I have a Great Dane. He is to skinny I think. How do I faten him up to where he looks healthy?

Question

He is 3 yrs old. I feed him as much as he wants but nothing is working.

Answer 1

Talk to the vet and make sure nothing's wrong with him. Your vet should be able to tell you how to fatten him up provided he's healthy.

Take care of your magnificent dog. He is counting on you.

Answer 2

You should really take him to a vet. A dog who's eating a considerable amount but not gaining weight could be suffering from any number of medical problems.

In particular, have your dogs' stool checked for parasites/worms. These are the number one reasons for dogs not gaining weight.

Doing a stool sample shouldn't cost that much.

Also, what kind of food are you feeding? Cheap foods are loaded with fillers--they fool your dogs' stomach into thinking he's full, so he stops eating. Unfortunately the 'filler' ingredients are nutritionally useless. Corn is a major filler and found in MANY common dog foods.

Feed your dog a more wholesome dog food with all natural ingredients and NO fillers such as corn, corn gluten, brewers' rice and so on.

Answer 3

He should have a waistline. You should be able to mildly feel his ribs and spine, not bony protrusions of course, but you should be able to feel them. He should tuck in at the waist, when looking down over the top of him, and you should see his belly tuck in behind his ribcage. A chunky Dane risks serious injury to joints. To look at Danes in show form....take a look at:
http://www.akc.org/breeds/great_dane/index.cfm , it may be hard to see but check out the breed video and photo gallery. And of course, check with your vet, if your vet feels that your dog is too thin he can help recommend a food that will help put weight on him if needed. As a giant breed your dog may be finishing up puppyhood (24 months in most giant breeds) and starting to fill out more. Just to be clear you want to make sure your boy isnt too heavy.

Answer 4

Great Danes are big and thin just as St. Bernards are big and not thin. Have your dog weighed and see what the normal weight is for your dog. I say go to vets to have him checked out, he could have worms, maybe even Heartworm which can be fatal

Answer 5

make sure you are feeding a high quality dog food. if your not paying much for it and its being sold to you for a profit, theres not much in itas far as quality nutrients go! you should also have an intestinal parasite check done on the dog, then rule out other serious problem such as malabsorbtion issues or pfoblems with major organ function.

Answer 6

Take him to the vet or take a stool sample to the vet. Have him checked for worms.

Feed a better quality dog food

Answer 7

Great Danes are pretty thin dogs...unless you can see ribs or notice he is weak or not feeling well..I would say he's fine...
here is a link to someone with a similar question, check it out.

Answer 8

most food is "by products" and corn. i put my 4 Danes on nutro"s lamb and rice and they plumped up , poop less and have amazing shiny hair! and no more off season shedding. i also feed 24/7 and they eat less than when i had 3 set feeding times! "by products means beaks, veins, skin, feet, feathers!. !! i was shocked. dont feed any food that says that. or corn. try nutro you will love the results! we did. :)

Answer 9

More healthy foods and vitamins. Mine take a tonic daily prescribed from the vet.

Answer 10

We had a shepherd the same way. He had a malabsorption problem--something intestinal that prevented him from absorbing the nutrients from his food. I'd have the vet check him out.