WASHINGTON — Michelle Obama, who has made healthy eating and fighting child obesity her cause, yesterday said dogs need a healthy diet, too.

“Dogs are not different,” Obama said during an Internet chat on Google Hangouts. “You want to make sure they are eating a balanced diet.”

Obama encourages her daughters to take the family dog, Bo, out for walks, she said, and urged owners of inactive pooches to give them plenty of exercise.

“Get them out there and throw that ball,” she said.