Trying to keep a dogs weight up....put weight on?

[Dadie]

Hyperactive springer spaniel....feeding him 3 tin of pedigree chum/butchers etc a day (feeding for a 30 kilo weight dog when he should be around 15-20 kilos)and a bowl of wagg with an egg in it and table scraps.
But he is burning off the cals as fast as they go in.
Any ideas on high cal foods to give him...to get him back up to weight as he is starting to get underweight (been wormed and no other probs) rather than bulky meals.

[changilass]

See the vet, they will have the best idea.

[annemarie482]

Vets will likely tell you tins are to blame.
They just dont fill dogs, tend to pass through quickly too.
Most vets/breeders advise a dry complete meal with occasional raw meat depending on breed.
Our lab soon filled out once on dry food and chicken wings! :)

[buggyracer]

Try a good dry Kibble, something like Arden Grange, Chapel Farm or Eukinuba, the old saying you get what you pay for here, the more exspensive feeds are so for a reason, they conatin the better ingreadiants.

[Dadie]

I was tempted to change his diet .....but left him on what he was used to getting at home.
Its the opposite problem than Im used to with my own dog.
But I have come to the conclusion he needs something different.

[leodhas01]

I've got a Springer going on 2, I've got the same problem, I got him 2 1/2 months ago from a family of 5 who kept in him a cage alot of the time and he didn't get the exercise he needed as they had a small garden and lived in a housing scheme area where the traffic was quite heavy. Due to him being kept in a cage alot he got quite stressed when let out in large spaces for the first few weeks i had him which led to him circling round the house quite alot, he doesn't do it as much as he's settled in quite quickly but I really struggle to keep the weight on as he drops it so quickly, I found the Wagg food is good as it has a high protein diet it's only about £11 in factory shop for a big bag (Can't remember how much it holds but it lasts me about month - month 1/2), I give him this twice a day soaked with gravy and any of my own scraps that are suitable for him I also give to him, you could also try going to the local butchers and see if they have any fatty bits of meat or anything that you could cook for him as this is what I also do. I've found that a good source of weight gain for him.

[cazmanian_minx]

I have the same problem with our cocker :)

She's now getting a good quality dry working dog food - she has it on its own for breakfast, but each evening she gets either a raw egg, a raw chicken wing or a tin of sardines in oil over the top of it and her weight has now stablised.

[porshiepoo]

I had the same problem with my Danes. They got so much exercise running on the land most of the day that I just couldn't feed them enough to keep the weight on.
It was only the entire boys though, I never had this problem with either the girls or the castrated males - is your boy entire?
I tried every brand of dog food going from Royal Canin to Pedigree and finally settled on Wagg. Tinned food does nothing for the weight of a dog, nothing at all.
I feed mine twice a day with complete food and a tin of meat mixed in just to add some flavour but thats all the tinned stuff is for. We also give them scraps.
At one point I fed them lard that was microwaved and then mixed into their complete food, it does work!
Eventually I realsied what was causing my dogs problem though - he was cold! His body was using the food to keep warm leaving nothing left to add some body fat, which is why the problem wasn't as bad in the summer.
Now he is rugged up every night and during the day in the winter (he lives out during the day and in at night), Great Danes feel the weather terribly as their coats are so thin.
Since rugging him up and monitoring his exercise his weight has increased to a good level, however if I don't rug him up for a few days the weight just drops off.

TBH I wouldn't worry so much now though. Although Huntly did look thin as far as I'm concerned his body was pure muscle from all the exercise, he has energy in bucketloads and his coat is healthy looking. Although looking thin is unsightly to some people it doesn't necessarily indicate a malnourished or neglected dog.

The other thing to remember is that high protein feeds are meant for working animals not necessarily working breeds. It may be too high in protein for your dogs needs and could theerfore lead to hyperactivity instead.

[Dadie]

He is intact..
But as he isnt my dog, there is nothing I am willing to get done down there!
He is hyper....and has eaten any coat put on him and his pointer pal...He is constantly moving and still a bit destructive...and they live out in the shed during the day and have been taking in on really cold nights as they are badly behaved in the house...spaniel on the tabletop?
Loving the lard trick....I will get a few blocks tomorrow!

