Guest Bethf03 Posted January 20, 2008 Share Posted January 20, 2008 (edited) I have an 8 yr old male grey and in the last year, it seems as though he is losing weight, now I understand that greys are somewhat thin, and he has never been a big grey. his spine seems to be protruding and his back waist area are thin. I have been feeding him good food (nutra). Now for several months I was adding canned to his dry food. I asked my vet he said "Its the nature of the dog". can someone give me some advice, but keep in mind I really don't want to add any people food to his diet either. Any suggestions would be appreciated. Beth Edited January 20, 2008 by Bethf03 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Greytlady94 Posted January 20, 2008 Share Posted January 20, 2008 How much, how often, and what are you feeding? Was he checked for worms? Quote Greyhound angels at the bridge- Casey, Charlie, Maggie, Molly, Renie, Lucy & Teddy. Beagle angels Peanut and Charlie. And to all the 4 legged Bridge souls who have touched my heart, thank you. When a greyhound looks into you eyes it seems they touch your very soul. "A dog is the only thing on earth that loves you more then he loves himself". Josh Billings Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest houndlover Posted January 20, 2008 Share Posted January 20, 2008 Does he have any other symptoms? Do you know how much weight he has lost? I second having him checked for parasites. I would also think about having his thyroid checked. I know that most dogs gain weight when they have a thyroid problem but I have seen some fosters come through our group that are losing weight and the problem is overactive thyroid. I'm not so sure that I would agree with the comment that your vet made though about "it's the nature of the dog." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
silverfish Posted January 20, 2008 Share Posted January 20, 2008 I'd get a second opinion, unless he'll take it more seriously and perhaps run some tests for you. Dogs as young as eight shouldn't lose weight for no reason, although we'd need more information to wonder if it's disease or not. How well is he eating? How much exercise does he get? Does he seems lively and happy, or is he somewhat apathetic and unhappy looking? I'd say you know your dog and if he seems off to you, then he needs a more thorough check. Words, incidentally, that I've heard from my own vet's mouth more than once, as in 'well you know your dog, and if s/he isn't normally like this, let's do bloods/urine whatever'. Quote The plural of anecdote is not dataBrambleberry Greyhounds My Etsy Shop Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tbhounds Posted January 20, 2008 Share Posted January 20, 2008 I would start by running bloodwork and a fecal check. How are the stools? In the meantime I would definitely increase his food intake. Personally I don't have a problem adding "people food" to their diets--white meat chicken etc is a healthy addition--lean protein and low fat--yummy! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cynthia Posted January 20, 2008 Share Posted January 20, 2008 How long have you had him, and is it possible he's losing muscle? How much exercise (walks) is he getting? And yes, how much weight has he lost? If it was significant the vet should be concerned too. Wet food has fewer calories than dry (lots of water in it), so more dry and less canned should put more calories into him. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Sassy Posted January 21, 2008 Share Posted January 21, 2008 Which Nutro are you feeding? If it is Senior formula, it is very low calorie - not enough for this breed. Also, is he getting more exercise than he used to? I've had fosters who, in my household, were getting more exercise than they were accustomed to and began losing weight. So, I simply had to adjust their food for their higher activity level. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest houndlover Posted January 21, 2008 Share Posted January 21, 2008 I also forgot to add to my previous post that my vet suggested feeding more of the same food more frequently to add weight. Right now he is eating 5C per day as follows 2C in the am, 2C in the pm and then 1C before bed. It seems to help his metabolism and he doesn't lose weight as quickly as he used to. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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