk 5 miles a day to keep his body lean. It is a challenge in winter because we don't have as much daylight before and after work to exercise, so his dry food is reduced to 3/4 cup at each meal.
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dturm
Munster, IN
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Code2High wrote:Dogs are not really designed to run on a lot of carbohydrates and will often tend to pork up when fed commercial diets that are full of them. If you feed low fat, inevitably you're feeding higher carb and more often than not, you end up with a hungry animal that doesn't like the food it eats, often doesn't lose weight, and poops continuously. A better bet would be an "Atkins" type plan, based on protein and fat and in controlled portions. When you feed them non-garbage, filler free foods, the quantities needed are quite small, but satisfying.
Short of that, cutting back on amount of food the dog is getting is a better idea in my experience than feeding a reduced calorie food. Also cutting back on treats, breaking them up into smaller bits through the day, is a good plan. Some dogs will eat veggies (green beans work well) in their food and enjoy that. Some will also enjoy raw baby carrots as treats, though that is often a learned behavior. You might half cook a baby carrot to get the dog interested in the smell, then transition to raw... you don't want to feed a lot of cooked carrots since they are high in sugar and once they're cooked the dog can actually digest them and absorb the sugar.
Hold it, the world shifted, Susan and I agree. 
Seriously, dogs don't tend to have cholesterol, fat desposition and heart/stroke related problems, so low fat is of benefit only for limiting calories.
If you have followed all these methods and still have weight issues, have your vet run thyroid tests on your dog. Hypothyroid (low hormone levels) are extremely common and tend to be breed associated (dobermans, goldens among others). Supplementation is easy and relatively cheap compared to many medications.
Doug, DVM
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Code2High
Ridgecrest, CA
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.... Checking the earthquake index map for signs that the earth is moving!
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teknomad
Land of Enchantment
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timeless46 wrote:Hi all!
I have Llasha Apso who is 6 years old. She seems to be putting weight on. We feed her 1 cup per day and 3 milk bones a day but no people food. She eats lamb and rice because she is allergic to beef and chicken. Purina one does not make a reduced fat for her. The question is after all this, is there a dog food that is low in fat and that she can eat. I am retired so the cost of her food I need to take in consideration. Before I hear about if yu love your dog you will not worry abou cost she is the love of my life but money only goes so far. So I am asking for your understanding and your help.
Thanks in advance for you understanding and your help.
Judy
Most commercial dog foods want you to feed too much to the dogs, Judy. (That way they sell more.) 
Some people add green beans (without salt) as a low calorie filler. Most dogs seem to like those.
You might want to have your dog checked for thyroid issues. Often that is the cause of not being able to lose weight.
Good luck!
Intrepida
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john b
anywhere USA!
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timeless46 wrote:Hi all!
I have Llasha Apso who is 6 years old. She seems to be putting weight on. We feed her 1 cup per day and 3 milk bones a day but no people food. She eats lamb and rice because she is allergic to beef and chicken. Purina one does not make a reduced fat for her. The question is after all this, is there a dog food that is low in fat and that she can eat. I am retired so the cost of her food I need to take in consideration. Before I hear about if yu love your dog you will not worry abou cost she is the love of my life but money only goes so far. So I am asking for your understanding and your help.
Thanks in advance for you understanding and your help.
Judy
Check out Dick Vanpattens natural blends/brands they have something for all tyoes of care. We use the lowfat for our senior dog & our daughters use the one for dogs with food allergies. We get ours at Petco & our baby just loves it she had been on Eukanuba since birth but sure loves this. Our Grandaughter is almost a vet & steered us to the product!!
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Happytraveler
Capistrano Beach, Ca. USA
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My vet told me to ease up on dog cookies when Jessie was over weight. He compared dog cookies to candy bars.
Charlie- a Male Soft Coated Wheaten Terrier
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CatandJim
Tulsa, as in Oklahoma
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I've been having some challenges posting on this board so I had sent you a PM last night, perhaps you didn't see it.
As you might remember I have two Lhasa Apsos. One of them puts on weight faster than the other one and they used to eat the same amount. I had to cut back on Petey's food to get some weight off him.
Perhaps you will need to try a few things with your Lhasa Apso. Please note, I am trying to gently correct you on the way you spell Lhasa Apso, I hope you won't mind me showing you the proper spelling. They are named after Lhasa, which is a city in Tibet, their country of origin. 
Anyway... I would try a couple of things before switching food, increase her exercise and decrease her food by 1/3 to 1/4 of a cup. Milk Bones are actually more high calorie than many people realize, so instead of a whole one break it in half and give 1/2 a couple of times a day or substitute a small piece of carrot instead of the Milk Bone. That has worked very well with Petey and our Shih-Tzu/Maltese mix as well.
Good luck!!
* This post was
edited 10/25/09 07:42pm by CatandJim *
Cat
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CatandJim
Tulsa, as in Oklahoma
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LOL!!
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lasparrot
Russell, just outside Ottawa, Canada's Capital
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We were in a different obedience class yesterday with different dogs. One of the dogs was an 11 month old miniature doxie. Very cute but pretty over-weight - there were bulges around its harness. They thought it was just muscular :-O NOT. I was so worried about its back but what do you say to someone so that they don't become defensive and instead realize that you just have the best interest of the dog at heart?
Laura
I forgot to mention that they said he was 15lbs!!!
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