That is like 8 pounds in a human!
Tetsu bowed his head as he is the guilty party that gives John treats constantly. Whenever the two of them have to spend the day at home alone or are in the sunroom while I am having English with the ladies, Tetsu just hands over treats at any cute thing John might do. For Tetsu, even a glance in his direction from John without any wariness is enough of a reason to give John a treat!
Lack of exercise is another reason for the extra weight gain. John doesn't like going out for a walk, especially in the morning. Tetsu and I go out for about 20 minutes every morning but more than half the time John is grumpy in the morning and won't think of even looking at us. And he won't go out when it has rained and the ground is wet, and he doesn't really want to walk farther than the Yanos' house because he knows Mrs. Yano will liberally give him more treats.
But I don't want a sausage dog! John has to go on a diet!
We have started feeding him less at meal times. Tetsu has drastically cut the doling out of treats. I diligently record how many minutes John as walked each day aiming for 40 minutes a day. John no longer gets treats just for peeing outside but he still gets treats for every time he sits when a car comes by (training him to stop jumping at cars). But even those small biscuits that I once snapped in half now get snapped into quarters! Poor John!
Our vet still comes to see John and me once a week and I continue to keep an English journal for her about John. (She gets her English practice, John gets trained and I get advice). She has practically got a book now with a whole year of journal entries!
November 9, SaturdayJohn and I did a lot of walking around the rice fields and vegetable fields. We took one path but got penned in by the low electric fence that runs along the field. Humans can easily step over it but the only way to get John through it to the other side was to pick him up! John allowed me to carry him over the fence! Whew!It is nice to take a different walk away from the roads but one MAJOR drawback was that when we finished our walk, John had stickers all over him!!! Oh no! How was I ever going to get all the stickers out of his fur!? I carry the pet brush with us and so when we got to the cemetery I picked John up again and put him on a table and then started brushing him. He wasn't too concerned with my brushing his back and sides but he growled a bit when I got to his legs and ears. Oh well, he will have to figure out how to get the stickers out himself or wait until he sees Maya-sensei!
I am going back to my patchwork again before taking another walk out and about with John.
Ah, such as it is with our gang of dogs and cats at my home Tanya! Two of my cats showed gained pounds at their yearly vet visit 2 weeks ago, it is so hard to think of putting them on a diet as I feel I do not give them much at all. No treats and I do not leave bowls of food out. Tis a quandary what to do! I wonder if there is such a thing as a pet treadmill? Or one of those things like hamsters run on, a wheel? I LOVE the knitted John, how clever!! John definitely does not looked thrilled, haha! Hugs, Ann in NC
ReplyDeleteYes there is a cat exercise wheel. It's by a company called One Fast Cat. I get ads for it on my Instagram feed.
DeleteI love reading about your life with John. I understand about the stickers, same issue with my Patrick. I wait until the evening when he is tired and that's when I do ears and tummy. Treats can be a problem, Patrick enjoys pieces of carrot and believe it or not lettuce! Unfortunately he also enjoys cat food. Karen in NJ
ReplyDeleteHaha. I love this post about John. Funny John. I totally understand why Tetsu would give John so many treats. Treats don't seem to work with my dog or I would give them to her. What a sweet John doll.
ReplyDeleteJohn is very cute !! But I do know
ReplyDeletethat extra weight can cause his
hips to weaken and also for his back
when he is long and low.
Nikko got treats when I was training her, mostly a wee bit of cheese. She was always so active that weight was never an issue. Even now that she has doggy dementia, she walks in circles when she is ready to go out but takes a lot shorter walks than before.
ReplyDeleteSlim John is soooo cute.
ReplyDeleteDog kibble pellets make great treats. They are much smaller (and less calories) than regular treats.
ReplyDeleteJust FYI...my bichons can't have fat in their food and have to keep weight down as well. We give carrots and frozen green beans as treats. They love them! They only get 1 biscuit at 7 p.m. and it has minimal fat (they are apple and some other fruit!). I also only give them 1/4 cup kibble mixed with turkey mix I make (ground white meat turkey cooked;frozen peas; shredded zucchini, carrots; shredded spinach (all steamed with exception of peas). Both girls have held their weights for almost 2 years! Good luck!
ReplyDelete