Evaluating the Potential Benefit of a Combined Weight Loss Program in Dogs and Their Owners

Abstract

Introduction: Little has been published on the psychological bond between the owner and the pet, and how this might influence shared habits that could lead to overweight and obesity. Another factor that could improve the effectiveness of a weight loss plan, is that the owner would see the dog as a weight loss partner and therefore this could increase the motivation to follow the assigned diet and exercise guidelines.Objective: The aim of this research was to evaluate the potential mutual effects of weight loss programs for both dogs and dog owners.Methods: Two studies were conducted: In the human-centered trial, 60 dog owners were enrolled, who signed up to receive dietary and exercise recommendations to lose weight themselves during an 8 week period, from which 29 were randomly assigned to also get recommendations for their dog. For the dog-centered trial, we selected 13 dog owners that wanted their dog to lose weight during a 6 week period, from which 7 were randomly assigned to also get recommendations for themselves. The average weight loss over the time period was recorded. A questionnaire was used to evaluate diet and exercise habits, as well as information about the relationship between the dog and owner.Results: The average human weight loss was 2.6% in the owner+dog group (n = 29) and 2.3% in the owner only group (n = 31; p > 0.05). Forty percent (24/60) of the dogs in the human-centered trial were overweight. The overweight dogs in the owner+dog group (n = 12/29) lost 3.7% of their body weight, compared to 1.2% in the overweight dogs from the owner only group (n = 12/31; p > 0.05). In the dog-centered trial, the 7 dogs in the dog+owner group lost 8.0% of their body weight, vs. 8.3% in the six dogs in the dog only group (p > 0.05). The owners in the dog+owner group lost 2.5% of their body weight, compared to 0.5% in the dog only group (p > 0.05). In both trials owners' perceived responsibility for both their own and their dogs' weight significantly increased. In addition, habit strength regarding unhealthy feeding and exercise behaviors in relation to the dogs decreased, and self-efficacy in relation to providing the dog with healthy food and exercise increased.Conclusion: Active weight loss in either dog owner or dog, seemed to lead to passive weight loss in the other, especially when some tools or guidelines were provided. These findings support mutual benefits of weight loss programs for dogs and dog owners, and support future weight loss programs to be a One Health approach.

Cat and/or Dog Ownership, Cardiovascular Disease, and Obesity: A Systematic Review

“…For a full description of the 14 included studies, see Supplementary Table S2. Ten studies on CVD [20][21][22][23][24][25][26][27][28][29], four studies on obesity [30][31][32][33], and zero studies on T2D met the criteria. The 10 CVD studies were conducted in Australia (two studies) [20,26], China [29], Croatia [28], England [21], Sweden (two studies) [23,24], and the USA (three studies) [22,25,27].…”

“…Common CVD variables were body mass index (BMI) [20,25,27,29], systolic blood pressure [20,22,27], diastolic blood pressure [20,22], high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol [20,22], low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol [20,22], physical activity [20,25,29], smoking status [21,22,25,27,29], and alcohol consumption [20,21,25,29]. Three obesity studies were conducted in the USA [30,31,33] and one in the Netherlands [32]. The obesity variables were BMI [30,31,33], body weight [32], fat percentage [32], waist circumference [32], health status [30], dietary intake [30,31], physical activity [30,31,33], stress [33], and social support [31,33].…”

“…Three obesity studies were conducted in the USA [30,31,33] and one in the Netherlands [32]. The obesity variables were BMI [30,31,33], body weight [32], fat percentage [32], waist circumference [32], health status [30], dietary intake [30,31], physical activity [30,31,33], stress [33], and social support [31,33].…”

“…Sample sizes for the obesity studies ranged from n = 60 [32] to n = 473 [30] and all four studies included young, middle-aged, and older adults [30][31][32][33]. Three obesity studies focused on BMI and physical activity as outcomes [30,31,33], and one on weight loss, including fat percentage and waist circumference [32]. Two studies also reported on dietary intake [30,31], two reported on social support [31,33], and one reported on emotional stress [33].…”

“…Operationalization of pet ownership varied. Three studies used self-reported data to assess pet ownership but did not describe the question(s) asked [31][32][33] and one used a one-page questionnaire [30].…”