Beefing Up A Skinny Foster

[Guest FastDogsOwnMe]

I have a foster that could use about 2-5lbs to look good, and if you know me, I like a lean dog. He's just too lean. He is not picky. He readily eats three cups in the morning and another three or even four at night. If I fed that much to any of my other dogs, including the 100lb Borzoi, they'd rapidly become obese. Any idea what I should do? His bloodwork is normal, he's been dewormed multiple times (and the fecal is negative anyway). He has normal stools. He's pretty lazy... and the trainer had trouble keeping him at racing weight in the kennel, too, and fed him double meals. Does he just have a fast metabolism? His brother, who still races, is similar- always a struggle to keep weight on. Maybe it's genetic? For now I am feeding him puppy food in the hope that he'll get more calories. He really doesn't look bad, just would look better with a couple pounds on him. Should I just let it go, and figure that's just the way he is? Here are the pics I have of him.

 

 

 

[Guest Lgyure85]

Nevermind.

Edited May 23, 2011 by Lgyure85

[Guest sheila]

have you considered satin balls? That is always the first thing that comes to mind

 

http://www.heartlandgdr.org/satin_balls.htm

[tbhounds]

Dare I say that he doesn't look too bad in the picture you posted?

Perhaps he just needs time for his metabolism to chill down now that he's finished his racing career. Personally, I'm not a big fan of satin balls-- too much fat-- I would fear upsetting the pancreas.

[Guest Trentsmom]

I have the same question; however, I would say your dog looks pretty good compared to mine. Same here, good blood work, no health issue. My concern is that the vet told me that food with over 18% protien is a kidney risk in adult dogs. I can't figure out how to increase weight without increasing protien.

Glad you posted- hopefully we can both get some help with our skinny boys

Edited May 23, 2011 by Trentsmom

[3vagreys]

Could you add rice or potato to his food. His spine is a little bumpy.

[Guest june]

Your boy is beautiful! I'm kind of like you in that I like a bit more weight than he has but he doesn't look bad.

 

I have a girlie who I kept trying to put weight on. After a couple months I took her back in for a check up and the vet started laughing: She still looked "skinny" to me (more than 3 ribs showing and able to see her backbone), but the vet pointed still laughing at two small fat rolls on each of her sides. It was the first time she had seen a greyhound with fat rolls. She told me to quit and to accept that was just how she was going to be. I got rid of the fat rolls and, to me, she still looks a bit lean but she is happy and healthy.

 

june

[Jenbo]

NOTHING worked for Myka until I started feeding her a 1/3 cup of cottage cheese on top of her kibble.

[Batmom]

How long has he been out of the kennel?

 

Is he maintaining his weight?

 

If you really feel he needs to gain some and more kibble hasn't worked, I'd add some medium-fat ground beef or a couple eggs a day and see if that does it for him.

 

That said, I have noticed that some greyhounds run lean -1- first 6-12 months after retirement or -2- until they get to be 6-7 years old. As long as they maintain weight and are healthy -- good skin, good bloodwork/urine/fecal, no serious exercise intolerance, etc. -- I wouldn't worry about it.

[Guest Lakota]

There's a woman in our group who feeds hers spaghetti sometimes. And they certainly are not under weight, and neither am I when I eat that. If your primary goal is weight gain, carbs is probably the quickest.

 

However, he is beautiful, just the way he is. I think give him time for his metabolism to slow down and lots of love. If he's genetically thin, it's just the way it is.

[Guest WhiteWave]

He is gorgeous! I love black and white dogs!

 

What brand are you feeding? Maybe find a food with a higher kcal/cup amount. Satin Balls work well too. That is a lot of food. Our Great Dane doesn't eat that much!

[DaisyDoodle]

Given what you said--blood work and deworming done, both you AND trainer have had trouble adding weight on him, I'd wonder about some sort of malabsorption problem. I don't know how a vet does a work up for this, but I would ask about it.

 

I would consider adding digestive aids to the food, switching to a novel protein, grain-free food, that sort of thing. Are there any indications of a possible food allergy--chewing skin or feet, scratching, etc.

[GreyPoopon]

I too was wondering about absorption.

 

Cal was too thin, despite ample food, until I put her on Tylocine. Mind you, the dogs I've had with absorption problems (Cal, Minnie, Piper) also had soft stool; I'm not sure good poop fits with malabsorption. [i've tried Cal on a couple of different enzymes with no improvement in stool quality. Her stool is still soft, but she's at a better weight.]

[MaryJane]

Try giving a slice of toasted bread with some butter or peanut butter - I used to use this to put weight on fosters.

[Guest FastDogsOwnMe]

Thanks everyone for the great ideas and thoughts.

 

He has no itching, no poop problems, and his coat is thick, soft, and beautiful. He doesn't even have the bald thighs. Pleasant (for a dog ) breath and nice teeth. Good energy. Maybe I am just being overly paranoid? But that's so much food to me! My huge Borzoi eats 4 cups/day.

 

He's only been off the track a couple of weeks (which I know is not long at all, but since I'm not the first person to try to beef him up, I wonder). I have him on Purina, which is the kibble he ate there, but I could gradually switch him to something better, and I likely will. We just took a long walk and he came home and ate another meal. Thankfully, getting him to eat is no issue. He loves food. I got him a double cheeseburger at McDonald's earlier too

 

He's the first Grey I've had that gets, "He's so skinny!" comments, and maybe that's why I feel like I should be doing something else.