[neepnipper]

Does he gulp his food down, if he does you could try a bowl like this, they have them in Pets at Home in Wick. If he eats slower he'll absorb more nutrition from the food.

http://i.ebayimg.com/t/Trixie-Slow-Feed-Dog-Bowl-Stops-Gulping-Food-3-SIZES-/00/s/NDAwWDQwMA==/$T2eC16dHJIYE9qUcO3l2BQRmBtQ3Nw~~60_12.JPG

[porshiepoo]

He is intact..
But as he isnt my dog, there is nothing I am willing to get done down there!
He is hyper....and has eaten any coat put on him and his pointer pal...He is constantly moving and still a bit destructive...and they live out in the shed during the day and have been taking in on really cold nights as they are badly behaved in the house...spaniel on the tabletop?
Loving the lard trick....I will get a few blocks tomorrow!

Hmmm def watch the protein levels. He may be hyper and burn some of it off but it could be high protein levels that are actually contributing to him being hyper.
Huntly my Dane can be hyper. When he's out on the land he hares around like there's no tomorrow and just doesn't stop, even the GSD gives up and hides. I have found that a controlled walk knackers him out far more and alot quicker than an entire day running round. I assume it's more of a mental knackering they need as opposed a physical one?
shame he isn't yours for castrating purposes ;) I know for a fact it helps with weight gain (actually it can be just as troublesome cos our GSD now puts too much weight on too easily) and it could also help with a manic personality (it certainly calmed our GSD down).

I hope you get it figured out soon :)

[leodhas01]

I got.advised by my vet that my.spaniel would be best with a high protein diet to improve his weight gain and to try and add meat to his diet, he did also suggest the chop but he's only turning 2 and didn't get much exercise in his previous home, he comes everywhere with me and gets a good run at the horses or beach when we go out and depending on how cold it is he.comes in the car while I'm at work for a few hours or.stays.at home with the heater on, what about getting a dog crate in the house for him to teach him that's where he's put in when he's badly behaved, or getting his mind focused on.something like treats or toys to prevent the house being ransacked?

[Dadie]

I was thinking about crating him...he jumps the playpen walls......but as he isnt my dog ...unless I get the funds sent to me ...Im unwilling to crate him other than the playpen and boards over the escape routes..plus he would have to be crated with his partner in crime...a pointer x spaniel and between the 2 there is only one brain cell that seems to be shared.....!
The kids have had fingers trapped in doors between the pen in the shed and shed door etc as it is.........as well as being humped/peed on....3 months left!

[Dadie]

But on the plus side suet(its in wee pellets)...cheap in lidls at the moment makes adding cals to meals a breeze ...one shake over the spaniels meals seems to be working!

[M Swanson]

Another thing to try, is pasta Dadie. I buy a 500g bag of twists for 36p , make a stew with whatever veg I have, to include tatties and a handful of turkey, that I'm trying to use up. Ox liver and hearts are very cheap to buy too, which is their favourite. I also add a pinch of cinnamon and eggs shells which I crush to a powder, for the calcium they need. My Cocker spaniels love it and it's a good, cheap, nutritional meal. Sometimes, I change to rice, which has more calories, but my two need to lose a bit of weight, so the portions are smaller. It sounds like a lorra work, but I make enough for five days and freeze it. I don't think they'd go back to shop bought dog food now. I'm not sorry, because of the junk they contain. You'll miss your visitor when he returns home! :D

[Dadie]

I wont miss my visitors any!
But is is a different trouble than im used to....a well behaved (well I now think so) lab who is restricted in her diet to fish with rice/potatoes/pulses as she cannot have fat in her diet.....(pancreatis) so fat makes it messy.....between throwing up and the other end....:eek:
But 2 scrap eaters have been good as there isnt any waste at all...between the hellhounds and the rabbit for veggies,,,the bin hasnt seen any table scraps!
But as far as a happy house its better not to have a spaniel on the tabletop or a pointer humping any child or the pair of them knocking over them...not being nasty just boisterous....
It was just cals not bulk as I thought the 2 hellhounds had enough bulk in their foods...
Poor Poppy dog has much more bulk in her food and less fats but gets lots of fish protein!