Fat to fit: the dog who shed 44 pounds weight

A miniature Dachshund in the US state of Ohio has gone from fat to fit, losing 75% of his body weight, after being put on a diet by its owner.

A miniature Dachshund in the US state of Ohio has gone from fat to fit, losing 75% of his body weight, after being put on a diet by its owner.

Dennis-the-Dachshund-who-went-from-fat-to-fit-in-less-than-two-years-AP-Photo

Less than two years ago, Dennis weighed in at a whopping 56 pounds or 25 kilograms, about the size of four or five miniature dachshunds.

He couldn't take more than a few steps without being out of breath.

Then Brooke Burton adopted him from a relative who had fed him burgers, pizza and other human food, and didn't pay much attention to the dog's burgeoning belly.

Burton, a 26-year-old nursing student, recalls how emotional she became when she first saw Dennis in June 2013, and then persuaded her relative to give him up.

"Out comes Dennis, and I couldn't believe it," Burton says. "I wasn't even sure what breed of dog he was supposed to be because he was so large."

"In the beginning, you could tell he was very depressed, that he really didn't feel good at all," Burton says. "He didn't have much of a personality. After he lost weight, this bossy little demanding man popped out."

Dennis lost so much weight that he started tripping over the folds of excess skin that were left over and getting infections. He has had three surgeries at the Ohio State University Veterinary Medical Center to get rid of it.

Dr. Kathleen Ham, the veterinary surgeon who performed the operations, says Dennis' story is a good lesson for pet owners who might feed their animals too much.

"We have an expression: food is not love," Ham says. "Most of what your pet wants from you is affection and attention."