Food (yikes) and my dog's weight.

Tag · 08-12-2004, 10:04 PM

Aagh! Too many brands, too many choices! There are some good threads and I am wading my way through. Can anyone suggest a food (canned, kibble or other) that I can try? I live in Alberta, Canada. I don't know if that makes any difference as far as availibility goes. Of course price will be a concern, we don't eat sirloin steak every night either, lol.

I think Sam needs to put on some weight. He weighs 80lb but he's seems to be all ribs and testicles right now. Can anyone esstimate what his weight should be. He's quite tall and long I think.

Thanks again.

Tag.

Global Paw · 08-12-2004, 10:09 PM

Iams weight control did WONDERS for Quincy...its a dry food...but, that's for loosing wieght..

I would go for canned food if you want to gain weight...get that juicy gravey and meat stuff...I'm sure he'll pick up some weight pretty quick.

Rip's Girl · 08-12-2004, 10:48 PM

Yep, canned food will make them gain weight, but it can also give them loose stools, and some dogs' stomachs just can't handle a lot of canned food.

What I would do is mix about 1/2 cup of a good canned food in with his kibble, and gradually add more over a period of time if he isn't getting loose stool...

Also, look at the nutritional content of the kibble Sam is eating. (What are you feeding him now, btw?) Try to get a food slightly higher in protein and fat than you're currently feeding.

Another thing... Unneutered males tend to be VERY hard to keep weight on. I'm going through the same thing with Ripley right now. If you're planning on neutering him, that'll make him gain a bit of weight.. Good luck.

Barrett · 08-13-2004, 01:40 AM

You can mix half and half puppy and adult dog food too. Puppy food has more fat so watch his weight closely and when he fills out start reducing the puppy food. My vet said to do this with Bailey when she was under weight. The puppy food is rich and taste better so if you mix it with his regular food he shouldn't get picky when you take it away.

doberkim · 08-13-2004, 07:03 AM

well, you have a GSD? at 80 lbs now, you can ditch the puppy food and feed straight adult.

what are you feeding now, and how much?

its hard to say what sort of condition your dog is in without seeing pictures -
i can tell people that my dog is a 96 lb doberman adn they can assume he is hugely overweight, but without seeing his frame, its hard to know that this is an ideal weight for him (at 31 inches at the withers).

additionally, i would get him neutered ASAP for health reasons, and in addition as a mixed breed there is no reason to keep him intact- its safer and healthier to have him neutered, and it WILL be easier to keep weight on him. good kibbles i can recommend?

innova, california naturals, solid gold, canidae, wellness, eagle pack, chicken soup, etc.

***Carrie*** · 08-13-2004, 07:56 AM

When you say he's all ribs, can you stand 10 feet away and count his ribs? I mean...can you see each rib easily? Then he's probably too thin. You shouldn't see them each distinctly. But, when you run your hands along his sides with medium pressure, you should be able to feel them. Are you sure he doesn't have worms?

I'd recommend a high quality, premium dog food, as recommended by Doberkim as well as neutering. You may think those foods are more expensive, but I find that it takes less to keep weight on them. They generally have better ingredients. Look for at least two meats as the first ingredient and steer clear of corn products. Better grain is oats I think. Corn is hard to digest for dogs.

Carrie

dollface · 08-13-2004, 09:31 AM

For here in Canada the best foods I have come across is Euk/Iam and Nutro. I feed Nutro Natural choice cause I prefer the ingredients over the other stuff and it is much cheaper... Im in saskatchewan

You should be able to kinda see your dogs ribs as well as feel them, but if they are sticking right out then a concern. On all 3 of my boston's you can see their ribs just by looking at them but they are an ideal weight. They are always active and I free feed.

How old is your boy? Is there any bitches in heat? If so that can cause an intact male to go off their food because they are more concerned about the bitch....Some dogs motabilism are faster then others, some are just lean. Just remember just because one brand of food works good for one dog does not mean it will work the same for another. You could feed dry kibble and can food together once or twice a day. Even if you schedule feed I always reccomend to feed at least 2 meals a day ( all you have to do is break the meal in half) it is much easier on the dogs throat as well as the stomache. Maybe you just need to add more when you feed him.

