need help putting weight on gs - Page 2

I have one of those skinny active boys too.  :)  You can always neuter him, then he'll gain weight is what they joke with at the vet office!! 

Right now I'm feeding Eukanuba Premium Performance and he seems to do well on it.  He generally eats between 4 and 4 1/2 cups per day of this plus some nupro for good measure.  I was feeding raw for a while and he didn't seem to do as well.  Had to eat 4 large chicken backs per day to maintain or gain a little.  Plus he didn't want to eat all of that either  I just have to tell people that he's in "fighting weight" at 80 pounds soaking wet literally.  It's usually the stupid pet people who make comments on why is my dog so skinny that get to me.  :)  With their grossly obese Labrador and Golden Retrievers!  But, then I have more two girls who would seriously pork up if I let them.

Seeing the last couple of ribs and feeling most is a good weight IMO.  You should be able to see their ribs from the side while gaiting also I've been told.  Granted these boys will still look good and not overweight with a few more pounds.  I wouldn't be too concerned.  However I do try to bulk my boy up before going to the kennel because he tends to drop weight from all the extra activity.  Then, he looks emaciated.  :)

I wouldn't be too concerned about his weight though. 

spook101, i dont want him to be fat, i want him to be healthy, and right now he does not look healthy,though he acts it, when you can see ribs and feel most of them, to me that doesn't appear to be his ideal weight, i dont think there is anything wrong with my concern, for my dog. as to everyone else i will take you advice and try it, i will try that other royal food,i like the idea of yogurt and the mac&cheese, he'll be very happy, i do feed him all day,but just not a big eater, the rest of my dogs eat half of what he does and they are great, but thanks you for your help ill try and let you know.

rezkat5, you right about the comments people make, and i have to remind myself that the way he his,when we go some where (not dog related) people ask why dont you feed him? if they only new how much i try to feed him,i havent tried raw with him yet, but ill try if these other things dont work. we went on vacation for a week, when i picked him up at the kennel he looked awful,he wasnt eating, plus he was running around with his sister and my trainer was working him almost daily, i think he needed a vacation!!!  

Are your dog's stools normal and well-formed?  If the stools are somewhat loose, you may want to have your vet do a TLI test to check his pancreatic function.  While many young dogs simply go through a stage where they have rapid growth and high energy that leads to difficulty in maintaining weight, others begin to show signs of EPI (pancreatic problem) at this age.  The definitive test for EPI is the TLI test, so I'd rule that out before doing anything else.  If he does have EPI, adding extra fat to his diet would do more harm than good unless accompanied by the addition of enzymes to his food along with the extra calories. 

I don't mean to worry you about possible EPI but it's something to keep in mind and check for whenever ANY dog is having weight maintenance/gain problems.  EPI is a condition not uncommon in GSDs (unfortunately) and for those dogs that have it, early diagnosis will give a better outcome.  Therefore it's best to check for EPI sooner rather than later.  Again, MANY dogs are just lean at this age without any pancreatic problems at all.  I hope this is the case for your dog, but I'd hate to see you adding additional fat/calories to his diet if he DID have EPI, as that would complicate things for him rather than be helpful.  If his stools are normal, it's unlikely he has pancreas issues so don't worry needlessly if that's the case.

I agree with Spook that a lean youngster is better off than an overweight one, but there's a difference between keeping a dog lean on purpose and one that cannot maintain/gain weight for a medical reason.  There are other things like giardia, coccidia, other parasites, which often don't show up in a single fecal exam, yet may still be present.  Some of these parasites can make it tough to keep weight on a dog but the cyclic nature of their life cycle makes them evade detection in a single routine fecal exam.  It may take mulitiple samples to detect some of these, so you may want to retest him in spite of the negative results in the first exam.

I hope your youngster is just an active pup going through that lean stage a great many go through, and all is well.  But, if you continue to have concerns you may wish to discuss the above with your vet. 

Regards,

Diane

changing him to puppy food will increase the calories/protein per feeding, which may help him gain weight without increasing the amount fed much.  Or mixing puppy food in.  When I have a dog that is too thin - usually it's an elderly dog, or a "teenager" who is growing too fast for his body to keep good weight on no matter the amount fed - I add canned food.  I know it's yukky and not good for them - but it does work - add about 1/2 can per feeding, and you'll see the weight come on.  You can stop the canned when his weight is good. 

molly

Dog's are Carnivors they eat meat.  That is what is best for them.      This is very easy to try and watch how your dog eats it in a flash   Believe me you won't have to tell him what to do with it.

In a separate bowl from the kibble    Go out and get some raw natural ground beef from wherever you buy your meat put some goats milk yogurt in their    You should be able to get that thru your local health food store it is much better for your dog than regular yogurt but yogurt will suffice in a pinch   I use Red wood hill farms goats milk yogurt out of Sonoma Ca.   www.redwoodhill.com

By trying more of the same type of dog food I doubt it will make much of a difference.    There are much better kibbles out there like Orijen.

Give it a try you might be surprised how your dog reacts.

Neutering doesn't always make them fill out. My guy was a rescue and was neutered at 9 months old when I got him from the pound. I tried bribing this dog with people food/canned whatever I could think of. He just wasn't real food motivated and ate only what he felt was needed. He was always a runner and active. I thought he was healthy but was also sick of the dirty looks and notes on my truck to feed my dog. How insulting when the bitch next to him was always 5-10lbs over weight and I was in the store buying more dog food. People can be rude but just get used to it if you can. Better yet ignore it altogether. You know your dog gets fed and he is healthy. Unless your vet is concerned, you shouldn't be.

diane, thank you someone else mentioned this to me also, ive already called vet, just waiting for call back, i think before i start all these great food ideas ill have him checked first. i have had multiple parasite/worm checks(five) all clean, but i will have him checked for this and hes neg. ill try some of these ideas, thanks to all of you,katie

Canned dog food is better than most kibbles at least it has some meat in it and it hasn't been renedered to take all the nutrients out of it.  Why do you think most kibble manufactures have to add vitamins to their kibble? Because during the manufacturing process all the nutrients have been taken out of whatever they put in their mix and God only knows what they put in there. 

Just think about this for a minute why are some dogs finiky about what they eat.  Won't eat the kibble?   Whats wrong. !!      Again I'll say dogs are Carnivors they eat raw meat in their natural envirement. Put some raw meat in front of your dog and see what happens. Or give him a raw meaty bone.    We have been fed a big line of baloney from all these kibble companys and the Madison avenue magicians they hire to make us believe what they are trying to sell us is the best we can do for our dogs.  If you believe that I have some real good building lots in the Everglades I'd like to sell you.

I had the same problem with one of my 2.5 yr old females. Try this product, it is called xtrabloom wate. It helps with absorption not more food intake. Stuff works great!

http://www.dogbloom.com/Dogbloom/products.htm

Good luck!