| How to Put Your Dog on a Diet Posted: 11 Jul 2016 05:00 PM PDT If you've noticed your dog packing on the pounds, don't be surprised. Many pet dogs slowly gain weight over a long period of time. While this might seem like a simple cosmetic problem, obesity, or carrying extra weight, can mean health problems for your pet including strain on the joints, heart, lungs, and shorter life expectancy.[1] To help your dog lose weight, reduce his caloric intake and increase his exercise level. EditReducing Your Dog's Caloric Intake - Consult with a veterinarian. Before you start your dog on a diet, check with the vet. Many clinics run a dog weight loss program where your pet is weighed and you can get specific instructions about how much to feed your dog. These regular weigh-ins, firm target, and moral support can make you more likely to succeed in putting your dog on an effective diet. Your vet may recommend one of the following diets:
- High Fiber/Low-Fat Diet: These contain fiber which expand in your dog's stomach, making him feel full. The package instructions should clearly state how much to feed your dog based on a target (goal) weight.
- Metabolic diets: These are more high tech and feed the genes that improve your dog's metabolism. Increasing metabolism can make your dog burn more calories, causing him to lose weight.
- Determine how much food your dog eats a day. Pay attention to how much you're currently feeding your dog. If your dog is fed twice a day, weigh out the total amount so you know how much he's eating. However, if your dog has food constantly available, it's harder to determine how much he's eating. This makes it more difficult to know how much to cut down. If this is the case, look at the food package and see how much it advises feeding a dog at your dog's target rate.
- For most dogs, the package will advise a weight range. For example, 300 to 350 grams of food a day. You'd want to choose the lower amount of 300 grams.[2]
- Reduce the amount of food you feed. Once you've determined how much your dog needs to eat a day, reduce the amount by 5 to 10%. For example, if you are feeding 300g of kibble a day, 10% of this is 30g, so the new amount is 270g. Feed this reduced amount for one or two weeks and weigh your dog. Hopefully, he loses weight, but if he hasn't, deduct another 5 to 10% from his daily food amount. Weigh your dog again after feeding the reduced amount for another week or two.[3]
- Don't be upset or worried if the portion size looks small or your dog pesters you for food. This is a normal concern when putting a dog on a diet. If you're really unsettled, you may want to feed a prescription weight loss diet instead.
- Offer healthy treats occasionally. Since you'll be cutting back on your dog's food and increasing exercise, you'll need to offer positive encourage every so often. While you can praise your dog, you can also give him the rare treat. Just be sure to offer something healthy that will also make him feel full and satisfied. Some good options include:
- Bran or grated vegetable mixed with his food
- French or runner beans, raw
- Apples (in moderation)
- Bananas (in moderation)
- Make your dog work for food. Get your dog involved in earning his food, rather than just set it out in front of him. Buy a puzzle or activity feeder that you can fill with food. Your dog then moves shapes around or rolls balls around to get the food inside to fall out. This can make your dog more active and mentally engaged. Try to prevent boredom while your dog's on a diet. Keeping his mind occupied will prevent him from thinking about food.[4]
- Training is also a great way to keep a dog active and prevent boredom. Of course training depends heavily on rewards, so take some of his dinner kibble and set it aside for rewards or give him lots of praising.
- Monitor your dog's weight loss. Weigh your dog once every week or two so you can track any weight loss. This will also indicate whether your diet and routine are working. If he isn't losing, then you can reevaluate what you're doing. Make sure your goals are reasonable and that you're consistent with the regimen. Don't expect sudden drops in weight. Instead, look for slow and steady weight loss which is more sustainable. Smaller dogs should aim to lose no more than four ounces a week while larger dogs can aim for one pound per week.[5]
- If you have a large dog or do not have access to scales, use a tape measure. Chose a point on the dog such as his girth or his waist and measure around it. Make a note of any landmarks the tape passes over, such as a particular pattern or spot, so you place the tape in the same place each time.
