My dogs are thin!?

Question

I have two dogs (One Female and one Male) They are litter mates, and look like Black Labs but they are really just mutts. They will be two in March. Well they live outside and they are just..VERY thin. You can't really see their ribs because they have a lot of hair, but when you pet them or rub them you can feel their ribs and backbone. I feed them two large coffee cans of dog food a day, and there is usually a little bit left. They have had their shots and I worm them regularly. I feel so bad at how thin they are though. Do you have any suggestions? I have tried to feed them puppy food or food with high protein to try to get them gain weight but it doesn't seem to help. They are not aggressive with food when I am around them so it's not like something is taking the food away. I just am worried, they seem to be healthy but should I go ahead and take them to the vet or am I just over-reacting? Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated! Thanks

The food I am feeding them right now is Iams. I've heard this was a good brand... I will try the Olive Oil tonight. I never even thought about it. I'm still not sure about taking them to the vet. They have only bad experiences with the vet. (They were very sick when first born, we almost lost the mother and half of the pups) So they are not the funnest things to put in a crate and haul in the door. But if I need to I can manage. =) Any more suggestions?

=O Oh wow! Thank Goodness, I was about to go put oil in their food! I'm glad I read your answer! Alright. I will take them to the vet as soon as I can. Thank you all for the wonderful advice! I'll talk to my vet about getting a better dog food as well! *Haha these little guys are getting expensive..=) But it's worth it...=)* Thanks everyone! =D

I feed them scraps on occasion, such as when I'm positive we won't eat the leftovers i'll just throw a few pieces in their pan. We live out in the country so they are always running around, and usually can kill a rabbit or mouse, and sometimes bring up a deer hide or leg. (They are too small to actually kill one so don't worry about that) so on top of the food the also eat that. As I have said before they leave some left over...usually about half of what I give them...so...idk..lol

Answer 1

Try a better quality food. High protein alone will not do it. You need a food with very little corn and higher fat as well. I would take a stool sample to the vet to make sure you are worming for the right things.

I have dogs that are outside most all the time also, and they are not thin, so that should not be a reason.

Answer 2

I would have them checked for worms too

and I would switch dog food - that is a lot of dry food to feed every day. I feed ProPlan ( and I know that sounds expensive ) but I only feed 2 cups of food per night.
I don't know about you - but if I ate the same thing every night I would get pretty bored. I do add hot/warm water to the food - enough to just see it in the kibble and then toss in something else. an egg - little leftover hamburger - tablespoon of canned dog food ( the rest I cover and stick back into the fridge) - or a teaspoon of bacon grease once a month - and give it a good stir and serve. I think you will be amazed at how quick your pups clean up their bowls.
for the time being - I would also give them a bit more dry kibble in the AM. ( I am guessing you feed at night) this will help ease the weight back on.

and do they play alot? I am thinking they keep themselves slim - running around??

best luck
KC

Answer 3

It sounds like you are doing your best to care for your dogs. However deworming them with an over the counter dewormer doesn't always work. You need to have them checked for internal parasites. By a veterinarian. While most OTC dewormers are enough to deworm for roundworms, if your dogs are carrying other parasites such as protozan or different species of worms, they're aren't always going to solve the problem. Quality of dog food is very important. While extra protein provides much needed energy for active dogs, it does not provide fat. We all agree too much fat is a bad thing, but too much protien can also be a bad thing. Particularly when you are trying to "bulk up" a dog.Feeding a good quality dog food is essential for your dogs to gain weight corerectly. Also, oils such as olive oil are NOT a good idea. giving your dogs such a rich oil could cause serious diarrhea and pancreas problems. Supplementing with a multi vitamin for pets will also help your dogs gain an edge on their nutritional needs.

Answer 4

I have read that dogs and cats are lactose intolerant but I would give them puppy formula, it is specially designed for dogs. Also you can feed them sardines from the can (in olive oil) and an egg once a week (raw). But I never feed my dog canned pet food, it contains a lot of cereal and congealed blood. It goes straight through a dog and gives them terrible wind... cook vegetables and mix with chicken mince, dogs love that and it will help them to bulk up.

Answer 5

I had the same problem with my American Bulldog, he was getting skinny no matter how much I fed him you could see his ribs, I then dewormed him which was one of the problems and I was also feeding my pup Iams, after I got rid of the worms he still wasn't gaining weight and his coat looked terrible.... so I switched from Iams to Purina One and what a difference he totally filled out after a week and a half and his coat looked so healthy.... try changing his dog food, so many people told me Iams was crap and well after changing my pup's dog food I also think Iams is crap after it made my dog look so unhealthy..... royal canin is good to..... try deworming you dogs, and maybe switch to a better dog food.

Answer 6

Some dogs just have a naturally high metabolism. Try feeding them smaller meals several times a day so you are giving them about one and a half times what they are eating now. If they leave food just feed them what they will eat they are just thin dogs. At least they aren't fat and unhealthy that way.

Answer 7

Try giving them canned food and mixed it with the hard food. Sometimes dogs aren't really into just eating plain hard food. Also, buy them dog treats. It worked for me and everyone tells me how healthy my dog looks. If it doesn't work then yes take then to the vet. Good luck.

Answer 8

you went from fat dog and thin dog to fat dog little dog so when you thin dog and little dog the thin dog could be a great dane and a little dog would be a chowawa because you never said what kind of dogs you where talking about

Answer 9

Try mixing olive oil into their food.

Actually I stand corrected. I hope I didn't do my dog too much harm by following my aunt's advice and feeding him a little oil in the food. Oops!

Sorry for the faulty answer.

Answer 10

You might look at the quality of the food you're feeding them. If its low quality, there are a lot of "fillers" without a lot on nutrition. Some dogs, regular food just won't do, my friend has a German Shorthaired Pointer who is on a special "high energy" dog food. He looked awful before she started him on that.

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