title: Pet obesity management: beyond nutrition.
abstract: Excess weight has been associated with many clinical and subclinical conditions that put a pet's health at risk. Successful weight management programs extend beyond standard nutritional management and incorporate an understanding of human-animal interaction. Understanding the processes and dynamics of human-animal relationships can be a useful tool for practitioners in developing successful treatment plans for their clients. Obesity is a nutritional disorder requiring lifelong management; however, when veterinarians go beyond standard treatment to include an understanding of human-animal interaction, it is also one of the few conditions in veterinary medicine that is completely preventable and curable.
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Sciences, Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine at Tufts University, 200 Westboro Road, North Grafton, MA 01536, USA. Electronic address: deborah.linder@tufts.edu.
authors.forename: Deborah
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Linder
authors.affiliation: Center for Animals and Public Policy, Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine at Tufts University, 200 Westboro Road, North Grafton, MA 01536, USA.
authors.forename: Megan
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Mueller
mesh_terms: D000824:Animal Nutritional Physiological Phenomena / Q000502:physiology; D000818:Animals; D002371:Cat Diseases / Q000523:psychology / Q000628:therapy*; D002415:Cats; D004283:Dog Diseases / Q000523:psychology / Q000628:therapy*; D004285:Dogs; D001841:Human-Animal Bond; D006801:Humans; D009765:Obesity / Q000523:psychology / Q000628:therapy / Q000662:veterinary*; D010805:Physical Conditioning, Animal / Q000502:physiology*
keywords: Client communication; Human-animal bond; Human-animal interaction; Nutrition; Obesity; Weight management