Needs to gain weight...

[RottiMomCT]

....my 18 month old foster boy is about 5-10 pound underweight. Although his coat has improved 110% since he came to me 2 weeks ago, he hasn't gained any weight, in fact, he's down 2 pounds!

He is fed twice a day, getting 2 1/2 - 3 cups of Royal Canin Sensible Choice Natural Blend Holistic Formula and 1 can of food at each feeding. He poops 2x a day, and they are normal looking poops - not too small or huge (fir him at least!).

What can I do for him that would help get some weight on him?

Thanks!

[DNeff]

Satin balls are well known for helping dogs put on weight quickly. Check out the recipe here:
http://www.holisticdog.org/Nutrition...atinballs.html

Hope this helps!
Dawn
U-CD Cammcastle's Mystic Riven CD NA NAJ NAC NGC NJC TT CGC
http://members.aol.com/dplantier
http://members.aol.com/rottweilerworld

[brunie's mom]

You could increase the amount of food you are feeding him. I have a foster Teddy that came to me that was also 5-10 pounds underweight... I tried feeding him larger amounts of the Canidae.. but found he would start to get loose stools. What I did for Teddy was feed him a noon meal of cooked pasta or oatmeal.. about 1 and ahalf cups.. I did this for about 2-3 weeks and I have got the weight back on him. He looks great now.. no bones sticking out... the simple carbs. like pasta, oatmeal, rice are a great way to get some weight on.
Good-luck with your foster:)

Gina

[frontierrots]

I posted this to you on the foster list but thought I'd post it here to in case any one else was interested :)

Subject:_ DOG DIETS weight gain


Generally what works well is to feed primarily a higher calorie premium food. Should be 24-26% protein and 14-16% fat and contain 490 - 550 calories per cup

I have had excellent luck with the Healthwise which is 25% protein, 15% fat and 536 cal/cup This is what I feed normally too. (my boys get 4.5- 6 cups a day and the girls get 3-4 cups a day)

Dogs that need to gain weight need to be fed 1-3 cups more per day than you would normally feed a dog that size.

Watch the stools and if the dog gets sloppy stool back up the quantity a bit and after a few days try to increase the food quantity slower

Some dogs simply cannot tolerate that much kibble and get diarrhea no matter what (or just won't eat that much kibble) and those dogs often do better if fed a base ration of kibble and add a homemade mix to it. Homemade mix recipie below. Start with 1 cup of mix added to each meal of kibble and increase slowly until steady gain is noticed. Then
hold that level and watch weight and stool quality

Homemade mix
4 lbs 75% lean hamburger
2 lbs ground turkey OR chicken
1 can pink salmon (the bones are fine)
4-6 sweet potatoes cooked and mashed
1 package of shredded cheese
OPTIONAL 4 cups cooked macaroni elbows, spaghetti etc.

Mix well and divide into 1 cup patties and freeze. Thaw as needed

[AngelBunny]

RottiMomCT:

You likely know the story of our NERR foster boy who entered our house about 20 lbs underweight. It was *painful* to look at him--he was a walking bag of bones, covered with sparse, dry, brittle hair. I winced whenever I saw him lie on the hard floor.

We fed him 7 cups of Wellness, divided into 2 meals/day. We also gave him 2-3 raw beef marrow bones/day. The first week, it seems, he hardly pooped at all--maybe his starved system was wringing out every bit of nutrients it could.

If I remember correctly, to took him about two months to put on about 20 lbs. As he started to put on weight, I gradually cut back his food.

[K-9Girl]

I also just recently rescued a female Rottie that was next door to me starving to death. Looking at her was so heart breaking and painful.

I have had her almost three months. She has gained almost 15 pounds. I feed her Canidae. When I first got her I feed her 6 cups a day...she soon got loose stool. I took her back a 1/2 cup and this worked wonderfuly. I fed her 2 cups in the AM, 1 1/2 cups at noon, and then 2 cups in the PM. Now that she is almost at her normal weight I only feed her 4 cups a day.

She looks 100% better and her coat is shinny. She doesn't even look like the same dog.

Good luck;)

Sara

[s3rous]

Is all of the meat in these recipes raw?? I am just wandering the different effect of cooked verses raw meat for these homeade satinballs....

Thanks