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Putting Weight On A Dog


jerojath
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I have a 10 month old bitch in my care who eats well but is quite underweight.

She is such an active girl and is 'wired' 24/7 - she NEVER stops!

She eats enough that would make my other girls fat! I think it's just coz she is sooooo active.

Any tips on what to feed her to bulk her up a bit? She is very healthy - just thin!

Dry food is her favorite and she's not big on fresh meat at all.

Which dry food is best for assisting with weight gain?

Any advice appreciated!

:(

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A "power" or "working dog" formula will have more fat than other food.

Artemis and Eaglepack both do a power formula. I use Artemis power and find it helpful for keeping weight on my whippet.

Some lamb offcuts like necks would be good too.

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I have a 10 month old bitch in my care who eats well but is quite underweight.

She is such an active girl and is 'wired' 24/7 - she NEVER stops!

She eats enough that would make my other girls fat! I think it's just coz she is sooooo active.

Any tips on what to feed her to bulk her up a bit? She is very healthy - just thin!

Dry food is her favorite and she's not big on fresh meat at all.

Which dry food is best for assisting with weight gain?

Any advice appreciated!

:)

I have had the same problem with my Sammie boy Mistral, he's very healthy but always been skinny, his father is the same.

After much trial and trying about 100 different foods I found that working or active formula helped but the best for him has been Nutro Lamb and Rice.

No idea why but it works so I'm happy! He also gets Lamb necks, flaps and turkey necks too.

I have finally got a bit of meat on him now and he's looking better then ever :(

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I suggest you give Judith of Artemis Pet Food Australia a call, she will be able to tell you. The Power is a great food however you have a pup, this food is suggested for 12 months and over. Judith may have some advice for you.

I know you said the pup doesn't really like raw, but Ox Cheek will definately put on the weight but can be quite rich so dont feed too much initially. Lamb flaps or any lamb really should work (necks, shanks etc).

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Will no doubt be howled down about this but in my eyes, THE best dry food for putting on weight is either Great Barko or Uncle Albers. Australian-made....list meat as the first ingredient.

Some of mine do TOO well on it to the point where they are almost always on diets. Glossy coats, bright eyes and clean teeth. Not too offensive in the "picking up" either.

I have had PMs from others who have tried these food at my suggestion and they have been more than satisfied with the results, even with picky eaters.

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Thanks for the input.

She will not eat Eukanuba Premium so is on Bonnie Working Dog for now.

It seems to be the 'cheaper' makes of kibble have the higher fat contents.

Someone else suggested Uncle Albers so will see if I can get that in my town.

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Check out a stock feed place. Most of them seem to have it.

Great Barko is 10% fat, Uncle Albers is 12% fat.

Barko is Beef/Lamb based, Albers is Beef/Chicken.

If you can't get hold of it anywhere, contact Laucke Mills. They may be able to tell you a stockist. I know that if you can convince a shop to carry it, that Laucke Mills are more than happy to organise to get it there.

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A "power" or "working dog" formula will have more fat than other food.

Artemis and Eaglepack both do a power formula. I use Artemis power and find it helpful for keeping weight on my whippet.

Some lamb offcuts like necks would be good too.

Thanks PF, thats great to know! :laugh:

I love Artemis but I havent seen the Power formula, will have to ask the chick where I get it to get some in.

I am currently going through the Adult Dog at a rate of knots! $$$!

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Check out a stock feed place. Most of them seem to have it.

Great Barko is 10% fat, Uncle Albers is 12% fat.

Artemis Power is 20% fat.

Probably 20 times the price too! :laugh:

Several times no doubt. Price is not the primary interest for me as it doesn't always equate to value. Based on the Uncle Albers feeding guide, I'd need to feed 3 times as much as the Power.

The Power works out about $6 a kilo. No soy or wheat - that ticks several boxes for me.

Edited by poodlefan
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Well, I have to confess that I am not a dog food snob. I don't go for particular brands or labels because they do or don't have certain ingredients UNLESS a particular individual has shown an intolerance to those ingredients.

I feed what suits my dogs and my budget and lifestyle. If they're doing well on it, I couldn't care if it were el-cheapo crap from the supermarket. I'll no doubt be lambasted for this view, but I've been doing things "my way" for a long time now and have rarely had a complaint or an issue.

On the subject of the Great Barko and Uncle Albers.....my Stafford bitch has been on it for a while now (she didn't do well on a couple of the more expensive, often mentioned foods here) and now, despite being only 3 months past having a litter of 9 puppies is looking absolutely SENSATIONAL. In fact, if it weren't for the slight "undercarriage" I could probably put her in the ring this weekend, except that she isn't entered (darn it).

Editing to add as a result of your edit: I think you'd be VERY surprised about the amounts needed. I have found the feeding guide for Albers and Barko to be essentially useless. If I fed what they recommended on a daily basis, my dogs would resemble the Goodyear blimps. It is fair to say that for a "maintenance" diet, half (or even less in some cases) the recommended feeding guide would suffice.

Edited by ellz
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Well, I have to confess that I am not a dog food snob. I don't go for particular brands or labels because they do or don't have certain ingredients UNLESS a particular individual has shown an intolerance to those ingredients.

I feed what suits my dogs and my budget and lifestyle.

I'm sure most of us do.

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Well, I have to confess that I am not a dog food snob. I don't go for particular brands or labels because they do or don't have certain ingredients UNLESS a particular individual has shown an intolerance to those ingredients.

I feed what suits my dogs and my budget and lifestyle.

I'm sure most of us do.

I'd hope so. But you'd probably be surprised to know how many feed something that isn't really in their budget because they are too scared of being judged by their peers if they don't feed a "brand name" to their animals.

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I have twp that were impossible to get and keep weight on. They could eat the amount of raw food that was needed to get the weight where it should be. I tried all of the super premium power foods and none of tghem worked for these two, including Artemis Power. The only food that has worked is Uncle Albers or Great Barko. I have one on each of these as one of the two can not tolerate beef. I don't feed nearly as much as the feeding guide recommends.

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Well, I have to confess that I am not a dog food snob. I don't go for particular brands or labels because they do or don't have certain ingredients UNLESS a particular individual has shown an intolerance to those ingredients.

I feed what suits my dogs and my budget and lifestyle.

I'm sure most of us do.

I'd hope so. But you'd probably be surprised to know how many feed something that isn't really in their budget because they are too scared of being judged by their peers if they don't feed a "brand name" to their animals.

The only reason I know what people feed their dog is if they tell me. Short of doing pantry inspections at people's houses, how would anyone know who fed what? The best food for your dog is the one they do best on. Bugger what others think.

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The best food for your dog is the one they do best on. Bugger what others think.

Exactly. I've said it hundreds of times on this forum and each time have been howled down by the premium food snobs or BARFers.

I don't feed BARF because to do it "right" you have to feed offal and it is illegal to do so here in Tasmania. I don't have the imagination or time to work out alternatives and nobody has, as yet, suggested any that I am willing or able to substitute.

So, I'm happy to feed what I feed and know that whilst they may not be popular choices, my dogs are doing well on them.

And because my dogs are doing well on them, I'm happy to recommend them to others.

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