How to "politely" tell someone you are related to that their dog is WAY TOO FAT!! I have a non blood reletive (on dh's side) who has a boxer mix that is very very overweight. He is free fed, never walked, and has no training. I can turn my head to know he's not getting out to walk, and i can even ignore the lack of training that is obvious by his door manners, but I can't ignore that he's going to die early in life because they don't know a thing about dogs and are letting him eat his weight in walmart kibble!! I'm furious at this person due to them letting their adopted cat die from possible intestinal blockage. The cat threw up for i believe three days before they went to the vet and they took him to banfield which quoted a testing and surgery at $2500 and because they are in so much financial troubles, the chose to not do a thing about this cat. Finally my father in law got them to let him take the cat to a lady for help, but it was too late and the cat died. I am still fuming mad over this. Why did they buy or better yet adopt a cat knowing they didn't have any money to really truely care for it?? And now this dog is obese and not being taken proper care of either...what can I do without offending them, but to get this dog to someone who will really care for him or at least get them to understand that dogs are not cats and that they need walking at least once a day and they need to be fed a rationed meal and not free fed when they get this overweight????!!! |
I hate to be pessimistic, but you could potentially bring on some anger regardless of how you say it, if you choose to do so. About the kitty, 2500 bucks is a lot, and many people wouldn't have the money to spend on a surgery like that...if you are really concerned for this animal, you could offer to walk the dog and work on some training...that's probably what I would do. |
Are the owners not very active and overweight? If so, it will be difficult to convince them about the dangers of allowing a dog to become so heavy. If you really don't want them to know it's coming from you, find articles on pet weight management, the dangers of being overweight, etc., make copies and mail them to the owner...no return address. |
If you live near this relative maybe you could offer to take the dog for a walk a few times a week. It may not solve the whole problem but that might be a way to "open" the door for further talking about that poor babies health??? Then just bring up 1 problem at a time over time maybe it would work. |
It's a touchy subject, with no way to sugar coat it really. My friend is overweight, but is trying to improve her diet. Her little dog is too, to the point where I swear I saw a rash on her inner thighs from the legs rubbing a lot. The four of us (My friend, her dog, Kaji and I) use to go for very long walks which helped reduce the size of the doggie's belly significantly! I moved away and they're both back up in wieght. I second the suggestion of doing walking the dog yourself, or inviting them to walk with you when you take your baby out, if you live nearby. |
As far as suggesting something - you could nicely tell them there is weight control food on the market for dogs and he'd be more comfortable without the extra pounds and explain that obesity is a health risk for all animals but controllable ...in some cases - just switching food could help him be healthier it's hard to be in someone's business but if you do it tactfully - maybe they'll listen ? |
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Do people take the weight of their dogs that personally? I think I'd just say say one day when petting the dog, "oof, he's pretty padded! Did the vet say anything about his weight? I hear it's really bad for dogs to be overweight." They can respond, or no. Random anecdote: I was walking some dogs in the park, and a woman came by with several small dogs. I'm not sure how we got on the topic, but she mentioned that her vet is always on her about one of her doggies being fat, but hey, what can she do, the dog likes to eat. I kind of chuckled politely, but then as the dogs trotted away, I was like, whoa, that dog is REALLY fat! Like the doggie equivalent of morbidly obese. I almost wanted to call the woman back and say, hey, listen to your vet for your dog's sake, but there's only so much meddling a stranger can do. |
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