Obie the overweight dachshund, who at his heaviest weighed 35kg, has made his TV debut in the US.
The five-year-old purebred had to be wheeled into the studio on a specially designed trolley because he is so chubby.
Obie was discovered and adopted by dog-lover Nora Vanatta, who explained that he has been placed on a “high protein, high fibre, low energy diet” in an effort to help him lose 18kg — almost half his body weight.
The pooch’s only exercise at the moment is “going from the house to the outside to go potty every day”, Nora explained.
Vet Dr Andrew Kaplan says Obie is by far the biggest dachshund he has ever seen. But luckily, obese dogs don’t suffer the same health consequences as humans.
“If you are thinking about people being that overweight, it can lead to things like heart attacks, but dogs aren’t at risk for these things for being overweight. For dogs it’s orthopaedic [injuries to the muscles, ligaments and joints] mostly,” Dr Kaplan said.
Obie is losing just under a kilo per week and is expected to live a healthy life once he sheds some weight.
Dr Kaplan says there is a pet obesity epidemic and that owners should ensure they don’t over feed their pets.
“People have good intentions and feed their dogs what they think they are supposed to feed them, but it’s the treats,” he says.
“I find it’s the treats because it’s the binge eating, just like humans.”
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