Kathleen, my Cocker, Teddy sounds like your guy. He is not much of a player, but I do make him go on walks with a dog walker (I have mobility issues so I cannot walk with my dogs) and he goes to the dog park when the weather is good. He also eats poop, but it doesn’t have to be his (he doesn’t go for Chuck, my lab) and happens at the dog park.
There is a site (I think Aimee might have put a link on a different post elsewhere) http://www.aahanet.org/PublicDocuments/Weight_Management_Guidelines.pdf that I have read many times to let it sink in. According to what I read, if I put Teddy’s goal weight in, which should be 24, and you do the math (instructions provided, thank God), I should be feeding him roughly 335 calories. That is at 80% or resting energy requirement). I just started in the last couple of weeks to stay around that number, although I feel it is pretty low for him even when he is sedentary, although he doesn’t seem to be any more food crazy then he already was 🙂 I plan on weighing Teddy tomorrow and see if there has been any change, but I think with smaller dogs, the weight will come off slowly. When Chuck had to lose 20 pounds a couple of years ago, it took about 5-6 months, but I, at that time, wasn’t as dog food knowledgeable as I am now (still learning!) and put him on Purina OM prescription food. It did the job, but I wouldn’t do it again as the ingredients are less than desirable. He has maintained his 75 to 78 pound goal weight now for 2 years, maybe fluctuating 2 lbs higher/lower.
It also shows you how to calculate protein needs for the food you want to feed and if it is enough for your dog and other good information.
