Weight and diet

Question
Hi Ashley
Can you tell me what the average weight should be for a Jack Russell, ours is 10KG and no matter how hard we try we cannot seem to get the weight off him.  Even if we cut his foods down he still does not seem to be able to lose - we is very active and he goes for a walk every day - Not at the moment because he just had crucial ligament surgery and is strictly confined, and its breaking our hearts to see him this way.
Thankyou

Answer
Judi,

I understand the heartbreaking experience of keeping your dog confined after ligament surgery. My labrador had her ACL repaired last summer and was confined for a while.

Jack Russells can weigh anywhere from 9-16 lbs. Their ideal weight usually comes out to about 1 kg to each 5 cm in height (for example, a dog that is 25 cm high should weigh about 5 kg). Also, they were bred to be very active hunting/working dogs, so if the only exercise he gets is a walk every day, it may not be enough. I know you said you are very active - does he get to play a lot in the house with you? Is there a yard or dog park for him to run around in? One note on walking him daily - walking a dog on concrete for too long on a daily basis is bad for his joints. Unpaved ground is much better for them to walk on. I'm not sure how or where you are walking him but just be aware of that.

Based on what you've said, his activity level may not be the problem. What kind of food is your dog on? If he is on a poor diet, feeding less of it wouldn't take care of his weight problem. It would be like a person who only ate junk food... and then kept eating junk food, just less of it, and expected to lose weight. If you tell me what he is eating I can give you some nutritional counseling that may help.

Did your veterinarian have any advice on how to manage his weight?

I hope this helps some and if you want to write me back I will try to help you some more.

Ashley