While other dogs might come running at the sound of the tin opener, Jack the King Charles spaniel was so overweight he could barely walk to the kitchen – and even went deaf.
But that didn’t stop him from getting through three tins of dog food a day, as well as plenty of treats and leftovers.
His unhealthy diet meant he tipped the scales in excess of three stone – more than double the ideal weight for his breed.
Now, however, the eight-year-old has shed a third of his body weight and trimmed an impressive eight inches from his waist.
And yesterday, Jack was named pet slimming champion in a competition organised by veterinary charity PDSA.
Owner Rose Welsh, 52, who adopted ‘Jumbo Jack’ in January, said he came to her having been over-fed and barely exercised.
His vast intake of treats and goodies led to deafness as fat blocked his ear canals, and his weight prevented him from walking more than a few steps.
Mrs Welsh said: ‘The vet said that he was morbidly obese and would die unless he started an immediate diet.
‘As far as we were aware the previous owners simply left him from 5am until 6pm every day. When he came to us he couldn’t walk, hear, bark or play.’
Mrs Welsh, from Stanmore, north-west London, added: ‘Today he is a different dog. He is fit, healthy and happy.’
The competition saw 17 obese pets lose 13.5 stone between them – the equivalent of around 28 healthy Yorkshire terriers.
But while Jack was happy to winalot, his was not the only success story.
Fifi Bottomley, an eight-year-old rescue cat from Bradford, is now almost unrecognisable as the feline who first entered the vets.
She lost 4.4lbs and now weighs a healthier 16lb.
She was rescued as a starving kitten by her first owner and it was this early experience that is being blamed for her over-eating.
She gorged on extra meals from neighbours - and even stole bird food from the garden.
Her weight ballooned until she was morbidly obese. But since dieting she is much more active and playful.
Six-year-old cocker spaniel Billy's huge bulk meant he struggled to climb stairs. But he has since shed 15.2lb and is now a trim 36.6lb.
The slimming competition also saw greedy rabbit Bobby, a four-year-old mini-lop from Middlesbrough who stole her partner's food, drop a third of her bodyweight.
She was so fat the roll of skin under her chin grew so big she had difficulty grooming herself.
But she has since gone from 5.3lb to 3.8lb, shedding 29 per cent of her bodyweight.
source: dailymail
Posts
