As the host of ‘The Biggest Loser," Alison Sweeney is good at helping humans thin down.
But she was bad about packing the pounds on her little Boston terrier, Winky.
"Winky was only 2 pounds overweight, but for a 20-pound dog that’s a lot," Sweeney said, speaking from her Los Angeles home. "That's a big part of their body weight."
Sweeney was ignoring the advice she gives her human subjects and slipping Winky high-fat, between-meal snacks and way too many calories.
"I'd been lazy for a while and didn’t pay attention to it, but we would go for walks and she would wear out more easily," Sweeney said. "The vet brought it to my attention."
When she decided it was time for canine boot camp, Sweeney used pre-measured meals from the Hill's pet food company and planned for more playtime in the yard.
The system made it easy for the rest of the family to understand, she said, even her 5-year-old.
"We really had a talk in the family about it," Sweeney said. "I had to explain that a 4-ounce piece of cheese for Winky is like me eating 1 1/2 hamburgers. It makes a big impact on that tiny little body."
Now Sweeney is helping Hill's promote a national weight-loss challenge for America's fat cats and chubby puppies, of which there are plenty. By some estimates more than half of the country's dogs and cats are overweight.
Those with portly pets can submit Fido's or Felix's weight-loss story to Hill's for a chance to win a $1 million prize. For more information, go to www.petfit.com/index.html.
Winky is now more svelte and energetic and a pound or two lighter, and Sweeney says her family's weight maintenance program includes the four-footed members.
"Getting our pets in shape is an important part of the family dynamic," she said.
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