Huffing and Puffing

Our Pudgy Pug

With the temperature steadily creeping ever higher, Pablo has been struggling on his walks, dragging his puggy paws and stopping every few feet to pant up a storm. Even indoors he continues to pant. All winter we’ve been going on long hikes through the neighborhood, some as long as an hour, so it can’t be his stamina.

With summer around the corner, this does not bode well for the upcoming months. Hot and muggy weather is an enemy to all pugs, but I don’t remember last year his breathing being quite so bad, especially not this early in the year. The difference is that over the winter Pablo has put on an extra pound or two or three. (Haven’t we all.) So now he has that extra weight to lug around.

Of course, the less he moves the more weight he’ll gain, so I want to nip this in the bud. Therefore, a diet is in order. K and I have vowed to stop feeding him treats throughout the day. I now eat my breakfast and lunch up in my office where I won’t be bothered by his begging or tempted to feed him to stop his whining. At dinnertime, I dole out his dry food kibble by kibble as K and I eat. Before, he was getting fed scraps at the table plus his usual meal. I hope this approach works and the scale starts to go down. Otherwise, liposuction might well be the next step.