Oh good I've known so many people who just don't consider the difference in a dog's start weight and their own. You said: and for a human that wouldn't necessarily concern me, but in most dogs that is a lot of weight in a short time.

I am glad to hear that she's feeling better (o:

I hear ya - sometimes people can be really clueless. Just after the vet and I started Nilla on this regimen, my mom and I were talking with this lady who has 2 golden retreivers. When I first got there (where my mom sells corn during the summer months), I brought Nilla out and the first words out of the woman's mouth were "oh my god- she's so FAT!" At 77 pounds she was pretty portly! But then the woman went on to talk about her 120 lb female golden retriever. That's 45 pounds heavier than the top recommended weight for a male Golden. O_O

As for the 10 pounds, it was a lot of weight. I'm almost certain it was 10 pounds in 3-1/2 weeks, but maybe it was 4 weeks. I wouldn't say for sure, 3-1/2 sounds more like what it was, but yes it was a lot. And then it slowed down and I didn't think she'd ever lose any more. She was still too heavy in January for me to pick up so I think she plateaued a bit.

Definitely feeling better, too. She doesn't seem to be AS stiff as she used to be after moderate exercise, but she still has trouble getting up after a hike or training. She gets a pain killer for that, though and that helps.

Now - to keep her at maintenance! lol And I think I found all the pounds she lost!

I know your question has been answered already, but wanted to post this link. A lot of people don't realize how unhealthy their dog food is. This site reviews tons of dog foods (I bet you'll be surprised if you look up your brand) as well as offers information on how much calories a dog needs per day, and food recalls. http://www.dogfoodadvisor.com/

Even vets don't always know the proper foods. Like doctors, they are taught to push certain brands.