[nagdu] Help for obese dogsRE: Control of Guide Dog Issue

minh ha minh.ha927 at gmail.com
Fri Aug 2 02:25:52 UTC 2013


I agree that the schools like to keep the dogs on the thinner side
during training. When I first got Viva, she was at 47 pounds which was
definitely healthy, but her ribs were very prominent and her waist was
really tiny. The vet at GDB told me her ideal weight range would be
around 47-52 pounds, and she was actually 52 pounds when her puppy
raiser dropped her off for training. I didn't really like how skinny
she was so I increased her food from 2-1/2 cups to 3 cups a day. She's
filled out a lot and she looks great; she still has that lovely
athletic figure, but she doesn't look as deprived as before. I'm going
to stay at 3 cups a day because we're working a lot and she's getting
a ton of exercise. I think if people follow what their schools teach
them about monitoring their dog's weight, obesity wouldn't really be a
problem. As for the couch potato owners, why have guide dogs at all?
It's not a big deal if the dog is not being worked because the owner
is ill or is adjusting to a new environment, but not working your dog
because you don't get out too much is doing the dog and the school a
great disservice. So many people put so much effort and money into
raising these dogs that not working them is just a huge amount of
waste. Maybe it's just me, but I feel like I have an obligation to
keep my dog healthy and let her do her job like she was trained to do.
Minh
On 7/31/13, L Gwizdak <leg1950 at cox.net> wrote:
> At Seeing Eye, we have lecture about the proper feeding of the dogs -
> includes types of good foods to feed and about NOT feeding people food.  The
>
> dogs are fed a certain amount based on the dog's weight and activity level
> and our instructors tell us how to feed our dogs.  I think they really will
>
> get into this now that the students are given a bin of food that is kept in
>
> the room and the student feeds his or her own dog while on class.  Before
> this change, the instructor would come around to the rooms at 5:30am and at
>
> 4pm with the pre-filled bowls of food.
>
> Sometimes, after going home, the amount may need to be adjusted based on the
>
> dog's stress level is lower as the dog gets used to things in the new home
> and the working schedule changes.  While on class, the instructors teach us
>
> how to assess the dog's weight - when we'd need to either increase the feed
>
> or decrease it.
>
> Landon gets a food sort of like IAMS called Pet Worth from the Midwest.
> I've fed this food for the last 13 years to my dogs and they do well on it.
>
> I feed two cups in the morning and one cup at suppertime.  Landon's weight
> is good.
>
> ONe of the things that needs to be taken into consideration is that we get
> the dogs young - betwen 20 or 24 months old and they are not yet filled out
>
> as they will be after they are three or four years old. In all my years of
> having guide dogs, I find that the dogs are kept thinner at the school and
> they like one weight and our vets will say a bit higher weight is fine.  If
>
> you can feel the dog's ribs and the dog has an hourglass shape - there are
> visible hips, your gdog is fine.  Landon wears the same harness he got when
>
> we were on class.  If you have to get a new, bigger harness, then you may
> want to assess the dog's weight.
>
> Labs tend to pack on the weight because they are bred to have more body fat
>
> due to the years of breeding for cold water work that they were originally
> bred to do - duck hunting retrieval.  They will eat anything.  I have, too,
>
> seen many guide Labs that are obese because the owners do litle walking
> themselves thus a couch potato dog.  Many times, the person is also obese.
> NOTE: Not a judgement call on my part; just an observation of my over 40
> years of being around lots of blind folks and their guide dogs.
>
> Lyn and Landon
> "Asking who's the man and who's the woman in an LGBT relationship is like
> asking which chopstick is the fork" - Unknown
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Julie McGinnity" <kaybaycar at gmail.com>
> To: "NAGDU Mailing List,the National Association of Guide Dog Users"
> <nagdu at nfbnet.org>
> Sent: Wednesday, July 31, 2013 10:15 AM
> Subject: Re: [nagdu] Help for obese dogsRE: Control of Guide Dog Issue
>
>
>> Hi Marion and all,
>>
>> I think it's a real problem.  I have known it to happen, and Guiding
>> Eyes also works hard to make students understand the obesity problems.
>> We had multiple lectures that dealt with the subject, and when we
>> fill out the annual reports, it asks for the dog's weight.
>>
>> I would like to see if other schools are concerned about this as well,
>> and I think it might be something to look into.  I don't think that
>> the possibility of obesity is a reason to deny ownership, but I
>> understand the worry that they have.
