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Summary Two sausage dogs were taken into care by a charity after becoming so fat.
They could not walk properly because their stomachs dragged along the ground.Dachshunds Maddie and Josh had ballooned to twice their body weight - nine and 11kg respectively - after being killed with kindness by their elderly owner.The seven-year-old pair - who should weigh just 5kg each - were taken into into the care of the Dogs Trust and are now on a calorie-counting fat-free diet with gentle exercise several times a day.The pair will be looking for a new home as soon as they reach their target weight.Theyve already lost around 1kg each after just two weeks at Dogs Trust Shoreham in West Sussex, where manager Tracey Rae described the plump pups as very vocal, lively and loveable.She said: They are absolutely lovely and will make brilliant pets for a good home.They were taken to a pound when their elderly owner could no longer take care of them. They were very overweight, double what they should be.It was a sad case of being killed with kindness, treats should always be given in moderation to avoid weight gain.We dont know what they were eating but it seems to be more a case of too little exercise. At the moment they can only take a few steps because their tummies drag along the floor which is very painful for them.But now theyre on a very strict diet of dry food, calorie-controlled and low fat. They have two portion-controlled meals a day so they have something to look forward to.We take them out for exercise between two and three times a day. They cant walk far because theyre so overweight, so we have to take them out to the exercise field in a little pram with a cover on it, or they would be too tired to exercise by the time they got out there.Then we let them trundle around in the field for a few minutes.They absolutely love to be active, you can tell, they want to be more active, they want to run, but they just cant do it yet. They love to play around in the field. Its just a case of building up their strength.Tracey said the dogs were winning over staff with their personalities.She added: Theyre playful little dogs and its hard to see them so restricted by their weight.Theyre very a cheeky pair. Theyre very vocal - they like to let everybody know when theyre coming in the pram, you can hear them coming.Theyre a lovely, lovable pair. We hope to keep them together when we re-home them because theyre best friends - they cuddle up together when they sleep.Were looking for a new home for them but wont let them go until theyve reached their target weight - we want them to be fit and healthy for their new life.Maddie and Josh will have weekly weigh-ins and be closely monitored by a veterinary team. The dogs will be able to move into a quiet, adult-only home once they are back to full health and new owners will be advised on an appropriate diet for the duo.
