What is a good way to add a few pounds?

[Luvs]

I was told the other night at our handling class that we need to add a few pounds to both Akasha and Keil. I thought that they were actually looking pretty good but I guess they need a little more meat on their bones. They are not skinny but I guess for the show ring they need some more weight on them.

I am not sure exactly how to go about getting a few more pounds on them. They are free fed and have food 24/7 so how do I go about adding weight? Is there anything I can give them that might help? The puppies did just go through being ill and they both lost a few pounds from that so at the very least we need to gain that back.

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated:)

[RottiMomCT]

How much food are they given each day??

It would probably be easier to add weight to them if they were fed twice a day, with controlled portions of food, so you would know if they were getting too much and then would be able to cut back to a correct amount.

For example: I feed Ben twice a day, 1 cup of food each feeding. he is 4 yrs old and weighs 82 pounds (and looks damn good if I do say so myself ). He has a nice waist, nice tuck in the tummy when seen from the side, coat nice and shiny, no fat rolls when sitting. In the summer/warmer months when he and I are more active, he is fed between 1 1/2-2 cups in the morning only because I know he'll use up the extra food thru exercise.

Seeing as your pups are only 7 months old and recovering from illness, I'd give them some time to full recover, then talk to the vet and see what he/she says. You don't want to add weight too quickly as it can stress their joints.

[Luvs]

Thank you RottieMomCT. I think you are right and I will start feeding them 2x daily instead of free feeding. At least then I will know exactly how much they are getting. I will also wait and see if they gain the weight back from when they were sick before worrying about them gaining any extra.

[mmgy]

Originally posted by Luvs
I will also wait and see if they gain the weight back from when they were sick before worrying about them gaining any extra.

Smart move. And as far as show weight goes, some things just can't be rushed. I know plenty of dogs that haven't done well as puppies, that really shine as adults. And usually, they are healthier than their counterparts.

[LynnS]

My primary concern would be keeping your puppies healthy. I subscribe to the notion that slow growth is good growth. Your goals in the show ring should be more geared towards getting some experience under your puppies belt as much as anything else (some wise person on this forum gave me the same advice a while back).

[Rott-Wiley]

Often times putting them on a multi vitamin will give them a better apitite. As long as they stay on their feed you could try to offer more calories in the form of dog busicuts. And of course feeding raw meat will put on muscle and weight will follow.

[Luvs]

Originally posted by LynnS
My primary concern would be keeping your puppies healthy. I subscribe to the notion that slow growth is good growth. Your goals in the show ring should be more geared towards getting some experience under your puppies belt as much as anything else (some wise person on this forum gave me the same advice a while back).

Lynn, you are absolutely right, keeping them healthy is my main concern.:) To be totally honest I have kinda tried to keep them from getting to heavy because I didn't want to stress their joints or anything. They are not underweight by any means but I guess for the show ring a little more meat is preferable. I also agree with you that right now getting some show experience under their belt is more important really than how well they do. I have never shown before so all of this stuff is new to me and I feel like I have sooooooo much to learn

The most important thing to me is to have happy healthy puppies no matter what I am doing with them.:D

[LynnS]

Luvs I felt and still feel the same way.
Everyone else seems to have been doing this since birth LOL!

[Luvs]

I am so glad to know I am not alone lol

[Skip]

Originally posted by Rott-Wiley
Often times putting them on a multi vitamin will give them a better apitite. As long as they stay on their feed you could try to offer more calories in the form of dog busicuts. And of course feeding raw meat will put on muscle and weight will follow.

I don't think feeding raw meat will have much influence on putting on muscle. Muscle comes from conditioning. The right foods will help give the dog the nutrients and energy that are needed to develop muscle thru conditioning.

[Rott-Wiley]

Originally posted by Skip
I don't think feeding raw meat will have much influence on putting on muscle. Muscle comes from conditioning. The right foods will help give the dog the nutrients and energy that are needed to develop muscle thru conditioning.

I agree with you in part. I should have been more clear in the point I was trying to make. Two dogs given the same conditioning but one dog fed a raw diet, the dog on raw meat will have better musle tone then the other. Of course the diet has to be properly balanced to produce that desired effect.

[moondog]

What are you basing a claim like that on? Go take a look at the Schwarzenegger thread, check out the condition of Sam and then scroll to the end and read what Amanda's dog eats.

As long as a dog is fed a diet that contains the nutrients he needs in a form that his body can assimilate, it does not make a whit of difference if it's raw or not.

[Rott-Wiley]

Originally posted by moondog
As long as a dog is fed a diet that contains the nutrients he needs in a form that his body can assimilate, it does not make a whit of difference if it's raw or not.

I don't believe that is a true statement. I've seen far too many show animals (both dogs and cats) that were on a good diet and some were given proper exercise, some not, the only change was the addition of some raw meat to the diet and eventually their bodies had gotten a more developed look. That is even true for cats that were kept in cages (required to keep up the coat for showing) and got little to no exercise.

[mmgy]

Originally posted by Rott-Wiley
the only change was the addition of some raw meat to the diet and eventually their bodies had gotten a more developed look.

Sounds to me like you're referring to the definition and sculpting of muscle tone that one sees when the dog or cat goes on any better diet, i.e., from Purina to Canidae. It's not necessarily raw meat, it's any higher quality and more easily assimilated ingredients.

And, that is muscle definition, not show-ring bulk. I stand by my earlier statement that they will grow into "show weight", and she can't rush that. It will happen when it happens.

[moondog]

Originally posted by mmgy
It's not necessarily raw meat, it's any higher quality and more easily assimilated ingredients.

Exactly. Just because one's experience has seen an improvement with one type of food presentation (i.e., raw), it does not follow that all others are excluded by default.