My great dane won't gain weight does anyone have any suggestions?

Question

He has been to the vets and has been tested for many different things he is a picky eater and I can get him to eat Iams and also I give him Bil-Jack but he still is on the thin side. He is not Nuetered and is a year old, I am not getting him fixed till after he has tests on his thyroid and eyes and hips to see if he can breed, which I can't do tilll he is two. Thank you for any responses

Answer 1

this person is very nice to answer emails, and is a specialist in Great Dane nutrition and problems> http://www.greatdanelady.com/
You will love her website! > http://www.greatdanelady.com/

Answer 2

Danes of that age should be on the thin side. You should be able to see the last 2 ribs. Thye are still in growth stages and should not be carrying excess weight. Most Danes don't fill out until they are 2-3 years old.
I would also go to a better quality food. IAMS is not a good food.It is full of cheap fillers (as is Pedigree, Eukanuba,Science Dirt, Alpo, etc). Go to a good quality food such as Canidae, Chicken Soup for the Dog Lover's Soul, Wellness, Blue Buffalo, Innova, Solid Gold to just name a few. Make sure the protein level is no higher then 24%.Protein higher then this is bad for Danes under 18 months old and can cause seriosu problem.
Remember NEVER EVER feed a Dane puppy food of any kind including large breed. The protein level is way too high as is the calcium level.

The Great Dane Lady does have some good info, however her feeding recommendations are too complicated and with the advent of good quality lower protein, meat based foods they are now outdated.
I***** If considering breeding in addition ot health tests you will need to either show him or have him evaluated by at least 3 unbiased, breed knowledgable people to make sure he meets breed standard******

Answer 3

I have an older collie who is also a very picky eater and recently lost a significant amount of weight. I also had almost every test on her imaginable, including liver, kidney and heart test to make sure she was healthy. When everything checked out, I started mixing chicken and rice with her dog food. She love it and has slowly started to put on weight again. It is a little inconvenient to add the chicken and rice for each meal, but I would do anything for my dogs, including extra time for meal preparation.

Answer 4

Chetco has a very good answer. Linda Arndt is THE specialist on Dane nutrition. I would run a thyroid test on him and change to a better quality food.

Answer 5

He is only a year old. Give him time. Also, what do you feed him? I use Eukanuba puppy food. Also some lightly cooked red meat, eggs and maybe a little bacon grease once in awhile won't hurt. Exercise is also an important factor. Muscle puts on weight and helps with healthy development.

Answer 6

dane are a skinny dog most of them u can see there ribs. u could try to put some can food in the kibble its higher in fat... but like i said dane are normally ver skinny and and not full grown untill they are 2. he might just need to fill out some more he's a young lanky teenager. what ur vet think?

Answer 7

if he isnt registered, i wouldnt breed him but i guess you dont want to hear that. some aniamls simply WONT gain weight unless they get fixed. 2 dogs and several cats have shown me this. at least he is not a she where the pups would make it so much worse.wal mart has a refrigerated section in the pet department with real meat (chicken)tubes like cround beeftubes for dogs...give that a try. i heard that if you sprinkle his food with dry parmesan cheese it works like a charm. good luck

Answer 8

hi sounds like what one of ours was like titan, grat danes are slender and he will be thin till aroud 18 months all the nutrients in his food goes to his bones, allot of growing to do what we found works the best is chicken necks and chicken frames/carcases raw of course chicken neck sare really high in fat, and he should bulk the fat on, and he will love them warning though, his farts will stink!!!! give it a try just in case you dont know never feed a dane warm or hot food it will twist his bowels, good luck

Answer 9

That is normal. I have raised Great Danes and used to have 13 of them.(hands full) He will grow into everything. talk to the vet if your nervous about him.