Fatty Lumps on Dogs and Diet - Advice Needed

cocker5

Guys I am looking for some advice..

So my cocker was in the vets yesterday, getting his teeth cleaned, etc. and she noticed 3 lumps, 2 removed and one not removed as its on his side and she said it’s better to leave as it could cause problems later on. All lumps were just fatty lumps etc. (think god).
So she mentioned they may be a result or two things 1. some dogs just get them and 2. Due to a high fatty diet.

Now I am very particular about my guy diet, he does get the odd treat but mostly he gets the following:
1. Taste of the wild – daily dried food
2.Luposan – added to his food daily – needs this for his joints
3.salmon oil – again added to his food daily – needs this for his joints
4.sardines in oil (drained off) once per week

Now I am worried that due to all the salmon oil etc. I have given him fatty lumps so I am looking for advise at reducing his weight (he is 1kg above what he should be) and ideas for his meals.

So firstly I am thinking of cutting salmon oil back to twice per week and dropping sardines altogether..

Is it possible to feed half raw / half taste of the wild? if so suggestions would be great thanks

Secondly I was thinking about half his taste of the wild and bulking up with carrots, peas, broccoli etc. (thankfully he likes vegetables).

His is 9 now and I dread to think I have caused these fatty lumps, I want him to live as long as possible and as healthy as possible

Any suggestions would be most helpful, I want him to lose weight and to reduce the possibility of these fat lumps again…

Thanks in advance.

cocker5

sorry just to add the third lump she didnt remove i will be seeking a second opinion as i know they can turn cancerous later sometimes...

:cool:

Nody

Yes you can feed kibble and raw but the recommendation is each meal should be one or the other; not mixed. So for example breakfast he gets kibble (sleepily served) while in the evening he gets raw instead. You can also make him work more for part of his food to help burn some more energy off him (i.e. kong feeding toys, kibble served on lawn for him to find etc.)

tk123

I wouldn't be to hard on yourself - my friend's dog has had a good few of those lumps removed and she's on RC Sensitivity and nothing else. She's just turned 9 btw. Did they do bloods - if so they might have colesterol levels and would know if it was the diet?

Lots of people feed one raw meal and one dry meal. For the raw stuff you can go with something lean like chicken and bulk it out with veg. I feed duck necks and find the balance perfect for my too - 15kgs is €15 so if you have freezer space you can save a good bit. I trim the fat off anything I give them to be safe because we need to keep Bailey slim (his legs). I bulk Bailey's meals out with lots of veg - green beans, carrots, sweet potato etc which he loves - often he'll drop the meat and eat the veg first lol!

Forgot to add if you can get him swimming the weight will fall off him. We go to hydro once a week for fitness - it really helped with his legs after his operations so we've kept it up.

odckdo

My eldest dog is a cocker and will be 12 in November and he too has a few fatty lumps on his front chest. Between 2 different clinics, he has been checked by a few different vets and they all said the lumps didn't need to be removed. No-one mentioned diet at all. My fella is on Barking Heads Senior for the last year which is low in fat at 10% but would still have high meat content. (He was on Burns for a number of years before BHs.)

As his weight is good I give him healthy treats during the day (which I see more as a supplement to his diet) and reduce his kibble to allow for that. All the treats are low in protein and fat. (He got dermatitis last year which was caused by high protein treats.)

Age wise my vet wouldn't been keen on removing these lumps unless necessary.

I would be interested to know if it is do with diet?

cocker5

Hi Guys,

Thanks for all the replies I really appreciate it.

I suppose since collecting him yesterday I racked with guilt that I’ve somehow caused these fatty lumps etc.

TK123…. thank you for your suggestion re: cholesterol levels, he had a massive dose of bloods tests a few months ago and a repeat one yesterday and I never asked about this… so I just called my vets and they said that his cholesterol was normal. But then in the same breath she said it’s not the same importance in dogs as it is in humans etc. I’ll be speaking with her further tomorrow as he has to go back to have his stiches removed etc. - so I will investigate this further. He adores swimming (we’re lucky we live 5 mins away from the beach) so ill def. get him back swimming! thanks for the suggestion of one raw meal and one kibble – this might be the way forward for him…

Nody – great idea about making him working for his food, I have a Kong and a Kong wobbler so ill def. give these a go.

odckdo – thanks for your reply…. I suppose when she said dogs get it’s for the two reasons, one may be down to diet as he is 1kg over weight I put some of it down to that, then I felt terrible, as he is the best dog ever, we adore him and I would hate to think by feeding him all the salmon oil etc. over the years to help his joints I may have in some way damaged him if you know what I mean. I may also look at moving him to senior food now too as he is 9… so thanks for the heads up on that one.

Thanks guys for your relies and for the raw / food suggestions…

if I hear anymore back about it DEF being diet related I will get back to you odckdo


:pac:

aonb

my elderly dog has about 6 or 7 fatty lumps. He has had them for several years - since he was about 10+ (hes 16 now). His 2 sisters had NO lumps (they have since died) - my dog has a FAR FAR superior diet to his sisters diets. He may be lumpy/bumpy but he's still with us, the last of his 5 siblings - diet or genes or luck of the draw??

As tk123 said, dont beat yourself up about causing the lumps, I have no knowledge but seem to remember the vet once mentioning to me that fish oils could cause fatty deposit in liver?? Im sure one of our more knowlegable members will clarify that. As long as your vet keeps an eye on your dogs lumps & bumps (I believe Cockers are prone to developing cysts?) you can only do your best in caring for your dog by providing him with the healthiest diet you can. As they age, they could probably do with a little less food if less active, especially if on kibble - maybe just a tiny reduction every day for a couple of weeks. Is he a food-obsessed dog? (1 of mine is) When he was younger I used to take a small handful of my dogs food out of his bowl, and keep it for supper, then he wouldnt feel too hungry (and more importantly I wouldnt feel guilty!) if he got a second little meal later, when I was trying to reduce his weight a bit