Unlike people, dogs do not make their own food choices; it is up their owners to make responsible and healthy selections for their dogs. Chow Hounds shows readers how to do this, empowering and educating them so they can raise healthy, happier pets!

About The Book

Dogs are more like us than we may realize. Not only do they share our love for food, but just like us, they are at risk for obesity. In fact, obesity affects more than 50 percent of this country’s canine companions, which significantly increases their risk of developing heart disease, arthritis, and thereby decreasing their expected lifespan. To address this alarming trend, Ernie Ward, D.V.M., (a.k.a., “Dr. Ernie”), a practicing vet and founder of the Association for Pet Obesity Prevention, has written CHOW HOUNDS: Why Our Dogs Are Getting Fatter – A Vet’s Plan To Save Their Lives (Health Communications, Inc., April 2010), the first book to examine this nation’s pet obesity epidemic from a scientific and medical perspective. CHOW HOUNDS reveals some of the biggest mistakes people make when it comes to their dogs’ diet, exercise, and health habits. It offers the “skinny” on keeping our nation’s pooches healthy, and provides simple solutions for shedding excess weight.

Unlike people, dogs do not make their own food choices; it is up their owners to make responsible and healthy selections for their dogs. CHOW HOUNDS shows readers how to do this, empowering and educating them so they can raise healthy, happier pets.

In CHOW HOUNDS, Dr. Ernie addresses the problems with the pet food industry, and how dogs and their owners are victims of a calculated assault from shrewd marketing and the addition of fat, sugar and salt to treats. “Whether we know it or not, we’re partially to blame for encouraging an unhealthy lifestyle for our dogs,” says Dr. Ernie. Not to worry: there are ways for pet owners to break the chow hound cycle, and Dr. Ernie’s prescriptive plan will show them how. He will help dog lovers discover how to:

•Create a simple, safe and effective weight-loss program complete with specific calorie calculations;
•Stock a dog’s pantry: Homemade meals and healthy treats that won’t pack on the pounds;
•Find pet food without added fat, fillers, sugar, and salt; choose the right protein/carb mix; and pick the correct diet for weight loss;
•Maximize a dog’s fitness , including how long and how far a dog should be walked each day; and
•Decipher the good, the bad, and the ugly of nutritional supplements and weight loss formulas.

CHOW HOUNDS teaches people what they need to know when it comes to feeding their dogs a nutritious diet even if a dog doesn’t need to lose weight. Dr. Ernie’s “Hybrid Menu” and low-calorie, highly nutritious recipes will help owners provide maximum nutrition at minimum cost. CHOW HOUNDS also teaches dog owners how to overcome dogs’ begging behaviors, how to walk for exercise, and challenging interactive activities to help both owners and dogs stay in great shape.

Dr. Ernie appears regularly on the Rachael Ray Show, and has been featured on Animal Planet, NBC Nightly News, the TODAY show and CNN. He is a uniquely qualified expert on obesity – both in humans as well as animals –not only because he is a veterinarian with almost 20 years of clinical experience but is also a certified personal trainer and USA Triathlon accredited coach. He has written or co-written over 55 veterinary journal articles and lectured extensively around the world and has been instrumental in shaping how veterinarians treat their patients.

Provocative, cutting-edge science combined with a veterinarian’s gentle paw-side manner, CHOW HOUNDS belongs on every dog lover’s bookshelf. Available at all major booksellers, pet stores and Amazon.com in April 2010.

Click here for an interview with Dr. Ernie about “Chow Hounds”