Tag · 08-13-2004, 10:30 PM

Thank you for your replies. Lots of good information there. I'll try to answer all your questions as best I can to help you get to know Sam - and myself - a little better.

First off I found some canned food called Lean Cuts. I didn't really care much that it was "lean" but I looked at the ingredients and they were (in order) beef, beef liver and kidney, carrots... So figured that would be ok to try. I gave Same a small amount, about half a cup, mixed with some kibble for his evening feeding. I guess I'll see in a day or so how it goes through him. He sure liked it compared with what I had been feeding him.

I was in Costco and I looked at different brands of kibble. Most of them had corn or corn meal for the first ingredient and that didn't interest me too much. I found three that had a meat as their first ingredient and one of them was the Iams weight control. So the choice came down to Iams with the first ingredient being chicken, and the Costco store brand in which the first ingredient was was lamb meal and it was corn free. I went with the Costco store brand stuff for two reasons. Price was one - it was $15.00 less than the Iams - and I liked that it was corn free and had lamb (or lamb meal at least) as the primary igredient. The protein is 23% and fat 14% which was real close to the Iams' numbers.

What is the difference between lamb and lamb meal or chicken and chicken meal?

Rips Girl and Doberkim. I was feeding him Purina Dog Chow, I think that was an error, but I just ran up to Sobey's and had to buy him something. Looking at the ingredients it's mainly corn... real nice. Sorry Sam.

Carrie. I can see his ribs from ten feet. I think he is kinda lean but I do believe he's under weight also. I will take him into work next week and snap a few shots with our digital camera and post them on the site.

Dollface. I beleive Sam's two years old or pretty close. I have been feeding him twice a day - splitting his ration - but he gets a bigger portion in the morning than he does at night.

Well, it looks like neutering is in the cards for Sam. I will start another thread because i have a few questions about that too.

Tag.

dollface · 08-14-2004, 01:16 PM

Me personally I prefer the meal better then just the meat because you get more true of meat with the meal then you do with just meat.

This maybe of some help, I use to have many more links but can't find my paper where I wrote them all down.

http://www.resteddoginn.ca/api.php

You want a food that does not contain BHT, BHA, or Ethoxyquin. It shouldn't have by-products either. I also look for one that has no corn meal and meat/meat meal must be the 1st ingredients.

***Carrie*** · 08-14-2004, 03:44 PM

Stay clear of by products. Meal simply means they've taken out some of the fat and water, thereby you're getting more meat for the money. Take your dog to the vets periodically to be weighed. You can ask how his condition looks to the vet. That would be the best thing. I've had show horses and dogs all my life and from what I understand and have studied on the conditioning is that you should be able to feel their ribs when your press along their sides with moderate pressure. But you should not be able to see them outright. But check with your vet.

Carrie

DaxAriel's toy · 08-14-2004, 11:36 PM

I live in Edmonton. My rotti & rotti cross like Altrium & old roy both are very economical and available at Walmart. No added colors & uses Vitiam E for preservatives.

dollface · 08-15-2004, 11:35 AM

Whats the first 3 ingredients in Altrium and Old Roy dogfood?

***Carrie*** · 08-15-2004, 01:25 PM

http://www.naturapet.com/display.php?d=comp-wiz

you can check that out.

Oh, and here's something else you might be interested in. There are links from here to read the pro's and con's of feeding raw. And some other links are there too.

http://www.woodhavenlabs.com/dogfoods.html

Happy reading!

Tag · 08-15-2004, 05:56 PM

A quick update on Sam's feeding.

He sure likes the new food (Costco store brand ie. Kirkland) much better than the first lot (Purina Dog Chow, which is corn based). I've been mixing in a half cup or more of canned dog food with his morning ration and he seems to be doing ok on it so far. His first stool was a little looser than normal but I think I had given him a little too much and when I cut back his stools seem fine.

