Source: Susan Nelson, assistant professor, College of Veterinary Medicine
RADIO
REPORT: 1 Wrap
1 Actuality
You have selected a report on preventing pet obesity. The wrap and sound bite follow in 3,2,1.
WRAP 1: A K-State expert says lots of exercise and a healthy diet helps prevent pet obesity
TIME: 55 seconds
SUGGESTED LEAD: WE'VE ALL HEARD IT BEFORE -- EATING LESS AND EXERCISING MORE CAN HELP YOU LOSE WEIGHT. A K-STATE STATE EXPERT SAYS ALTHOUGH THAT'S GOOD ADVICE FOR PEOPLE, ITS GOOD FOR PETS AS WELL. LANICE THOMSON REPORTS.
YOUR DOG MAY LOVE THAT CALORIE-RICH FOOD YOU'RE FEEDING HIM, BUT IS IT REALLY HEALTHY? A DIET FULL OF CALORIES, COMBINED WITH VERY LITTLE EXERCISE, COULD MAKE YOUR PET OBESE – AND COULD CAUSE A MYRIAD OF HEALTH PROBLEMS AS HE GETS OLDER. DR. SUSAN NELSON, ASSISTANT PROFESSOR AT K-STATE'S COLLEGE OF VETERINARY MEDICINE SAYS EXERCISE IS A GOOD WAY TO KEEP THOSE UNWANTED POUNDS OFF OF YOUR DOG OR CAT. SHE SAYS SPENDING A TOTAL OF TWENTY MINUTES EACH DAY EXERCISING YOUR ANIMAL CAN BE GOOD FOR YOU AND YOUR PET. . .
(Nelson :15 "Walking your dog, playing fetch or Frisbee -- even if it's ten minutes a couple of times a day, something that burns some more calories. Some cats like to fetch paper wads, or you can use the kitty teasers, like on the fishing pole, or they make the laser pens that the cats like to chase around the light."
NELSON SAYS JUST LIKE WITH HUMANS, OBESITY IN A PET COULD LEAD TO PROBLEMS SUCH AS HEART DISEASE, DIABETES AND ARTIRITIS. LANICE THOMSON, KANSAS STATE UNIVERSITY.
ACTUALITY 1: Pet owners have a wide variety of low-calorie foods from which to choose
TIME :18
Why are more and more of our pets packing on the pounds? Dr. Susan Nelson, assistant professor at K-State's College of Veterinary Medicine says there are several reasons. She notes there are a lot of palatable pet foods on the market right now which may taste good to the animal, but are packed with fat. Nelson says owners with very obese animals may want to check into a special prescription diet for their pet to help trim those pounds, and adds most of the major pet food manufactures produce some type of low-calorie food. She says there is even an Atkins-type low-carbohydrate, high protein diet made especially made for cats. This sound bite is 18 seconds and the outcue is "over the counter."
(Nelson :18 "There are a lot more food selections out there for that. There is the traditional, kind of high fiber-low calorie foods. If you have a really obese animal, you probably need to go with the veterinary diet, or prescription-type diet. These are a lot more restricted calorie diets than what you are usually going to get over the counter.")
Nelson says that although many people feed their animals whenever its food dish is empty, it's important to follow the proper guidelines according to the animal's size and weight. She points out an overweight animal is at risk for medical problems such as diabetes, heart disease and arthritis. She says you can tell if your animal is obese if you run your hands along your pet's side. If you can't feel the ribs, the animal is probably overweight.