Help please... - Page 1

hey guys:)

I am getting quite concerned about one of my dogs he is 17 months old an has lost a lot of weight over a period of 2 months despite increasing his food intake by one third. he is happy and healthy no diarrhea or sickness just skinny.

he weighs 25 kg:(

he is fed on 3 cups of Burns chicken and rice and one 410g tin of chappie. 

he gets fish oils and yogurt as supplements

we worm him monthly with advocate 

two months ago we had the yearly blood works done. all fine and a thorough vet check and all was fine.(TLI was  clear)

he is working lines and very active but surely that amount of food is sufficient....perhaps not

any advice would be appreciated

Tracie

Burns chicken and rice analysis.

http://www.burns-pet-nutrition.co.uk/dog_food.htm

chappie analysis

ingedients...fish and cerial derivatives min 4% fish.  cerials 4%.  meat and animal derivatives min 4 % chicken, oils, fats,herbs, minerals.  

Protein 5.5 / oil 2 / ash1.5 / fibre 0.4 / moisture 77 / and vitamins.

I have known several dogs who have lost weight on Burns Food I think the reason for this is that the main ingredient in the food is Brown Rice (67%). I would try changing his diet and put him on a food where the main ingredient is Chicken,Chicken Meat meal or Lamb and if you can get it raw tripe. Chappie is a great food but you would need to feed rather a lot of it to maintain your dogs weight as moisture 77% means that 77% of what is in the can is water.

Linda B

i have never had a problem with burns before :) perhaps it just doesn't suit my boy.

can anyone recommend another kibble that might suit him better, i don't mind what it costs (only the best for my babies)

personally I would take him to the vet and get some blood work done.

there is a condition that causes weight loss and da I can't think of it right now.

It supposely can show up at any time in a dog's life.

If it is that obvious to you then there could be a problem. Or maybe he is getting more exercise than

normal?

I hope dog is ok and you find the answer

thanks matthews3662

we have had bloods done and he is all clear.

he is very active i think some crate time might help.  what do you guys think ?

I have used Burns Diet for over 8 years, the reason for the weight loss is not from the Brown Rice, however, if you are feeding the blue bag (which is the larger kibble) it is not formulated for puppies and young dogs. The pink bag which is the small bites is for puppies and young dogs. The protein and fat is lower on the blue bag than on the pink bag. Have you tried contacting Burns? They have always been more than willing to help me with any questions I have ever had and they can fully explain and make suggestions of what you might need to do. If you don't have the phone number please get back in touch with me and I will get it for you. Burns is one of the best dog foods I have ever found and has never been recalled and I have never had a sick dog that was on Burns. I hope this information helps you.

why do you de-worm monthly?  wormer is a poison and I would only use when there is a problem.  worming too much has been shown to increase autoimmune disease among other things.

Uber Land

Yes, i was thinking the same, why is the Dog wormed monthly, i think it far too often, each time a dog is wormed etc as i all things much of  the good Gut bacteria is destroyed or lessened, so that may well be the cause,

Plus why not introduce a kibble into the Burns which contains more proteins without Grains, Orijen for one say two thirds Burns and one third Orijen

It will not harm the Dog and may well be the answer, plus not worm him so often

Steve

Sounds like Giardia to me, 5 days of Flagyl should take care of it. Follow with treatment for Coccydiosis (not sure of spelling), even further treat for amoebiasis, also 5 days of Flagenase (human), blood test is not enough stool analysis is a must, let me know how things go. 

Try Innova Evo. My female gained weight like crazy when she was being fed innova evo.