I weighed him myself by stepping on the scale and then lifting him up and stepping on again. He was not too impressed but it got the job done I suppose. If he gets much bigger I'll not be able to do it that way since my scale tops out at 300lb. Maybe that'll be my motivation for losing a few pounds.

What are some warning signs that the food is not agreeing with the dog? I'm guessing soft stools is one. Are there any others I should be looking for?

Thanks.

Rip's Girl · 08-15-2004, 06:03 PM

The soft stools is usually due to the sudden switch. If he acts more lethargic, and just generally different, after a couple weeks of eating that, it's probably a bad reaction to the food.
Buster seems to do best on the Kirkland brand (out of the 15-20 we've tried), actually. He loves it, and he has no soft stool or other problems, so we're keeping him on that.

08-12-2004, 10:04 PM	#1 (permalink)
Tag Shepherd X Join Date: Aug 2004 Location: Alberta, Canada Posts: 13 Rep Power: 79	Food (yikes) and my dog's weight. Aagh! Too many brands, too many choices! There are some good threads and I am wading my way through. Can anyone suggest a food (canned, kibble or other) that I can try? I live in Alberta, Canada. I don't know if that makes any difference as far as availibility goes. Of course price will be a concern, we don't eat sirloin steak every night either, lol. I think Sam needs to put on some weight. He weighs 80lb but he's seems to be all ribs and testicles right now. Can anyone esstimate what his weight should be. He's quite tall and long I think. Thanks again. Tag.

08-12-2004, 10:48 PM	#3 (permalink)
Rip's Girl Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: Arizona Posts: 2,580 Rep Power: 142	Yep, canned food will make them gain weight, but it can also give them loose stools, and some dogs' stomachs just can't handle a lot of canned food. What I would do is mix about 1/2 cup of a good canned food in with his kibble, and gradually add more over a period of time if he isn't getting loose stool... Also, look at the nutritional content of the kibble Sam is eating. (What are you feeding him now, btw?) Try to get a food slightly higher in protein and fat than you're currently feeding. Another thing... Unneutered males tend to be VERY hard to keep weight on. I'm going through the same thing with Ripley right now. If you're planning on neutering him, that'll make him gain a bit of weight.. Good luck.
	__________________

08-13-2004, 07:03 AM	#5 (permalink)
doberkim doberslave Join Date: Jul 2004 Posts: 830 Rep Power: 104	well, you have a GSD? at 80 lbs now, you can ditch the puppy food and feed straight adult. what are you feeding now, and how much? its hard to say what sort of condition your dog is in without seeing pictures - i can tell people that my dog is a 96 lb doberman adn they can assume he is hugely overweight, but without seeing his frame, its hard to know that this is an ideal weight for him (at 31 inches at the withers). additionally, i would get him neutered ASAP for health reasons, and in addition as a mixed breed there is no reason to keep him intact- its safer and healthier to have him neutered, and it WILL be easier to keep weight on him. good kibbles i can recommend? innova, california naturals, solid gold, canidae, wellness, eagle pack, chicken soup, etc.
	__________________ bowies modern love rn cgc snd

08-13-2004, 07:56 AM	#6 (permalink)
*Carrie* Super Moderator Super Moderator Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: north panhandle of Idaho Posts: 7,434 Rep Power: 287	When you say he's all ribs, can you stand 10 feet away and count his ribs? I mean...can you see each rib easily? Then he's probably too thin. You shouldn't see them each distinctly. But, when you run your hands along his sides with medium pressure, you should be able to feel them. Are you sure he doesn't have worms? I'd recommend a high quality, premium dog food, as recommended by Doberkim as well as neutering. You may think those foods are more expensive, but I find that it takes less to keep weight on them. They generally have better ingredients. Look for at least two meats as the first ingredient and steer clear of corn products. Better grain is oats I think. Corn is hard to digest for dogs. Carrie
	__________________ Get more out of Global Paw. Check out these great features. Global Paw Book Club -- Art Classes -- Woof Review As a member of Global paw staff my opinions are not necessarily those of the website or the owner.