EditExercising Your Dog - Create an exercise routine. While it may seem like you can simply start exercising your dog, you should make personalized exercise routine. Overweight dogs need to be gradually introduced to exercise if they were previously inactive. Jumping straight into a daily walking regimen can cause joint pain or injury instead of weight loss. Talk with your vet about what level of activity you should start your dog on.[6]
- If your dog is inactive, start by putting small amounts of his food at opposite ends of the room and make him walk back and forth to eat it. You can also play simple games like rolling a ball across the floor and asking him to fetch it. When he drops the ball, reward him with some of the kibble taken from his dinner allowance.[7]
- Introduce moderate walking. Gentle lead walks are a great way to begin exercising any unfit dog. Take your dog for a walk on his leash as far as he can comfortably walk. Make a note of how long it took him to get that far. Then, you can gradually increase the distance by adding 5 minutes to each walk once a week.[8]
- For example, if your dog can only walk for 5 minutes in the first week, increase his walk to 10 minutes in the second week, 15 minutes in the third week, and so forth. If the walks are very short, take him out two or three times a day in order to build up stamina and fitness.
- Make sure your dog is actually walking during your outings, not just spending most of his time sniffing.
- Increase the dog's exercise level. Increasing the duration, frequency, and intensity of your dog's walking regimen will maximize weight loss and overall health. However, you probably want to add other activities to keep your dog interested in exercising. Once your dog is walking more comfortably, introduce one of the following exercises:
- Cycling: Once your dog has a good level of fitness, train your dog to run alongside your bicycle. This can be a fun way for both of you to get exercise, but ensure that your dog doesn't become a danger on the road or to you.[9]
- Swimming: Let your dog swim for short periods and gradually increase swim time. Swimming is excellent exercise for an overweight dog since it is non-weight bearing and won't strain the joints. However, make sure he wears a life vest because he may tire suddenly and there is a risk of drowning.[10]
- Playing with toys: Pick up several active dog toys. Any kind of fetch toys are great for your dog like balls, flying discs, or plush toys. Pick your favorite and throw repeatedly until your dog is worn out. If you have back problems, buy a toy retrieval product to make picking up toys easier.
- Use positive reinforcement. Be sure to praise your dog verbally and physically before, during, and after exercise. For example, you can pet your dog or rub his ears or say, "Good boy!" Being positive will make exercise more enjoyable for your dog. You want him to associate exercise with reward. Your dog will be motivated, making exercise easier.[11]
- Be patient with any exercise program. It may take a few months for your dog to meet the weight loss goals you've set for him, but it is possible if it's been organized and well thought out.
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| How to Edit a Tumblr Post After It's Been Posted Posted: 11 Jul 2016 09:00 AM PDT Noticing a typo right after you've posted something - it's a common and relatable problem we've all experienced at least once. This could be one of the many reasons you may want to edit a post after you've uploaded it. - Navigate to the dashboard. You will be automatically redirected to the dashboard after you log in. If you are on another Tumblr page, click the button in the upper-right corner.
- Click the button. This button is located in the upper-right corner, on the left of the blue button. After you click the button, a window should drop down.
- Click the button. This button is located under the Tumblrs tab in the window that just dropped down. You will be redirected to a list of all your posts.
- Locate the post you want to edit. The posts will be ordered chronologically, so you only have to scroll until you found the unwanted post.
- Click the gear-shaped button. This button is located in the lower-right corner of every post. A small menu will pop up.
- Click . The usual editing menu should now pop up.
- Make the necessary changes.
- Click to save your changes. This is indicated in red. You can also click on the smaller arrow, indicated in green, next to , for extra options, such as Post privately and Preview on blog.
- You can go to the Posts page in one step by using the following URL, where blog-name is replaced by the name of your own blog. Note that you must be logged in to do this.
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| How to Keep Ants Away From Cat Food Posted: 11 Jul 2016 01:00 AM PDT Ants can be a real problem when it comes to feeding your cat. They will steal her food and often prevent her from eating. After all, would you eat your food if there were a bunch of ants crawling around on it? Here is how you can get ants to stay out of your cat's food. EditPreventing Ants from Invading - Keep food in an airtight plastic container. Instead of keeping cat food in the bag, move the food from the bag to the plastic container after opening the bag. There are many of these available that are designed for pet food.[1]
- Wash the food bowls. Ants are attracted to crumbs and any food left behind. Wash the bowls at least once every two days, or more if possible. This is extremely important if you have an ant problem.[2]
- Use a cat safe detergent and rinse thoroughly with fresh, clean water.
- Keep the feeding area clean. Deter ants from getting interested in the food area in the first place by keeping it clean. Sweep up any crumbs or left over food after your cat has finished eating. Mop the floor with vinegar or lemon mixtures to help dissuade ants from approaching.[3]
- You may consider moving the bowl off the floor when your cat is not eating, or leaving it out during certain hours, but picking it up at night.
