Experts said dogs provide a good model for studying obesity (Image: Getty)
Owners of podgy pooches may not be solely to blame — ’ genes can put them at higher risk of just like people, a study found. Research involving Labrador retrievers identified multiple genes associated with both canine and human obesity. One gene, called DENND1B, appeared to have the strongest effect and directly influenced a brain pathway responsible for regulating the energy balance in the body.
Study co-author Natalie Wallis, from Cambridge University’s Department of Physiology, Development and Neuroscience, said: “We measured how much dogs pestered their owners for food and whether they were fussy eaters. Dogs at high genetic risk of obesity showed signs of having higher appetite, as has also been shown for people at high genetic risk of obesity.”
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Estimates suggest around 40 to 60% of pet dogs are overweight or obese.
The animals provide a good model for studying obesity as they are exposed to similar environmental risk factors as humans, and most have limited exercise and easy access to food.
The researchers noted that dogs with a high genetic risk of weight gain did not necessarily become obese if they followed a strict diet and exercise regime.
Owners can distract hungry dogs by spreading out daily food rations, or using puzzle feeders or scattering food around the garden so it takes longer to eat, they suggested.
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Dr Eleanor Raffan, also of Cambridge, said: “Studying the dogs showed us something really powerful: owners of slim dogs are not morally superior. The same is true of slim people.
“If you have a high genetic risk of obesity, then when there’s lots of food available you’re prone to overeating and gaining weight unless you put a huge effort into not doing so.”
The findings were published in the journal Science.