08-13-2004, 09:31 AM	#7 (permalink)
dollface 4 Boston Terriers Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: Canada Saskatchewan Posts: 903 Rep Power: 101	For here in Canada the best foods I have come across is Euk/Iam and Nutro. I feed Nutro Natural choice cause I prefer the ingredients over the other stuff and it is much cheaper... Im in saskatchewan You should be able to kinda see your dogs ribs as well as feel them, but if they are sticking right out then a concern. On all 3 of my boston's you can see their ribs just by looking at them but they are an ideal weight. They are always active and I free feed. How old is your boy? Is there any bitches in heat? If so that can cause an intact male to go off their food because they are more concerned about the bitch....Some dogs motabilism are faster then others, some are just lean. Just remember just because one brand of food works good for one dog does not mean it will work the same for another. You could feed dry kibble and can food together once or twice a day. Even if you schedule feed I always reccomend to feed at least 2 meals a day ( all you have to do is break the meal in half) it is much easier on the dogs throat as well as the stomache. Maybe you just need to add more when you feed him.
	__________________ The only thing worse then a fool Is the person that argue's with one A dog is only as smart as their owner

08-12-2004, 10:09 PM	#2 (permalink)
Global Paw Information Join Date: May 2004 Posts: 2,065 Rep Power: 129	Iams weight control did WONDERS for Quincy...its a dry food...but, that's for loosing wieght.. I would go for canned food if you want to gain weight...get that juicy gravey and meat stuff...I'm sure he'll pick up some weight pretty quick.

08-13-2004, 01:40 AM	#4 (permalink)
Barrett dachshund Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: Washington Posts: 2,758 Rep Power: 157	You can mix half and half puppy and adult dog food too. Puppy food has more fat so watch his weight closely and when he fills out start reducing the puppy food. My vet said to do this with Bailey when she was under weight. The puppy food is rich and taste better so if you mix it with his regular food he shouldn't get picky when you take it away.

08-13-2004, 10:30 PM	#8 (permalink)
Tag Shepherd X Join Date: Aug 2004 Location: Alberta, Canada Posts: 13 Rep Power: 79	Thank you for your replies. Lots of good information there. I'll try to answer all your questions as best I can to help you get to know Sam - and myself - a little better. First off I found some canned food called Lean Cuts. I didn't really care much that it was "lean" but I looked at the ingredients and they were (in order) beef, beef liver and kidney, carrots... So figured that would be ok to try. I gave Same a small amount, about half a cup, mixed with some kibble for his evening feeding. I guess I'll see in a day or so how it goes through him. He sure liked it compared with what I had been feeding him. I was in Costco and I looked at different brands of kibble. Most of them had corn or corn meal for the first ingredient and that didn't interest me too much. I found three that had a meat as their first ingredient and one of them was the Iams weight control. So the choice came down to Iams with the first ingredient being chicken, and the Costco store brand in which the first ingredient was was lamb meal and it was corn free. I went with the Costco store brand stuff for two reasons. Price was one - it was $15.00 less than the Iams - and I liked that it was corn free and had lamb (or lamb meal at least) as the primary igredient. The protein is 23% and fat 14% which was real close to the Iams' numbers. What is the difference between lamb and lamb meal or chicken and chicken meal? Rips Girl and Doberkim. I was feeding him Purina Dog Chow, I think that was an error, but I just ran up to Sobey's and had to buy him something. Looking at the ingredients it's mainly corn... real nice. Sorry Sam. Carrie. I can see his ribs from ten feet. I think he is kinda lean but I do believe he's under weight also. I will take him into work next week and snap a few shots with our digital camera and post them on the site. Dollface. I beleive Sam's two years old or pretty close. I have been feeding him twice a day - splitting his ration - but he gets a bigger portion in the morning than he does at night. Well, it looks like neutering is in the cards for Sam. I will start another thread because i have a few questions about that too. Tag.

