Weight Gain

[Guest Whistle]

I have a foster who is recovering from a pretty serious infection from a cat bite. After a 4-day stay in an animal hospital, he is down to 59 pounds (his weight on his final race is listed at 70). His appetite is HUGE now, so I think once he gets off all these antibiotics, he will start gaining. His stool has been soft, but not really what I would call loose. His stool was fine before becoming ill, so I do think it's from the meds.

 

Right now I am feeding about 1/4 pound of raw hamburger and a couple of eggs a day in addition to his kibble. He is also getting probiotics. Someone suggested beet pulp pellets for his stool, but I haven't used this before.

 

Anyone care to share what they've had success with in putting weight back on a hound?

 

I should also say, I'm working closely with our group on this. I'm just curious to hear things others have had success with.

Edited April 19, 2011 by Whistle

[GeorgeofNE]

I would just feed him extra food, not different food. He needs to put the weight back on a little bit at a time, not all at once.

[Guest Whistle]

I would just feed him extra food, not different food. He needs to put the weight back on a little bit at a time, not all at once.

 

I agree that it needs to go back on a little at a time. The thought is that his body will use the added hamburger/eggs better than adding another cup or so of kibble a day. He is still on the same kibble he's been on since February.

[Guest chimni]

From my extremely limited experience with regaining lost weight, you have to be patient. I think with Sofia getting 1 - 2 extra cups of kibble and an egg every other day took 1 week for each 1.5 - 2 lbs. regained.

[OwnedBySummer]

Although I haven't personally had the need to try this recipe, it came from a very greyhound knowledgeable person. Perhaps it can be of help to you.

 

SATIN BALLS

For Weight Gain

 

Ingredients:

5lb. Fatty ground beef (fattiest you can find)

½ lb. Cream cheese

1 Small jar of natural peanut butter (nothing but peanuts in it)

12 Egg yolks (not the whites)

2 cups Oatmeal, soaked for at least 2 hours (better overnight) in 18% cream

1 cup Wheat germ

 

Directions:

Mix everything up in a large bowl, you'll have to use your hands to do this, just dive in. When well mixed, roll into ping pong sized balls and place on cookie sheet. Freeze, put into a bag and serve 4 with each meal.

[Guest Whistle]

Although I haven't personally had the need to try this recipe, it came from a very greyhound knowledgeable person. Perhaps it can be of help to you.

 

SATIN BALLS

For Weight Gain

 

Ingredients:

5lb. Fatty ground beef (fattiest you can find)

½ lb. Cream cheese

1 Small jar of natural peanut butter (nothing but peanuts in it)

12 Egg yolks (not the whites)

2 cups Oatmeal, soaked for at least 2 hours (better overnight) in 18% cream

1 cup Wheat germ

 

Directions:

Mix everything up in a large bowl, you'll have to use your hands to do this, just dive in. When well mixed, roll into ping pong sized balls and place on cookie sheet. Freeze, put into a bag and serve 4 with each meal.

 

Thanks, this is actually why we're doing the ground beef and eggs. I actually give a bit of peanut butter or cream cheese too. The satin ball recipe I had had breakfast cereal and a few other things. Right now he's pretty much getting this with the wheat/oats omitted.

[PrairieProf]

As someone whose dog recently had a very near brush with pancreatitis, I now think the satin balls (which I've never used) sound absolutely terrifyingly risky to feed to any dog.

[Guest Whistle]

I'm wondering how they could be any different than a raw diet so many feed. I'm sending you a PM for more info on why you feel this way. Thanks for chiming in.

[tbhounds]

As someone whose dog recently had a very near brush with pancreatitis, I now think the satin balls (which I've never used) sound absolutely terrifyingly risky to feed to any dog.

Agreed!!

[Guest Whistle]

Isn't it thought that it is too much cooked high-fat meat that may contribute to pancreatitis?

 

Edited for grammar.

Edited April 19, 2011 by Whistle

[tbhounds]

Isn't it thought that it is too much cooked high-fat meat that may contribute to pancreatitis?

 

Edited for grammar.

Perhaps -- but that doesn't explain the cream cheese, peanut butter and the egg yolks. IMHO you're asking for trouble if you feed this formula.

[Guest Whistle]

Isn't it thought that it is too much cooked high-fat meat that may contribute to pancreatitis?

 

Edited for grammar.

Perhaps -- but that doesn't explain the cream cheese, peanut butter and the egg yolks. IMHO you're asking for trouble if you feed this formula.

 

I'm guessing this is why it was suggested to do the meat and eggs with just a smidgen of PB or cream cheese when this came up. I also thought it was better for a dog to have the whole egg - something to do with whites and biotin and the fact that the yolks are so rich in it. I'm definitely going to investigate this further. Thanks for your input .

[PrairieProf]

Too much fat period can cause it. I think salmon oil was part of the problem for Beth, FWIW. I Googled "satin balls" and "pancreatitis" and see I'm far from alone in realizing this as a concern!

Edited April 20, 2011 by PrairieProf

[Guest Whistle]

Too much fat period can cause it. I think salmon oil was part of the problem for Beth, FWIW. I Googled "satin balls" and "pancreatitis" and see I'm far from alone in realizing this as a concern!

