Advice for diet for overweight dog..

Your advise is needed for an appropriate diet for Polly (almost 8 yr old JRT)..was at the vets today for her biopsy and the vet said she needs to loose weight..a LOT of weight, apparentlly shes much bigger than a dog her size should be and it wasn;t until the vet pointed it out that we did actually notice the full extent..it seems that its been quite a gradual thing though
So i need your advise on how to get her to shed those pounds..and what to feed her on to do so
She is currentlly on erm..something working dogs food (have forgotten the brand name) but i think the problem more so lies in stealing the cats food, florries food and erm..me passing her bits of what im eating
Anyway..your advise is much appreciated in advance

Basically with Woody we've had to be very strict. We put him on a light version of the food he was on and cut out all titbits, food stealing etc. Perhaps have a look and see what light foods there are and what you think might suit her? He only gets the odd treat during the day and a Bonio at night to stop his belly rumbling and keep him out of the bin! With him being a Lab it's a constant up hill struggle to keep him trim. Even though he was on a light diet, he continued to gain weight when changed over so I'd advise you to give Polly what it says on the packet but see how she goes as you may need to reduce the quantity further. Also add veg as this won't put weight on her, but might help her feel a bit more full.

Exercise wise we couldn't increase this as his arthritis prevents him from going far, so we try to let him swim as often as possible instead to keep him trim. I'm not sure how fit Polly is but perhaps increase her execise a bit too, if not try swimming (if she likes it!).

Hope that helps.

Had to put Bliss on a diet she was 10kg + overweight, have to be strict, the only treat she has is raw carrot, so far she has lost 4.50 kg so it is working slowly.
Next weigh in will be Thursday

as said regular food and the right food and plenty of exercise

I'm sure Burns do a food for dogs needing to lose weight.

When my big BC was over weight, i tried every diet going. Blue is from show stock. He is very big built. He's always had loads of exercise.
When i started watching his weight he became constantly hungry. He would lie by the food cupboard pawing & talking to it asking for food. I found this quite upsetting. So i took him to the vet.
He was put on Hills prescription diet. This food is brilliant for over weight dogs. He wasn't as hungry on it either. He is on CSJ CP18 and has lost a little more weight on this food.
So i would definately go to the vets for advice.

Dogs and people, its all the same. Eat too much and you get fat. Its you who controls the dog's weight, so my advice is to reduce the main meal by at least a third, and cut out all extras. Slimming foods just provide bulk without nutrition, they don't break the over-eating habit. Give your dog something to chew instead of something to eat.

Put her on a "light" food Luke, James Wellbeloved, thats a fair food, steer clear of the multi-coloured ones with the additives and colours in them (Bakers for example) or a veteran/senior food. Dont let her nick the Cats food, keep it away from her, you need her slim in her older years.
Dawn.

Thanks Everyone!
Dawn has hit the nail partially on the head..cats food-polly is undoubtebly (sp) The Queen of the house, and the other animals have all grown up to 'respect her' so, true to form, the cats do oblige with sharing 'din dins' with Poll which i think is a primary source of the weight gain.
She is a right heffer at the moment..get numb arms from picking her up sometimes

i would agree with what has already been said.would she swim in a hydrotherapy pool??apparently 5 minutes in a pool is the same as a 5 mile walk(or a bit more)my cat is on a diet and we have had to reduce his food intake and get him to exercise more i wish you good luck
a couple of links for hydrotherapy pools in coventry area
this one is in leamington
http://www.rainsbrookvets.co.uk/hydro.asp
and this one in meriden
http://www.whitehousekennels-meriden.co.uk/page4.htm