08-14-2004, 01:16 PM	#9 (permalink)
dollface 4 Boston Terriers Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: Canada Saskatchewan Posts: 903 Rep Power: 101	Me personally I prefer the meal better then just the meat because you get more true of meat with the meal then you do with just meat. This maybe of some help, I use to have many more links but can't find my paper where I wrote them all down. http://www.resteddoginn.ca/api.php You want a food that does not contain BHT, BHA, or Ethoxyquin. It shouldn't have by-products either. I also look for one that has no corn meal and meat/meat meal must be the 1st ingredients.
	__________________ The only thing worse then a fool Is the person that argue's with one A dog is only as smart as their owner

08-14-2004, 03:44 PM	#10 (permalink)
*Carrie* Super Moderator Super Moderator Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: north panhandle of Idaho Posts: 7,434 Rep Power: 287	Stay clear of by products. Meal simply means they've taken out some of the fat and water, thereby you're getting more meat for the money. Take your dog to the vets periodically to be weighed. You can ask how his condition looks to the vet. That would be the best thing. I've had show horses and dogs all my life and from what I understand and have studied on the conditioning is that you should be able to feel their ribs when your press along their sides with moderate pressure. But you should not be able to see them outright. But check with your vet. Carrie
	__________________ Get more out of Global Paw. Check out these great features. Global Paw Book Club -- Art Classes -- Woof Review As a member of Global paw staff my opinions are not necessarily those of the website or the owner. Last edited by Carrie : 08-15-2004 at 01:40 PM.

08-14-2004, 11:36 PM	#11 (permalink)
DaxAriel's toy Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: Edmonton Alberta Canada Posts: 135 Rep Power: 0	I live in Edmonton. My rotti & rotti cross like Altrium & old roy both are very economical and available at Walmart. No added colors & uses Vitiam E for preservatives.

08-15-2004, 11:35 AM	#12 (permalink)
dollface 4 Boston Terriers Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: Canada Saskatchewan Posts: 903 Rep Power: 101	Whats the first 3 ingredients in Altrium and Old Roy dogfood?
	__________________ The only thing worse then a fool Is the person that argue's with one A dog is only as smart as their owner

08-15-2004, 01:25 PM	#13 (permalink)
*Carrie* Super Moderator Super Moderator Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: north panhandle of Idaho Posts: 7,434 Rep Power: 287	http://www.naturapet.com/display.php?d=comp-wiz you can check that out. Oh, and here's something else you might be interested in. There are links from here to read the pro's and con's of feeding raw. And some other links are there too. http://www.woodhavenlabs.com/dogfoods.html Happy reading!
	__________________ Get more out of Global Paw. Check out these great features. Global Paw Book Club -- Art Classes -- Woof Review As a member of Global paw staff my opinions are not necessarily those of the website or the owner. Last edited by Carrie : 08-15-2004 at 01:38 PM.

08-15-2004, 05:56 PM	#14 (permalink)
Tag Shepherd X Join Date: Aug 2004 Location: Alberta, Canada Posts: 13 Rep Power: 79	A quick update on Sam's feeding. He sure likes the new food (Costco store brand ie. Kirkland) much better than the first lot (Purina Dog Chow, which is corn based). I've been mixing in a half cup or more of canned dog food with his morning ration and he seems to be doing ok on it so far. His first stool was a little looser than normal but I think I had given him a little too much and when I cut back his stools seem fine. I weighed him myself by stepping on the scale and then lifting him up and stepping on again. He was not too impressed but it got the job done I suppose. If he gets much bigger I'll not be able to do it that way since my scale tops out at 300lb. Maybe that'll be my motivation for losing a few pounds. What are some warning signs that the food is not agreeing with the dog? I'm guessing soft stools is one. Are there any others I should be looking for? Thanks.

08-15-2004, 06:03 PM	#15 (permalink)
Rip's Girl Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: Arizona Posts: 2,580 Rep Power: 142	The soft stools is usually due to the sudden switch. If he acts more lethargic, and just generally different, after a couple weeks of eating that, it's probably a bad reaction to the food. Buster seems to do best on the Kirkland brand (out of the 15-20 we've tried), actually. He loves it, and he has no soft stool or other problems, so we're keeping him on that.
	__________________

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