This month, pet superstore Petbarn is challenging Southern Highlands pet parents and their furry friends to enter their pets into ‘Petbarn’s Biggest Pet Loser’ challenge.

The competition aims to help Aussie pets and their owners combat pet obesity.

Overweight pets are commonplace in Australia, with recent statistics showing that 41% of Australian dogs and 32% of Australian cats are overweight. 

Petbarn’s 12-week weight loss challenge wants to bring the issue of pet obesity to the fore, warning pet owners of the health risks and encouraging them to reconsider what they’re feeding their animals. 

Highlanders with overweight dogs or cats can register for the challenge here, where you will go into the running to participate in the challenge.

The top ten chosen pet participants will be provided with a customised health and nutrition plan by Greencross Vets.

The pet owner will also receive a personalised consultation with celebrity trainer Sam Wood, along with access to three rounds of his online training and nutrition program, ’28 by Sam Wood’.

Last year Petbarn had more than 400 entries, with the top three participants losing an average of 20% of their total body weight – for the winning pet, Barkley the Labrador from Queensland, that was a loss of 11.2kgs.

Mittagong Petbarn store manager, Sean McKinley, said the competition was a perfect opportunity for pet parents learn more about the wellbeing of their beloved animals. 

“Many pet owners love to treat their pets like family when it comes to food, for example by sharing scraps from the table,” he said. 

“However, what we feed our pets counts and it’s important to consider the different nutritional needs of our pets and the right amounts to feed them. 

“Pudgy pets appear very cute but people should be aware it can cause them significant health problems.”

Dr Rachel Chay, Chief Veterinary Officer at Greencross Vets said the consequences of overfeeding animals was serious.

“Like us, our pets can suffer from obesity, which can in turn result in serious health issues such as arthritis, diabetes, heart problems and in severe cases, even premature death,” she said. 

“For many of the pet parents that we see in our clinics it’s a shock to find out that their pet is severely overweight, which highlights how important it is for pet parents to learn about what is a healthy weight for their pet.

“Importantly, every pet and breed is different and it is important to know your pets’ individual nutrition, exercise and activity needs – which is where we can help with our tailor-made assessment and program.”

Registrations for the competition close on February 21 2018.