Condition journey

Weight Management

A practical programme to reach and hold a healthy weight — assess, target, feed, move, sustain.

Find care near you

Your weight management care team

These are the practitioners this condition can call for, from your everyday vet to specialists and therapists. Enter your postcode to see who's near you at each step.

Your vet (primary care)

Pet nutritionist ·Veterinary physiotherapist ·Hydrotherapist

Understanding weight management

Reading from PetsLikeMine

Stage 1

Is my pet really overweight?

Is My Dog Actually Overweight? How to Tell at Home 8 min
Body Condition Score: How to Score Your Dog or Cat at Home 9 min
Losing Weight Without Trying: When Slimming Is a Warning Sign 8 min
Weight and Arthritis: The Single Best Thing You Can Do 8 min
"He's just a big cat": when round is a real problem 9 min
Could a health problem be behind the weight gain? 10 min
Weighing your pet at home: scales, tricks and how often 10 min
Weight and diabetes: how slimming can drive remission 10 min
Weight, the heart and breathing: lightening the load 9 min

Stage 2

Setting a healthy target

What should my pet actually weigh? Finding the ideal 9 min
How much to lose and how fast: safe rates for dogs and cats 9 min
How many calories? The feeding maths, made simple 9 min
Doing it with your vet: weight clinics and weigh-in check-ins 9 min

Stage 3

Food, portions and treats

How Much Should I Actually Feed? Why the Bag Is Lying to You 10 min
The Treat Budget: Keeping Treats Without Blowing the Diet 7 min
Never Crash-Diet a Cat: The Hepatic Lipidosis Rule 7 min
Measure, don't scoop: getting portions right in grams 10 min
Cut back the food you have, or switch to a diet food? 9 min
"He acts starving": handling begging and food obsession 9 min
Feeding a dieter in a multi-pet home 10 min
Getting the whole family (and the dog-sitter) on board 11 min

Stage 4

Getting them moving

Exercising an overweight dog safely: start slow 11 min
Getting an indoor cat moving: play that burns calories 10 min
Slimming when exercise is limited: arthritis, heart or age 11 min
Slow feeding and foraging: making food work harder 10 min
Weight and the cruciate: protecting the knees 10 min

Stage 5

Tracking, plateaus and keeping it off

The Scale Won't Budge: How to Bust a Weight-Loss Plateau 10 min
Tracking that works: weigh-ins, photos and what to expect 9 min
Recalculating as they shrink: why the ration has to change 10 min
They've hit target: switching safely to maintenance 10 min
Keeping it off: preventing the rebound 10 min
Is it working? Reading the trend, not the daily number 10 min