Hope for Obese Canines

Fat dogs have less than a fat chance of losing weight. Belgium’s Janssen Animal Health has come out with a drug that helps overweight dogs shed the flab.

The drug works by blocking the transfer of fats from the food that the dogs eat into their bloodstream. It does not affect the absorption of the vital nutrients.

The treatment is also claimed to slightly reduce the dog's appetite, which means that the dog is less likely to beg for its favorite snack.

Studies across Europe have showed the drug has helped dogs lose on average ,8 per cent of their body weight.

Obesity in canines not only puts strain on their heart, liver, kidney and other organs, it also leads to arthritis and other problems.

Going by the name Yarvitan, the drug is to be used by pouring it over the dog’s meal. The course runs over 8 weeks and sets the dog owner back by 50 pounds. Yarvitan is given twice a day for 3 weeks, then after break of 2 weeks, it is continued for another 2 weeks.

Positive feedback has been reported from happy dog owners such as Cassie from UK, who says the drug has been a great help to her pet: "She was 43 kilos and she's gone down to 35 kilos so that's 8 kilos she's lost over about three months.

"It's nice for us to see her like it, therefore we're going to keep it up, because obviously we want her to be healthy and happy."

The drug can only be got when prescribed by a vet and is meant to be used only as recommended.

Yet what vets hope for, is a final change in owner’s habits as is it primarily due to over- feeding and negligence in exercising their dog, that leads to most canines piling on the pounds.

Says Vet Grant Petrie: "The treatment is only for a two month period and at the end of that we are going to rely on diet and exercise and hopefully a change in owner habits and so on, to continue the process.”

Source-Medindia
ANN