The Next Big Diet Aid: An Overweight Pet

Sometimes, all we need is a little inspiration to get up and get moving. (Photo by Getty Images)

Science says that motivation could be sitting right next to you on the sofa. (Literally.)

According to a recent study published in Anthrozoos: A Multidisciplinary Journal of the Interactions of People & Animals, when people are told they have a dangerously overweight dog, they take action to better their pup’s health — and their own.

For this study, the researchers rounded up 32 dog owners from a Maryland vet. The pups varied in age, size and breed, but all the pets were overweight or obese and spent a whole lotta time on their tushes.

For that matter, most of the owners did, too.

(The scientists found this out by using pedometers to grab baseline evaluations of physical-activity level.)

Next, veterinarians told half the participants to keep an eye on their overweight dog’s diet and health progression. The other half were advised to up their pet’s workout game, exercising for at least 30 minutes every day. To follow up, both groups were re-evaluated after three months.

Related: Can Your Dog Get You Sick? 

Wouldn’t you know it: the group that was told to increase their pet’s exercise regimen did just that, and had even lost weight right along with their pets. Better yet, and more surprising, so did the group who had only been told their pups were dangerously overweight and needed monitoring.

This set shifted their exercise routine from nonexistent to consistent, too. In addition to being thinner, they reported far more frequent workouts for themselves and their dogs.

A 2013 study from Waltham Centre for Pet Nutrition tracked a much larger group of dogs, roughly 546 per breed across 10 different breeds, and found overweight dogs have a significantly shorter life expectancy than normal-weight pups. Added weight can shave 10 months off their lives, particularly prevalent among labradors, shih tzus, American cocker spaniels, beagles, and family-favorite golden retrievers.

If you love your dog as we know you do, and he’s added some weight with increasing age, you may want to take action stat.

You could significantly improve his life expectancy … and probably your own in the process.

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