- Shift the feeding area. You can also try to move the bowl to another place. This way the ants may not be able to find it. If you have ants coming into the room, move the bowl away from the ant colony.
- Make a boundary around the food. Try making a boundary around your cat's food bowl that ants can't cross. There are certain substances that will help repel ants.
- Draw a line around the bowl with chalk.
- Place a newspaper under the bowl and surround the bowl with a line of ground cinnamon, coffee grounds, chili powder, or ash.[4]
- Surround the edge of the food container with petroleum jelly.
- Spray vinegar or lemon on the floor around your pet's bowl. Mix 1 part vinegar or lemon juice to 1 part water. Place in a spray bottle and spray around the bowl, creating a boundary.[5]
- Cover the outside of the bowl with petroleum jelly. A messy method to prevent ants from reaching the food is to smear the outside of the food bowl with petroleum jelly. The ants have trouble walking up the slippery surface.[6]
- You can also place this on the outside of the moat container as an extra line of defense.
- Use essential oils. Many essential oils can help repel ants. Try wiping down the floor around your cat's bowl with a damp cloth that contains a few drops of peppermint oil. Ants are repelled by the strong smell.[7]
- You can also use lemon, orange, or grapefruit oil to repel ants. Try wiping the floor around the bowl with a cotton ball covered in the oil.[8]
- Essential oils are safe and don't contain chemicals.
- Use a lure to attract the ants. A good way to keep the ants far from the bowl is to place commercial ant bait (under a cat-safe box) in the general area. Make sure that there is just a small hole for the ants to get in and eat the poison. At the same time, make sure your pet cannot access the bait.
- One way might be to screw a box directly into the floor or deck. It might be possible to jamb the cover box behind a stove or refrigerator, but only if the space is excessively narrow for your cat to access it. Just remember that cats are curious and can get into unimaginable places.
EditMaking a Food Bowl Moat - Remove any ants already in your cat's food bowl. Dump out the ants and remaining contaminated food. Immediately close the bag and take outside. This helps keep the ants from crawling back out and getting back into the food.[9]
- Wash the bowl. Ants leave pheromones behind that attract more ants, so make sure to thoroughly wash out the bowl with hot water and detergent. If the bowl is dishwasher friendly, you can put it through your dishwasher.[10]
- Clean the food area. After removing the ants, clean the area around the food. You have to remove the pheromone trail so ants from the colony won't return. Try using vinegar or lemon juice to erase the scent and deter future ants from approaching.[11]
- You can also mop the area around the food container, or the entire kitchen floor. You can use what you normally use to mop, or use dish soap.[12]
- Find a moat container. Look for a shallow container that is wider than the cat food bowl. You can use a silver tray, a cake pan, a pie pan, a roasting tray, or anything else that will fit the cat bowl in.[13]
- Make sure the container you put the cat bowl in isn't too big. However, there should be about an inch between the edge of the moat and the food bowl. This distance helps keep ants away.[14]
- Some companies manufacture bowls that already incorporate the moat around the bowl's edge. These are great and easy to use and the entire bowl can be picked up and cleaned in one go. However, if you don't want to spend the money on that before seeing if it works, you can try this DIY method.
- Fill the container with water. Place a small amount of water in the moat container. You don't want to fill it too high so it spills into the food, but want enough water to provide a barrier for the ants. Ants aren't good swimmers, so it should drown or deter the ants from crossing.[15]
- To help keep ants from crossing the water, try placing some vegetable oil, lemon essential oil, or dishwashing soap into the moat water. But only add dishwashing liquid if the space between the moat and food bowl is too small for the cat to drink from.[16]
- Place the food bowl in the moat container. Put the food bowl in the water. Make sure there is at least a 1-inch space between the edge of the moat and the food bowl. Fill the food bowl with fresh food.
- If the container is extra large, put the food bowl close enough to its edge so your cat will be able to reach the food without difficulty, but far enough from the edge the ants won't be able to hop across.
- If the food bowl is too short, use a block or other item to raise the food bowl above the edge of the moat container.[17]
- Empty the moat container as needed. The water may contain some drowned ants or spilled food. It will need refreshing as it begins to evaporate.
- Keep up this process. Eventually, the ants will stop coming. In some places, like in warmer climates, you may have to feed your cat in this manner persistently as the ants never go away.
- If your cat's feeding area is kept relatively clean, you may never develop an ant problem.
- Do not use insecticides or any other poison. These can harm your cat.
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