Serious Great Dane Health Question!!?

Question

I have 2 Great Danes that are about to be 1 year old next month. They both weight around 170-200 lbs. They are fed once a day, we use a half gallon pitcher to feed them with. They eat Purina Dog Chow. They look like they are starving! Our vet told us that they only need to eat once a day but I'm wondering if they aren't getting enough food at the feeding or maybe there is a better food to feed them. They really look like skin and bones, you can see their ribs and hip bones and everything! I don't want people thinking we mistreat our dogs, because they are really like our babies! Anyone with suggestions is welcome to answer this one! Thanks!!

Our vet has had Danes himself, so I took his word for it when he said to feed them once a day and he made it sound like they didn't need much food to go on as you would think they do. With them being so huge I would've thought they'd need a whole lot of food a day. I know they are bad about bloating so that's why we DON'T feed them a large amount of food at once. However I was thinking that mayb they would need more than one feeding even after the Doc's advice of once daily. To answer the questions, no the breeder didn't specify a life expectancy, ours are both male (Hoss & Snoopy!), one is blue merle and one is solid black. The do like to lean on you and I have been pushed over many times lol. They're big babies and love attention. We also have a Shipoo (MacMac) & a Lhaso Apso (Sassy) & the Danes theink they are lapdogs just like their small brother & sister lol.

I also had no idea Purina Dog Chow was such an unhealthy food! Thanks for the tips!

Answer 1

I think the problem (if they don't have intestinal parasites) is the food itself.

Purina is full of fillers, and doesn't offer enough nutritous ingredients. I've met several dogs who could eat this food all day long and still look like they are starving to death. The simple fact is these dogs can't possibly eat the quantities of this food needed to get the nutrients out of it.

My suggestion is to switch to a high quality food. I bet you'll be impressed at what you see. Your dogs will likely put on the weight they need, and be healthier in other ways as well.

As far as feeding only once a day, that's a definate no. Keep them on a twice a day schedule. Danes are prone to bloat, and feeding one big meal a day is a possible factor in causing it.

Here's how to find a high quality dog food.

Nothing you find at a grocery store is going to be a good food. High quality foods can be found at large pet store chains, or online. A couple of foods I like are Nutro Natural, Innova, Innova Evo and Cannidae.

There are other high quality dog foods. Here's how to spot them:

A high quality food will have little or no fillers such as corn, wheat or soy. These aren't very digestable for dogs, and are common food related allergens. Since you were seeing corn meal in the first few ingredients, those are not high quality foods. Foods list ingredients by content, with the ingredient it contains most of at the top.

A high quality food will not contain BHT, BHA or Ethoxyquin, these are all chemical preservatives that have been linked to cancer.

A high quality food will not contain by-products of any kind. Meat meals are ok as long as the source of the meat is listed, such as Chicken Meal.

A high quality diet should have meat as at least the first ingredient., and be made from human grade ingredients. Foods that don't use human grade ingredients often get their ingredients from less than desirable sources, such as meat from animals that were diseased, or euthanized.

There is another diet option other than dog food. Some people choose to feed a raw diet. This involves feeding the dog raw meaty bones and organ meat. However it is not as simple as throwing a couple chicken bones in a bowl everyday. If you wish to feed this type of diet, do lots and lots of research first. Switching to this diet without knowing what your doing can lead to nutritional problems for your dog. I'll give you some links as a starting point in research if you are interested in this type of diet.

http://www.willowglen.com/barf.htm.........

http://www.bestfrisbeedogs.com/diets.htm...

http://www.rawlearning.com/rawfaq.html.....

http://www.rawfed.com/myths/index.html.....

http://www.rawdogranch.com

What's Really In Pet Food
http://www.api4animals.org/facts?p=359&m...

Here's some information on bloat as well, I think all dog owners should know this, especially dog owners with breeds prone to bloat (remember its possible for any dog to bloat)

http://www.canismajor.com/dog/bloat.html
http://www.globalspan.net/bloat.htm

Answer 2

First - have a stool sample analyzed for worms and parasites.

Second - As someone else said, Danes are prone to bloat, and by feeding once a day, they have too much food in their stomach at once. Feed three times a day, or even better, free feed them. They won't overeat once they know the food is always there for them. It will take them a couple of days to adjust to that. Then they will only have a small amount of food in their stomach at once, lessenign the chances of bloat. Raise their bowls to a comfortable height, so they are not swallowing air as they eat. Do not let them exercise for at least 2 hours after they eat a meal.

Third - Switch to a good quality dogfood. No wonder they look like they are starving, being on Purina! Read the label, the first ingredient should be meat - not corn, not meat by-product, not grains. Danes should have a food which averages 12-14% fat and no more than 22-24% protein. A good quality kibble will cost more, but you don't need to feed as much, so it evens out in the end. Stay away from kibble containing corn, it's only a filler, the dog can't digest it and may be allergic to it. Also, poor quality food can lead to bone and joint problems.

You should see a decided improvement after this. Vets really don't know much about nutrition for giant breeds, unless that is their speciality. There has been a great deal of research done in the last few years on this subject, and consequently, with improved breeding and nutrition, Danes are living longer.

Your babies are just in their teens, so with improved nutrition, they will start to look like the majestic breed they are. They won't be completely mature until they are 3 years old.

Congratulations on picking such a fine breed. Once you've been owned by a Dane, there is no other breed, and they have been lighting my life for over 30 years!

Answer 3

Well, the first thing I would do if you have not already done so, is drop off a stool sample for both dogs to your vets and have them run a check on it for intestinal parasites to rule that out.