 

I did the same and I totally understand what you're saying. But, I'm still unsure feeding a hound 1/4 pound of ground beef and 2 eggs a day short-term would be the same as feeding one of the various recipes of satin balls as a big part of a dog's diet. Like I said, I will definitely investigate further. I've e-mailed a couple of grey savvy vets, and that is why I'm here too . I'm just looking for past experiences, thoughts, and opinions.

[PrairieProf]

Too much fat period can cause it. I think salmon oil was part of the problem for Beth, FWIW. I Googled "satin balls" and "pancreatitis" and see I'm far from alone in realizing this as a concern!

 

I did the same and I totally understand what you're saying. But, I'm still unsure feeding a hound 1/4 pound of ground beef and 2 eggs a day short-term would be the same as feeding one of the various recipes of satin balls as a big part of a dog's diet. Like I said, I will definitely investigate further. I've e-mailed a couple of grey savvy vets, and that is why I'm here too . I'm just looking for past experiences, thoughts, and opinions.

 

The raw beef and eggs might well be OK for most hounds, I'd think. But I used to add meat like that to Beth's kibble, and I now realize it probably wasn't OK for her, or at some point became not OK. So I'm seeing there are risks in things I thought were fine before -- and I'm hypersensitized about it right now having so nearly dodged the pancreatitis bullet. I guess I'm wishing there had been more voices of caution around this issue beforehand, so I'm being one now!

Edited April 20, 2011 by PrairieProf

[Hubcitypam]

The satin ball recipe posted above bears no relation to any one that I have ever seen before.

This is more like what I have used in the past --

Satin Balls

• 5 lbs raw hamburger
• 1/2 lg box Total Cereal
• 1/2 lg box Oatmeal
• 1/2 Jar wheat germ
• 3/4 cup veg oil
• 3/4 cup unsulfured molasses
• 5 raw eggs AND shells
• 5 envelopes unflavored gelatin
• pinch of salt

Mix all ingredients together like you would a meatloaf. Divided into 5 quart freezer bags (roll into balls approximately the size of a tennis ball) and freeze. Thaw as needed and feed raw.

When I fed them it was like 2-3 golfballs 2-3 times a day.

 

I wouldn't feed the ones I posted above to Poodle with his severely scarred pancreas, but I'd feed them to any of my other dogs and have used them several times over the years.

Edited April 20, 2011 by Hubcitypam

[krissn333]

I fed Sutra mashed potatoes, cottage cheese, oatmeal, macaroni, turkey baby food, and yogurt when he was recovering from pancreatitis and we were trying to put weight back on him. He ate 3-4 small meals a day for a while, rather than 2 larger meals.

[KF_in_Georgia]

It's much safer to stick with extra rations of his regular food. Antibiotics are rough enough on a dog's system without throwing in fatty foods that carry the risk of triggering pancreatitis. The last thing in the world your baby needs is a bout of pancreatitis or diarrhea--either causing additional weight loss.

 

You can feed him more of his regular kibble, preferably in more meals a day rather than just larger meals.

 

By the way, if your foster isn't used to dairy products, please use caution about adding cream and cheese products. Some dogs are lactose-intolerant.

 

My elder statesman, Sam, had a scary weight loss during the winter. He dropped a little more than 10 percent of his body weight and started looking really frail. He also had occasional diarrhea blowouts. I upped his kibble from three cups a day to four and a half. He got one scrambled egg every few days. I also added a fiber supplement (for a couple of days), then a probiotics capsule (a few days later) to try to firm up his poop. They helped with the diarrhea, and the extra cup of kibble put the weight back on him over a couple of months. He's up to his pre-scare-Mom weight.

 

Rather than the beet pulp for fiber, you might try a fiber supplement like Fiber Choice (a wafer-like fiber supplement for people; you give two wafers a day, and unlike other human fiber supplements, the dog doesn't have to drink 8 oz of water along with the supplement). Fiber Choice is sugar-free, sweetened with Sorbitol (not Xylitol). It's generally pretty mild on the digestive tract.

 

But whatever you give your foster, try adding one thing at a time and then hold steady for a few days to see how it's tolerated before you add something else.

[JJNg]

Another vote for just increasing the amount of regular kibble. Weight gain is simply about the number of calories taken in, and increasing kibble will increase the caloric intake and keep it nutritionally balanced. High fat foods will provide more calories with a smaller volume, but does increase the risk of pancreatitis in dogs who are predisposed or those not used to digesting that amount of fat.

 

Rough estimate of caloric content:

1 large whole egg: ~75-80 calories

4 oz (1/4 lb) lean ground beef: ~200-250 calories

1 cup premium kibble: ~400-500 calories

 

For a larger dog like a grey, I would just recommend an additional 1-2 cups kibble added as an separate meal each day.

[Guest LindsaySF]

Frequent, small meals of regular food. Lots of snacks. Don't do too much food at once, or feed anything too rich or too high in fat.

 

Chase is up to 50 lbs. She was surrendered to us at 39 lbs. I was afraid of pancreatitis so I avoided Satin Balls. In the beginning I fed her every hour, then every 2 hours, very small meals. Now she eats about 4 meals per day, regular-sized meals.

 

Good luck!

[Guest Whistle]

He is getting weighed again tomorrow and I'll give an update. We've settled on a diet for him. I'll let you know what it is whether it works or not. Even though his poop seems okay now (still a bit soft but not too bad), I doubt he'll gain a lot right off the bat with all the meds he's on, but I'll keep you posted. Thanks so much again to everyone who chimed in here with advice.