Fat Shiba Friday

jeffnkazuko

I had a strange experience yesterday when I went out for a run in the park beside my apartment. I saw about 15 shibas all with different owners in different parts of the park. All of them them had older owners but it was the first time I have seen so many shibas out at the same time. Several were quite out of shape and pretty darn fat! I tried to talk to an older lady who was telling someone else that she was having trouble with the dog's weight. I wanted to offer to take her dog out a few times a week but she was a bit standoffish about this gaijin checking out her dog!
Next time I will bring my camera and see if I can get a few shots.

Losech

I feel bad for overweight dogs. Most of the time it's entirely the owner's fault their dog is fat, and it's quite pathetic when they get upset over someone pointing it out.

Sandra

It might have been that "time of the day". We see it here as well, a bunch of older people walking their dog every day at the same time, the same way and a lot of them overweight and behaving rather badly. The pets don't get enough playtime or the possibility to walk some of that energy off, instead the owners are stuffing them with all kinds of sweets and treats to make them see how much they are "loved". Would it help to point it out to them... no idea, I probably would get the same reaction as you did. As Losech said, they get rather upset if you point it out.

Sandra

shibamistress

I thought it was a club "Fat Shiba Friday" and I thought, hey, I have a Shiba who could join that club, except he's not much of a joiner! Anyway, I loved thinking about running into the people with Shibas! We'd love a pic!

And probably worth mentioning, too, that while it can be the owner's fault, with some dogs it's pretty hard to control their weight, or at least it is for us with Toby. Thyroid problems are pretty common in Shibas, and I know with us it means that even with proper meds, Toby really gains weight easily and it is hard to keep it off (and he's raw fed!). More exercise would help him, though! (And I know Losech knows this I was just adding it since Toby is here nudging me, saying, hey, I have a medical condition! Of course, Toby is only a stout gentlemen, not really hugely fat! Ha!)

curlytails

Oh... fat dogs run amok the world over. I definitely seeing several footstool-shaped Shibas in Taiwan, the likes of which I've not seen elsewhere. It seemed to be the only way that some of those folks could manage to walk their Shibas off-leash in congested urban areas -- because their dogs couldn't run even if they wanted to!

While I recognize that obesity is a serious issue, I don't think it's a subject that most strangers can discuss with tact. This is really something for their vet or a closer friend who can *show* what they're talking about through their own pet.

I feel the best I can do is try to "lead" by example. Bowdu has had and continues to have some weight issues, indeed in part because of his thyroid. I would have been annoyed if someone tried to offer unsolicited advice on how to care for my pet. But I think he's been looking pretty good, despite it all.

I think it's natural for pet owners to compare, especially when they see representatives of the same breed -- even if they're only making silent, mental note of the differences. So if they see other pets in good shape, the one who wants to know will start the discussion if they have any inclination to modify diet/weight to begin with. At least, this has been my experience...

In line with keeping things positive, I think offering to take an older lady's dog out for a walk is a sweet idea, Jeff. You could pose it as a mutual favor -- the experience could help keep her dog in shape, and you'd get the chance to hang out with and get to know a nice dog.