Weight Gain

[Guest Rubbles_Mom]

I searched the forum to see if there was anything already written on this but didn't quite get my question answered.

Rubble is right about 2 months home with me and has gained no weight (haven't weighed him but you can see his spine and hipbones very clearly). He looooves to eat and gets 4 cups/day of the green IAMS. I switched his food a couple times due to horribly runny poops (he was on purina dog chow at the foster) and thought that maybe might be attributed to his lack of weight gain but now I'm getting concerned. He weight 71# at the vet a few days after it got him and she said she wanted to see him at 73-75. So here's my question: how long did it take for you to see your new pup fill out and gain weight?

[RedHead]

Mine is 8 years old and still weighs the same as his racing weight. I don't think there is a "standard" for how much a dog should gain after adoption, it just depends on the individual. Perhaps if you could post a pic it would help to see if your pup is a good weight (seeing hip points and part of the spine don't always mean underweight).

 

Remember that they often loose a lot of muscle as well so that can sometimes account for not gaining.

 

 

 

 

 

[Guest Rubbles_Mom]

Yeah I know he's definitely losing muscle mass (his butt is going down hehe). This is the best picture I have right now, I'll try to get one of him standing up later. You can clearly see 5 or 6 ribs and his hipbones very distinctly.

[bradymom]

When I adopted Brady and needed him to gain weight, I increased his treats. I also added sardines to his diet (packed in oil) and he loves peanut butter. I limited the peanut butter because it can cause softer poops.

Edited August 23, 2015 by bradymom

[TXRedbo]

I recommend taking him to get weighed. I was notorious for saying our boy was too thin and counting his ribs and hipbones, but when we took him to the vet, he weighed in 3 lbs heavier than I thought.

 

Some greys still show their ribs and hipbones but will gain weight in other places.

 

ETA: Redbo's hindquarters have also lost muscle mass... we laugh because his butt is so much more jiggly.

Edited August 23, 2015 by TXRedbo

[cleptogrey]

I wouldn't worry. It's the summer. Come tje winter your pup will jave.gained weight. Mine always drop both weight. And.muscle mass in the hot.weather.

Edited August 25, 2015 by cleptogrey

[JJNg]

If you see 5-6 ribs and a distinct outline of the hipbones while he's standing, he needs to gain a few pounds. Are his stools normal now? Has he been checked for worms or dewormed? Also, don't be afraid to feed him more until his weight gets to where you want it, and then back down again. I'd try increasing him to 5 cups/day for a couple weeks and see if he looks less bony. Just remember not to overdo it and decrease the food again when get to where you only see 2-3 ribs and less of his hips.

[MP_the4pack]

Could be the food. Some foods just seem to go thru the system faster without putting any meat on their bones.

[Guest k9soul]

The way he's curled up in that photo you should definitely see some hip bone definition. You should also always be able to see a few of the spinal nobs on his back, it's just the way they are put together. If you use a normal dog weight guideline on a grey they will end up overweight. Here's a great piece that explains how to gauge your hound's weight

 

http://greyhoundcrossroads.com/index.php?page=weight

[Guest Rubbles_Mom]

If you see 5-6 ribs and a distinct outline of the hipbones while he's standing, he needs to gain a few pounds. Are his stools normal now? Has he been checked for worms or dewormed? Also, don't be afraid to feed him more until his weight gets to where you want it, and then back down again. I'd try increasing him to 5 cups/day for a couple weeks and see if he looks less bony. Just remember not to overdo it and decrease the food again when get to where you only see 2-3 ribs and less of his hips.

His poop is slightly better but there's definitely room for improvement. I tried an additional cup at bedtime the other day (I currently do 2 cups am & pm) and the results the next day were not pretty, came out as goo essentially. He was checked for worms during his vet visit prior to my adoption; I was thinking that might be the next thing that needs to be tried. I haven't however, seen anything at any point in his poop.

[IndyandHollyluv]

What a beautiful boy. Might I suggest adding canned food to his diet? I warm it in the microwave and mix with the kibble and a little water. Makes a yummy satisfying stew, If you will. I also include a tiny spoonful of French-style green beans or sometimes a few peas. I also want to try the Olewo carrots. On my to-do list.

 

My new girl (also black; adopted in January) had absolutely abysmal pancake-batter poo for months. Now on a third kibble (switched to grain-free) - Earthborn Holistic Large Breed, plus grain-free canned - her poop FINALLY looks like poop is supposed to look! I can't bounce it off the wall, but it's considerably better than having to clean an oil slick off the lawn. Her poo was such a hopeless, shapeless mess that I had to take the watering can out to hose down the poo spots to keep the flies from congregating.

 

Her treats are also grain-free. What a huge improvement! And I finally got her weight just about right. A nutrient-dense, low residue food may be the way to go. Try grain-free? (I know raw is best but I haven't taken that class yet).

 

Good luck!

Edited August 25, 2015 by IndyandHollyluv

[XTRAWLD]

Kasey for the life of me was never a good eater and it was next to impossible to keep weight on that dog! He filled out nicely within a few months of getting him off the track though, but like mentioned above, some foods do travel through the system differently and don't "stick to the bones". We were told to keep him free fed after we got him from his foster mom. He controlled the amount that went in and I think that really helped him gain weight in his first few months. He'd snack in the middle of the day, at midnight, at brekkie, at dinner......you could consider doing that maybe?

Edited August 26, 2015 by XTRAWLD

[Guest Rubbles_Mom]

Not sure free feeding would even be an option--he's a gobbler. I'm pretty sure if I left the lid to the kibble open he'd eat ALL of it. Similarly if I left down 4 cups of food, those 4 cups would be gone in a flash.

I'm thinking at this point I'm just going to email my vet and see how she wants to proceed--switch food, add something to food, jump right to the deworming.

[NeylasMom]

Deworm prophylactically first. 2 or even 3 rounds of Panacur. Of course run a fecal first, but reworm even if negative. Also increase food in the interim. I would add cooked chicken breast to his meals. Should keep his gut on track while allowing him to gain some weight.

 

But if it were me, I wouldn't hesitate to deworm. Violet was a horrible keeper, I was feeding her as much or more than what I was feeding my male, Zuri who was a solid 15 lbs larger and she was always thin. I battled this for a while with a couple of negative fecals, finally just dewormed aggressively and she's been fine since. Also switched her back to the heartworm preventative that has the dewormer added. It won't get rid of an existing infestation, but will protect from a reoccurence. What I've learned, a LOT of these guys come off the track with hookworms and they are nasty and hard to get rid of, and don't always show on fecals as you have to catch them at the right time.

[sobesmom]

His poop is slightly better but there's definitely room for improvement. I tried an additional cup at bedtime the other day (I currently do 2 cups am & pm) and the results the next day were not pretty, came out as goo essentially. He was checked for worms during his vet visit prior to my adoption; I was thinking that might be the next thing that needs to be tried. I haven't however, seen anything at any point in his poop.

Yeah, I'd check for worms again. They're notorious for getting knocked down by meds then coming back. See if your vet will let you just bring a sample in for a worm-check and also weigh him, without charging you for a visit. My vet will weigh with no charge, and run a sample for just the cost of the tests.

 

He's probably fine weight-wise. I wouldn't worry at this point. You can do add-ins if you want, chicken, eggs, hamburger, canned pumpkin (to firm up the poo).

 

He looks pretty normal for 2 months off-track to me. Actually, he looks really good to me, shiny coat, hair on his butt and all! He's a PRETTY boy. Of course, I'm partial to black greys, having had one myself.