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I have Newfoundlands, and one of them has gotten quite fat. Her name is Breezy, and she's an awesome brown Newfie. We got her as a rescue when she was 2 years old and recently spayed. She gradually put on weight until now she needs to drop about 20 pounds. She's currently 140 pounds, and I'd like to see her around 120 pounds. My boys are all at their proper weight, ranging from 130 pounds to 150 pounds.
Feeding details - we used to feed our dogs Nature's Domain from Costco, but about 3 months ago we switched to raw feeding. The response from our dogs has been outstanding, which was a relief. My wife and I had discussed the possibility of feeding raw for a couple years, but were a little nervous about it. The guides I found said to feed at about 2-3% of the dog's ideal body weight, and to adjust as needed. We started everyone at 2%, since Newfies aren't tremendously energetic dogs, and kept a close eye on their weight. This amount seems to be ideal for my boys, as their weight remained about the same, and their energy level actually got a little higher. We've been feeding Breezy less than the boys in an attempt to trim her down. The boys get about 3 pounds per day, and Breezy gets about 2.4 pounds. She hasn't put on any more weight, but has only lost maybe 1-2 pounds. I'm not in any rush to trim her down, but I'd like to set up a schedule to get her weight under control in the next 6-12 months.
For exercise, she does a lot of wrestling with the boys and us, and takes walks indoors (it's hot where I live). She's only 4 years old, but I want her at a good weight for when she gets older. Any advice on food portions or ways to get the battle of the bulge under control would be appreciated.
Feeding details - we used to feed our dogs Nature's Domain from Costco, but about 3 months ago we switched to raw feeding. The response from our dogs has been outstanding, which was a relief. My wife and I had discussed the possibility of feeding raw for a couple years, but were a little nervous about it. The guides I found said to feed at about 2-3% of the dog's ideal body weight, and to adjust as needed. We started everyone at 2%, since Newfies aren't tremendously energetic dogs, and kept a close eye on their weight. This amount seems to be ideal for my boys, as their weight remained about the same, and their energy level actually got a little higher. We've been feeding Breezy less than the boys in an attempt to trim her down. The boys get about 3 pounds per day, and Breezy gets about 2.4 pounds. She hasn't put on any more weight, but has only lost maybe 1-2 pounds. I'm not in any rush to trim her down, but I'd like to set up a schedule to get her weight under control in the next 6-12 months.
For exercise, she does a lot of wrestling with the boys and us, and takes walks indoors (it's hot where I live). She's only 4 years old, but I want her at a good weight for when she gets older. Any advice on food portions or ways to get the battle of the bulge under control would be appreciated.