The second thing I personally would do is feed your dogs twice daily instead of one time-I would be sure to used raised feeders/waterers for this breed as well as Danes rank very high on the list for bloat. Look at the bag and see what the daily amount for feeding is and divide it into two meals.

Purina Dog Chow is full of fillers so I would definately consider changing your brand to something more natural. Just remember with any diet change it must be gradual or you cause intestinal upset. In general when I change my pets diet, I start by feeding 1/3 of the new food to 2/3 of the old food for 5 days, then I give 1/2 new food to 1/2 of the old food for another 5 days, then I give 2/3 of the new food to 1/3 of the old food for another 5 days, this generally reduces the chances of digestive upset.

Foods that I would research for your dogs would be:

Canidae
Innova
Natures Recipe (Breed Specific)
Wellness
Merrick
Pro Pac
Nutro
Percise
California Natural
Solid Gold

Good luck to you and your new pups.

Answer 4

I am very surprised at your vet. VERY surprised. Danes are prone to bloat. All deep chested dogs are. It is not good giving them their daily ration of food all at once. They should have there food divided into at least two feedings a day. Three is better. They should not drink for a half an hour after eating and should never be fed just before or just after exercise. I had a close friend that had a dane and we learned a lot about it when my friends dane bloated. He had been feed his food all at once too. Luckily he was taken to the vet and was operated on in time. He lived for several more years but we learned a lot through that experience. Also you may want to check out the food you're feeding. Our pets need quality pet food. Read the ingredients list and learn what the stuff on there is and what it does (or does not do) to/for our pets. A quick pet food 101. If the pet food contains corn/corn products or by products it is a poor quality food. Do not pay attention to advertising, they all say there food is great. Corn is a filler that can trigger skin problems. (allergies, skin problems, itching and excessive shedding) By products is anything from an animal not fit for human consumption, including cancerous tissue. Quality foods have meat as the first ingredient. California Natural, Solid Gold, Innova and Merrick are a few of the best brands available. If you want to learn more check out: http://www.sagekeep.com/petfood.htm www.api4animals.org/facts?p=359& more=1 http://animalark.eapps.com/animal/PetFoods.nsf/$$PetFoodsByRating?OpenForm

You should see a waist and be able to see the ribs slightly. I would strongly suggest a better dog food, three times a day feeding and monitor their weight. If your seeing too much rib add a little to each feeding. Please fell free to contact me if you have any questions. It sounds like you really want to do what's right for your Great Danes. Good luck

Answer 5

Make sure that what you are feeding him is not over 23% protein. The breeder of my Dane made it part of his contract guarantee that he be fed Diamond High Energy. This is an adult food. My Jacob is now 2 1/2 and a very good looking boy! Vets have told me that Large Breed Puppy food is nothing more than adult food in a fancy wrapper, costing more. If you read and compare the labels, they are right. Don't let the puppy do a lot of running and rough housing after eating. Some think that that is what causes bloat. And everyone else is correct in that he should not be away from his mother yet. If you do change his food, be sure to do it slowly, mixing old food with new food changing the amounts a little every day. An abupt change in diet can upset his tummy.

Answer 6

Purina Dog Chow is NOT a good food for any dog but especially a Dane. Also a Dane (and any breed of dog) should be fed twice a day.
They aren't getting enough quality food...you need to get them on to a good quality food such as Chicken Soup adult formula or Adult Large Breed Formula or Canidae All Life Stages.
I have owned/shown Danes for over 25 years. I currently have 2 Danes one Adult and one 7 month old. I am currently feeding Canidae dry and wet. I recommend that you gradually switch over to the Canidae. Feed 2 cups of dry plus 1/2 can wet in the am and 3 cups of dry plus 1/2 can wet in pm per dog.
Canidae is a very calorie dense food and a rich food. It is very high quality. Also please be advised taht Danes should be kept on the lean side until they are at least 18 months old. Also they don't usually start to fill out until they are 2-3 years old.

Answer 7

At 1 year old, they are still growing, and they grow quickly. It's hard to keep weight on them at this stage.
One thing that might help is to get them on a better quality dog food. The main ingredient in Purina Dog Chow (as well as most grocery store brands) is ground yellow corn, a filler that dogs cannot process and thus simply excrete. There are several good quality premium dog foods at Petsmart (or similar pet stores) that are not full of fillers. I feed my dogs Nutro. Your dogs will get more nutritional benefit from these foods. Even if they don't gain weight right away, you will notice there is a lot less clean-up required in your yard with a premium dog food...

Answer 8

Use a nutritional calculator, like this one http://www.uskbtc.com/calculator/index.php to determine your dogs daily caloric requirements, then look at the food to see how much you should be feeding based on that. That website also has a calculator for most of the major brands.

Try feeding in two smaller meals a day, not only does this spread out the food, but Danes are prone to bloat, so its better they eat small meals than large.

Answer 9

Sweetie, I have 2 Danes too. 1 male and 1 female. Until you Danes get a little older they will look poor and you'll feel bad taking them in public, for fear that others will think you miss treat them.
Great Danes just grow tall before they fatten up. My female "Chyna" out-weighs my male by about 40 pounds.Chyna is 6 and Rufuss is 3.He looks as if he has been mistreated but us Dane owners know better. Don't worry that's just how they all look at young ages. Have you had yours fixed? That helps thicken them up some too.
Feeding them 8 cups each is plenty and only once a day is great too. Relax...
Also...when you got your Danes were you notified by the seller on their life expectancy? Does your Dane's love to lean on you?...that's a problem I have with mine b/c they weigh so much and knock me over.

Answer 10

Try feeding them twice a day (so they would be getting double the amount of food) and you may want to switch to a better quality food. Also, you may want to de-worm them and possibly have the vet check them out because they are so skinny.