Going To The Dogs

Posted by: Steve Zisson

In a week when the feds cracked down on some of those quick-loss diet companies with hefty fines for making false claims about their untested pills, it seemed just a bit odd that the FDA approved the first diet drug for dogs.

I can’t blame Pfizer Animal Health for going after this huge and growing market with Slentrol. There are about 62 million pet dogs in this country and more than 20 million are considered overweight or obese. I’d bet the very same owners of those 20 million dogs fit into those overweight and obese categories. Might be a good opportunity for Pfizer to cross-sell to the owners.

In a country where dog owners treat their animals as if they were their “babies”, it’s no surprise that their dogs are out-of-control eaters because most owners don’t train or control their dogs at all. Just watch an episode or two of the dog training show “Dog Whisperer” and see host Cesar Millan time and time again have to give owners basic dog training. His show should be mandatory for all new dog buyers...

Millan likes to say that dog owners must be pack leaders to their dogs. You would think the dog obesity problem could be avoided if dog owners exerted some control. The pack leaders should be able to ration the amount of food their dogs eat. They fill the dog bowls each day. It’s that simple.

Dog trainers such as Millan also recommend at least a 45-minute walk for a dog each day. If the human pack leader and his dog did that each day, a lot of the obesity problems in this country—for both humans and dogs—might just melt away. But that is unlikely to happen. So Pfizer’s drug for dogs will likely be a leader.

Steve Zisson, managing editor of Thomson CenterWatch.

Comments

[sacdogtrainer]

A 45 minute walk is not going to do anything to cure obesity in dogs who still get too much food. The solution for behavior and health problems in dogs is not simply a walk on or off a treadmill.

The solution is an overall wellness program, including a healthy diet (not the kind found in grocery stores), limited portions, moderate exercise, and an actual understanding of dog behavior based on science, not pop psychology.

There are numerous other trainers and behaviorists that should be mandatory reading/viewing for new dog owners, over Cesar Millan. These are the people who actually study behavior or learn from those who have, people who know that alpha rolls and hanging dogs teach dogs nothing but helplessness.

I disagree with the use of a diet pill for dogs, but I strongly disagree that Cesar has the answer for anything other than National Geographic's ratings.

And before anyone claims that what he does "works", I'm waiting for more than his publicist to prove it.

[Jean Townsend]

I, for one, having lost my dog to the adverse side effects of Pfizer's blockbuster drug Rimadyl, will be closely watching their latest attempt to make big bucks!