As of: March 12, 2024, 8:00 p.m
By: Sophie Kluß
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Chubby Labradors are not an isolated case.
This is often met with incomprehension and criticism.
A study is now providing surprising insights into this problem.
Labrador retrievers are considered loving and gentle - as well as particularly greedy and voracious.
They therefore also tend to be overweight.
Their owners are therefore often given training tips without being asked, as the head of a new study on this topic said: “People are often rude to the owners of fat dogs and accuse them of not paying proper attention to their dogs’ diet and exercise.” said Eleanor Raffan, scientist and co-author of the current scientific paper, according to
Spiegel
.
The study was published in the journal
Science Advances
.
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Genetic mutation as a trigger for voraciousness in Labradors
The subject of the research was why the pretty four-legged friends eat above average.
Scientists have already shown in previous studies that a gene mutation could be the trigger.
Now a team from the University of Cambridge led by senior author Eleanor Raffan investigated how exactly the mutation could influence the eating behavior of Labradors.
For adult Labrador Retrievers, female dogs ideally weigh between 25 and 32 kilograms, and male dogs between 29 and 36 kilograms.
(Symbolic image) © Pond5 Images/Imago
The researchers focused on two dog breeds in particular: around a third of Labrador retrievers and around two thirds of flat-coated retrievers have a genetic mutation that causes affected dogs to be particularly food-obsessed and, as a result, often chubby.
“Affected dogs tend to overeat because they get hungry more quickly between meals than dogs without this mutation,” said Eleanor Raffan, according to knowledge portal
Scinexx
, which first reported the study.
Is my dog overweight?
To find out your dog's ideal weight,
veterinarian Dr.
Hölter
to answer the following five questions honestly:
1. Does my dog have a waist?
2. Are his ribs palpable?
3. Can I count his ribs?
4. Does my dog have fat deposits on the back and base of the tail?
5. Is my dog less active than usual?
Alternatively, you can use the BMI calculator for dogs from
PetBioCell
To fall back on.
You can find out here how you can recognize and treat obesity in your dog.
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But what did the investigation find out?
Various tests showed signs that the dogs with the gene mutation were likely to "get more hungry more quickly" than dogs without the mutation, according to
Spiegel
.
In a video that the University of Cambridge
published on
YouTube , you can see insightful footage of the experiments.
What to do if your dog overeats?
Read more here.
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It has also been shown that dogs with the gene mutation burn about 25 percent fewer calories than dogs without the mutation.
According to the researchers, the mutation not only triggers a hunger signal, but also causes the body to go into a kind of energy-saving mode.
Accordingly, dogs with the corresponding mutation have a double disadvantage: “Not only do they want to eat more, they also need fewer calories because they don’t burn them as quickly,” says Eleanor Raffan.
She therefore advises owners of affected Labradors and Flat Coated Retrievers to pay attention to “what they give these highly food-motivated dogs to eat so that they maintain a healthy weight.”
The scientist gives all interested owners a tip.
For example, it could help to divide the daily food ration in an automatic feeder so that it takes longer for the dog to get his food.