My dog, Yoohoo, is fat. “Morbidly obese,” says the vet.
He is so fat, that when he took a fall the other night, he couldn’t get up again in the morning.
He doesn’t look like he’s seriously overweight, and neither do I.
That’s a problem.
Yoohoo is a handsome Labrador Retriever with the stocky, muscular build that I associate with this breed. He doesn’t look like he isn’t getting enough exercise. I thought he was getting plenty of exercise playing in our backyard woods. I was wrong. His stocky body isn’t all muscle.
And, after nearly a full academic year of homeschooling, I’ve lost a lot of muscle as well.
In the past few months, I’ve let the exercise program slide while focusing on creating a successful homeschool experience for my son. I love to read, so I set aside lots of time for this. However, I don’t really like to exercise so I haven’t made much of an effort to make this a priority for myself. In fact, while Alex exercised, I used the time to read, write, or prepare lessons.
I just ignored the weight problem. During the cold weather months, it’s so easy to camouflage those extra pounds. But, Spring has sprung and I can’t hide the weighty evidence any longer.
Yoohoo and I need to lose some pounds. Super-skinny Alex doesn’t need to lose any weight, but we have to include him in our exercise plans.
I guess we’ll be doing a lot of walking together.
Do you have any suggestions for a canine and kid friendly exercise plan? Post a comment. I’d love to hear your ideas.
