Christmas is fast approaching, and with it the meals and other excesses of all kinds that prevent you from zipping up those pants you bought especially for New Year’s Eve. For your dog too, it’s a bit of a holiday season. A little piece of turkey here, a piece of foie gras there, and it will be good for a diet in January.
Except that the problem of our four-legged friends does not only concern the end of the year. Indeed, according to the WHO and the National Veterinary School of Alfort published in 2023, between 30% and 45% of dogs suffer from obesity or overweight. It is therefore to raise awareness among owners on this subject that the SPA, in partnership with the insurer Generali, launched the “Urban Doggy Fit” program.
Urban obesity
The concept is simple: Divert street furniture to give your dog some physical exercise. Slaloming between lampposts, doing squats to pass under a bench, doing cardio while going up hills or core training while going down the stairs… Young people who do pull-ups topless in public parks just have to watch out. The SPA transforms the city into a real parkour terrain for big daddies.
Because yes, it is mainly in the city that dogs gain weight. According to Hela Rokbani, SPA veterinarian who participated in the development of the program, this is explained by “shorter walks”, the “lack of time” of owners, and the “lack of space to travel long distances”. distance and above all let go of your dog”, unlike in the countryside. In Paris, there are an average of 8,571 dogs per dog park…
Five videos to work on cardio, core, squats…
Another concern: if obesity is often obvious in dogs despite recurring denial (or bad faith) from their owners, excess weight is often poorly identified. However, it is also harmful. Osteo-articular problems, osteoarthritis, hormonal or endocrine diseases such as diabetes, being overweight can reduce a dog’s life expectancy by two years.
Through five educational videos, each two minutes long, Urban Doggy Fit explains how to perform different exercises. Example: pass your dog under a bench to work his abdominals, stretch and strengthen his front and back legs by luring him, all with kibble. To get him to work on his cardio, simply take him up and down small slopes at different paces with the leash more or less relaxed.
For each of these exercises, the platform provides information on the precautions to take depending on the dog’s health, age or difficulties, and even offers some stretching exercises to warm it up a little.
Preventing health problems…and abandonment
The proposed videos are accompanied by a street poster campaign organized by Generali. The company (which of course offers insurance for pets) explains its commitment by a desire to increasingly position itself on a “dynamic of prevention”. “A simple X-ray at the veterinarian can cost up to several hundred euros, an additional reason for owners to take into account the health of their animals, in addition to simply thinking about their well-being,” explains Elise Ginioux. , member of the executive committee of Generali
Especially since health problems in a pet can have much more terrible consequences, says Elise Ginioux: “The cost and access to care are one of the primary reasons for abandonment. »
Sport to combine with diet and an appointment with the veterinarian
The fact remains that physical exercise, essential for all animals, must be inseparably accompanied by a healthy diet. “We can do all the exercises in the world, if the food rations are not adapted, it will not be enough. We need to find the right balance between energy intake and expenditure,” explains Hela Rokbani. The specialist recommends starting with a visit to the veterinarian who can advise the owner on diet and exercises adapted to the animal based on its weight, size, age and breed.
The owners should ultimately benefit as well, according to Elise Ginioux. Firstly because the well-being of pets directly impacts that of their owners. But above all because through these exercises, they too will be put to work by going out more. Remember, it’s almost Christmas.