>>
>> On 7/31/13, National Association of Guide Dog Users
>> <blind411 at verizon.net> wrote:
>>> Dear All,
>>> At our annual meeting during the guide dog training programs
>>> comments about the Bill of Rights, Leader asserted that the reason for
>>> their
>>> two-year probationary period was the prevalendce of obesity among guide
>>> dogs. I found this interesting, especially since Mr. Haneline himself
>>> told
>>> me that the two-year probationary period was the result of the handler
>>> who
>>> kicked his dog to death! Now I wonder which it really is! In any case, I
>>> questioned him about the obesity issue and was told it is really a
>>> problem.
>>> It would be interesting to know some statistics on this. As a counselor,
>>>
>>> I
>>> practice what is referred to as "Evidence Based Treatment" (EBT). This
>>> means
>>> that the treatment is founded on evidence of success, not merely the
>>> belief
>>> that it works or anecdotal information. I am of the opinion that, if
>>> this
>>> were really such a problem other training programs would observe similar
>>> issue (replication) and modify their practices to prevent it. Without
>>> evidence that it is an issue, I am unconvinced of the problem and leery
>>> of
>>> the its justification to deny ownership based upon a mythical problem!
>>>
>>> Fraternally yours,
>>> Marion Gwizdala
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> -----Original Message-----
>>> From: nagdu [mailto:nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Deanna Lewis
>>> Sent: Wednesday, July 31, 2013 10:00 AM
>>> To: NAGDU Mailing List, the National Association of Guide Dog Users
>>> Subject: [nagdu] Help for obese dogsRE: Control of Guide Dog Issue
>>>
>>> I do think overweight and obese dogs are more common nowadays, just like
>>> people! My dog has always been a big boy, and was a bit overweight, but
>>> now
>>> he has lost 7 pounds and looks fantastic. He looks great at 77 pounds.
>>> He
>>> gained his weight due to not working for a few weeks on and off, due to
>>> me
>>> having 8 eye surgeries in less than a year. But, as soon as we started
>>> to
>>> work every day, and cut his food a bit, he slimmed down pretty quickly.
>>> I know this one person, who has a black lab that is severely obese. He
>>> is
>>> about 20-22 inches at the shoulders, and weighs at least 115. The poor
>>> thing
>>> gets out of breath just from walking a block or two. The handler goes
>>> overboard in feeding this dog. He gives him treats constantly and I am
>>> sure
>>> that he eats people food a lot at home. He is also very misbehaved.  The
>>> handler will not listen to people when they kindly make suggestions
>>> about
>>> the dog's weight. I know that the school took him away a few years back,
>>> and
>>> got some of the weight off. But, as soon as they came back home, he went
>>> back to his old habits. I wish there were something more I could do to
>>> help
>>> in this situation. Have any of you witnessed this type of issue. How
>>> could
>>> you help out the dog and handler?
>>> Deanna and Pascal
>>>
>>>
>>> -----Original Message-----
>>> From: nagdu [mailto:nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Jimmy
>>> Sent: Tuesday, July 30, 2013 6:21 PM
>>> To: National Association of Guide Dog Users Gwizdala
>>> Subject: [nagdu] Control of Guide Dog Issue
>>>
>>> Greetings friends,
>>> Hope everyone is well. I did not mean to have the topic get off of
>>> handlers controling their dogs and being accountable in pertaining to
>>> one
>>> of
>>> the dogs that was involved in my situation being a pit. I know many are
>>> very
>>> passionate about taht breed and feel they are misconceived. I have other
>>> feelings on the matter. However, I agree totally taht no matter what the
>>> breed the dog it- whether lab or shepherd- that dog can become
>>> aggressiveand
>>> if not controled or appropriate steps taken, can have unfortunate
>>> consequences. Here is a topic I am curious about your input on. This
>>> subject
>>> was brought up at our convention- that is the issue with obesity of our
>>> service animals. What arey your thoughts? This was a new issue  I was
>>> unaware of, if it is really an issue. Did anyone notice an over weight
>>> issue
>>> among service dogs  at the convention , those who have some vision?
>>> Thanks
>>>
>>>
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>>
>>
>> --
>> Julie McG
>> National Association of Guide dog Users board member,  National
>> Federation of the Blind performing arts division secretary,
>> Missouri Association of Guide dog Users President,
>> and Guiding Eyes for the Blind graduate 2008
>> "For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that
>> everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal
>> life."
>> John 3:16
>>
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>
>
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