If he is like people, once the thyroid levels are adjusted, some of the weight will come off on its own. Some will have to come off with extra exercise and fewer calories though. There re some excellent weight control formulas in most of the premium dog food brands. I would just get the Weight Control formula in whatever brand you are using now. The benefit of using the Weight Control is that they can still eat the same amount, just will get fewer calories. You can just cut back on their regular feeding, but they know they are getting less and may fuss about not getting enough food. Just adding an extra 20 minute walk a day can help a LOT. Since the weather is so bad in parts of the world, you might want to work up an indoor substitute. Say 20 minutes of rigorous play including some lively fetch. I think it works best to combine lower calorie intake with extra exercise. That way you aren't making drastic changes in either.
Bless you for rescuing a Yorkie, especially one with medical needs. An interesting note, dogs require much MORE thyroid hormone than an adult human being, even tiny dogs like our yorkies. I thought that was strange. But their metabolism is so much higher than ours, I guess that is part of the reason. |