 

I'd like to research the digestive enzymes more.

 

Here is a new photo, taken from the top, and some other views just because

 

 

 

 

 

PS My thought was the Purina might be good because of the high carb content with the grains. Bad idea?

[JJNg]

As long as the dog is healthy and maintaining a stable weight, I don't worry too much as long as they are not too far under ideal body condition. I think some dogs just seem to maintain at a somewhat lower than what we consider ideal weight. A dog that is slightly underweight is healthier than one that is slightly overweight. One of the orthopedic surgeons who taught at my vet school felt strongly that any dog with joint problems should be kept under ideal weight. Even without any joint issues, this is fine and not detrimental to their health.

 

Based on the photos, he really doesn't look that bad. A little more hip, ribs, and vertebrae visible than ideal for a pet, but his back looks quite well muscled. His metabolism may slow down some now that he's off the track. I'm also assuming he was probably just recently neutered? That will slow down his metabolism too. Bottom line - I wouldn't worry about it and just see what happens with some time.

[Sambuca]

Just curious what his racing name is and if he's related to my boy, Mike Needs Gas.

 

My boy is about 85# and skinny. He's gained almost 20# with me and could still gain a few. He was having some slight medical issues before he came to me and was way underweight. He has a really high metabolism (eats about 6 cups of kibble a day). For him to gain the weight, he was on 8-9 cups of food a day plus lots of treats. He had soft poop until we found Taste of the Wild and his poops are good now, but he still eats a ton. I would add in a 1-3 cup lunch until your guy gains what he needs.

 

eta- I've had Bu for 2 1/2 years and he's 5 years old and full of muscle.

Edited May 24, 2011 by Sambuca

[Guest RichardUK]

I have three greys - a dog and two bitches. Sadly last year I lost two of my older greys close together and decided to adopt a pair (dog and bitch) that Beamer chose (as is usual here). Both (Blackie and Blondie) were very emaciated - by coincidence - as the rest of the 50 greys at the kennels were well covered. Blondie had suffered a bad spay and nearly died and had lost about 35 lbs - Blackie was a return when adopter died and had lost about 30 lbs since his racing days. All ribs, spine and hips stuck out badly I fed both double meals totalling 6 mugs of working dog kibble (26% protein) plus treats and bones for two months.

 

Blondie rapidly regained weight until only the points and last four ribs could be just seen and she had "a good back on her" I halved the food to recommended quantity and she maintains muscle tone and skin condition with superb teeth.

 

Two more months on - Blackie had slowly returned to his racing weight of 90lbs and still looks thin - but slowly refused to eat all the food - so reduced quantity to just over recommended level but added a tablespoon of melted butter to add zest. He eats it eagerly and completely. He is well muscled, superb teeth, but skin condition not as good as I would like (he is still moulting for over a month) though we've had an unusually hot (70) and dry spring.

 

Beamer (my nearly champion) [finalist in the UK Pup of the Year Derby 2007] had the same food before the other two came is in superb condition at 93 lbs with superb skin and teeth.

[Guest FastDogsOwnMe]

Hi there, thanks for more input.

 

He is a Super Lee x Dreamy Babe. Here's his link Pedigree of Kyky Magz His brother Lukey Wagz is also always a bit on the lean side.

 

Sounds like perhaps he is just a bit of a lean dog by nature, but I plan to try some enzymes and upgrade him to a better kibble. I'll do it slowly so as not to upset his system, since he's doing well in that regard. His coat is really great- thick and shiny and minimal shedding. So we are good there.

 

I also personally know Scooter Wagz ("Junior") and he holds nice weight.

Edited May 24, 2011 by FastDogsOwnMe

[Guest sja5032]

How about adding some sort of oil to his food? That's what I used to adjust when I was feeding the kennel and dogs weren't holding their weight (or holding too much. We used corn because its probably the cheapest, but there are other healthier oils out there that will add some fat to his food w/o adding more volume for him to eat.

[Guest FastDogsOwnMe]

Should I use olive oil or what type do you think is best?

[Guest sja5032]

Should I use olive oil or what type do you think is best?

 

Honestly I don't remember

 

I did look into it at one point I'm sure there has to be someone out there that knows. I used to prefer cod liver or fish oil though, mostly because i would rather feed dogs fish than corn but there may be someone here who has a better idea and rationale. I think olive oil would get expensive, the cod liver you can usually buy somewhere that sells animal feed for a lot cheaper than a grocery store.

[Guest FastDogsOwnMe]

Thanks. He does get fish oil. All my guys do. Why didn't I think of that as being an oil? Must be because it's before 9AM so I don't have a brain yet

[cleptogrey]

he looks fine, remember he just came off the track. give him time to adjust to a new environment and it's always better to put weight on slooooooowly. it's harder to get weight off than on. i personally like a thinner dog and keep my dogs at that weight. if anything he might need one or two lbs and that will come. remember the curve of the spine- is why the vertabre are showing-& that's what allows them to be so nible and turn on a dime.

[Guest FastDogsOwnMe]

Thanks. I'll try to remember that. I mean I love a lean dog... I compete in NOTRA (well, my hounds do ) but he just looks a little too thin. Maybe he has more arch in his spine, though, than some of my others. He's a handsome devil for sure.