Professor Alex German and Georgia Woods, from the University Of Liverpool’s Weight Management Clinic, attended Crufts last weekend to help raise awareness of pet obesity.

The pair were invited by Royal Canin to attend Crufts to educate pet owners and the veterinary community on the prevalence and risks associates with pet obesity.

Professior German said: “Recently, we had highlighted our concerns over the current trends in pet obesity in a letter to the Veterinary Record, notably the increasing prevalence in growing dogs. Therefore, this was a great opportunity to interact with dog owners and breeders who are especially influential within the dog owning community.

“Our main objectives were to help dog owners to recognise obesity and to inform them on the importance of monitoring growth of their juvenile dogs, as risk factors for obesity can be spotted early through trends in growth. Royal Canin kindly allowed us to occupy part of their stand and, with the aid of Cooper, a purpose-engineered model dog, designed to help with body condition score training, we were able to engage many show visitors.”