I have a skinny Rottweiler German Shepard mix is this natural?

Question

He is very skinny and we feed him and he eats alot i dont know if it is natural for his age. Any advice on how toget him fatter?

well i feed canned food mixed with dry food. he is fixed and is very active. we deworm him when we think he needs it and i worry that he will die. If he does die i would be so upset. i feed him petagee food and he is only 1 year old. Plz help me.

he weighs a lot and his poop is not runny. the you can see his ribs and hip bone. i am worried

we will take him tothe vet but untill then what do i do?

Answer 1

No one on Yahoo answers is really going to be able to tell you if your dog is too thin and if so why.
Like most everyone else has said TAKE THE DOG TO THE VET.
We can only guess....lots of disease like cancer, will cause weight loss. Or, since this is a mixed breed dog, he may be part sighthound which would make him naturally thin. Or he may have a common disease in German Shepards were they can't absorb the nutrients in their food.
The only way for you to know is to take the dog to the vet.

Answer 2

Some German Shepherds are naturally thin, but not skinny. Is he neutered? Intact males are usually thinner than neutered males. I think a visit to the vet would be a good idea, just to rule some things out, like hyper thyroid disease, intestinal parasites, or something else. If everything is fine, your vet will give you some ideas. But you could try switching him to a high calorie diet. My friend has to feed her dog a high energy food because he is so active he just burns up all his calories. Good Luck, I hope this helps.

Answer 3

You should not be able to see his ribs and hip bones at any age. I see you said you would take him to the vet. That is your best source of information. Several people answered that it could be parasites or something more serious. As far as feeding your dog, you should still be feeding him puppy food. Larger dogs should still get puppy food until they are about 2yrs old. They continue to grow until then. I take it he has not had regular visits to the vet? That is very important. Please be a responsible pet owner and take him to the vet.

Answer 4

Depends on what else is in the mix if he is otherwise healthy. I have an Aussie mix who has a greyhound build under all that fur. She is thin naturally and eats well, is healthy and has regular Vet check ups.
Sounds like a Vet check up would be good so cause of thinness can be determined and if needed, treatment can be started. Lots of things can cause thinness,whether normal genetic make up, parasites, illness.

Answer 5

It depends what his age is. What types of foods you are feeding him. How active he is, what his parents body types were. So many different factors go into your dogs size and weight. There are also some heath reasons that could cause an abnormally low body weight. Your best bet is to take him to a vet who can help you determine if his weight is appropriate, and if not ways to remedy the problem safely.

Answer 6

Some of the dogfoods available on the market are nutritionally worthless. It's not only the bargain brands, either, unfortunately; some of them are fine and some aren't. Check the labeling on the back of the package. See what's really in it, check the calorie content, and so forth. Compare 4 or 5 different brands to yours and see how it stacks up. Do let the vet see your dog as soon as you can. He can also tell you about other foods that would be good, nutritional treats, and such.

Answer 7

He probably shouldn't be skinny, unless he's mixed with something else. He might have worms or parasites. Have the vet check him out. Try feeding him higher calorie food, too, like canned food in addition to dry.

Answer 8

Sounds to me like he does have worms. Maybe you should get him rechecked. Either that or he is the runt of the littler. There is a nutritional supplement that is very high calorie for puppies/dogs like these. It definitely will plump him up, lol! Ask your vet for this, it comes in a tube and is like a gel. Dogs love it, it has a really strong beef smell to it, so even the most finicky puppies/dogs will eat it. Good luck! Hope this helps...

p.s. I believe you can get this at pet stores now too!

Answer 9

You didn't say age or fixed, etc.

1. If he is under 1 year old, he may be a gangly adolescent... like a normal growing 14 year old teenger.

2. If he is fixed, then he shouldn't be skinny ... but

3. You didn't say what 'skinny' is...
If he is lean, like a doberman or a boxer, than that may be OK. If you can see his ribs when he runs, that may be OK.

4. But if you can see his ribs when he is standing up, he may be too skinny. If he is energetic and healthy, and happy... and he runs OK, and his poop is not runny... he sounds healthy.

Answer 10

Not all wormers work for all dogs. I would take your dog to the vet and have them do a stool sample. this is very cheap around 12 dollars usually. take the sample into them if you want and drop it off.. they will tell you if your dog has worms and what to use. Usually you need a goood wormer from the vet.. he may have tape worms.. alot of wormers from over the counter just do not work. if he is eating well. and stools are ok.. I would think its worms of some kind.I worm mine once a month every month. as a preventative.

good luck