Author Topic: how to add weight? (Read 1688 times)

matt d · « **on:** November 17, 2003, 01:44:39 PM »

I have a one year old black mouth cur. I would like to put a few lbs on her. Is there a right and wrong way to do this?

rwng · « **Reply #1 on:** November 21, 2003, 11:27:26 AM »

Which dog food are you feeding her? Give her one with plenty of fat and protein. I feed Diamond brand, green. If the food is high in these then feed a little more than suggested. Remember though, at 1 year she is still just a pup and will fill out this next year. BMC's get around 50-70lbs for a female right?

matt d · « **Reply #2 on:** November 24, 2003, 05:45:29 AM »

rwng,
My BMC is 55 lbs according to the vet, I think that measurement is high. Her mom is probably about 75 lbs but closer to the ground. Thanks for the food advise!

sevendogs · « **Reply #3 on:** December 03, 2003, 01:26:52 PM »

:-) I am surprized why one would need to put more weight on his dog. Usually all dogs are too fat. A good hunting dog must be lean or skinny and he does not need extra weight as soon as he has energy and runs well. Lean and skinny dogs are healthier and live longer. Of course, since you feed kibbled dry dog food, the dog has no choice but to be either too skinny or too heavy or something in the middle. Feeding only natural foods, scrap meat with bones and organs is better, because the dog will never become overweight or too skinny. Just exercise him regularly and the rest is set up the natural way.

dawg_doc · « **Reply #4 on:** December 10, 2003, 06:17:09 AM »

We have a kennel of working sleddogs plus one golden retriever and a GSP. The sleddogs can occasionally get too thin through hard work and we very gradually will up food consumption, but more often than not simply suppliment with a hard-boiled egg (shell and all). The dogs love them, eggs are very digestable, and its extremely easy to toss a couple in your coveralls during dog chores.

I do agree with the comment that 98% of the dogs I see are overweight. However, sometimes (mostly in the winter), too skinny can be problematic. Depending upon the quality of the dog food, sometimes just feeding more kibble can mean picking up more poop. Diamond green is good, not terribly expensive. We've fed it before. Right now we're feeding Kasco High-performance, but we suppliment with about 50% whole ground chicken. 50 pound blocks of frozen chicken are not very convenient for most folks, though....

matt d · « **Reply #5 on:** December 10, 2003, 12:17:46 PM »

Thanks for the feedback guys. Tess has gained 7 lbs since the first post. She has been hunting more lately and is overflowing with energy. She feels so good that she is even more of a pain in the butt now too, she explodes with energy when anything happens. I slowly started changing foods and also added can food to her diet. At wally world the 16 oz cans (?) are sold for 31 cents a peice. I put half a can in her slowly changing dry food twice a day and she scarfs it down. I was prepared too take more costly measures but thought I would try the cheap way first. Her energy has risen and she has pooped more but its a good consistancy and its not really more compared to the amount she eats.

dawg_doc · « **Reply #6 on:** December 19, 2003, 03:17:06 AM »

Quote from: matt d

I slowly started changing foods and also added can food to her diet. At wally world the 16 oz cans (?) are sold for 31 cents a peice. I put half a can in her slowly changing dry food twice a day and she scarfs it down.

Matt,
I cringed when I read your comments. No, its not a bad idea, but the one time I offered one of my hard working critters some cheap canned, he had gas so bad, we had to open the windows to vent the house :roll:

willis5 · « **Reply #7 on:** December 19, 2003, 04:47:41 AM »

My Weim has a gas problem. I have tried 6 or seven different foods to no avail. I have tried more expensive brands like eukanuba

matt d · « **Reply #8 on:** December 19, 2003, 07:33:22 AM »

I have noticed an increase gas. She lives outside so I don't realy care if she farts all the time but I am a little worried about feeding her such stuff so I have bought a large supply of the premium stuff. Maybe that will deep the barking spiders at bay. if she wasn't hunting so good I would have a delema, all she does at home is fart and hump everything.

dawg_doc · « **Reply #9 on:** December 20, 2003, 02:31:23 AM »

sometimes it can take a month or more for a dog's GI tract to adjust to new foods and changes in their diet. We recently had a severely allergic dog go through some pretty horrendous farts as she was getting used to her diet. Ironically, when we got her tested, she turns out to be allergic to rice and lamb (ever checked the ingredients of allergy-free food...)

I just wish our new GSP puppy would get over the gas. Puppy breath is cute. puppy farts are toxic...

Valigator · « **Reply #10 on:** January 02, 2004, 04:17:47 PM »

I start adding weight to my dogs about a month prior to huntin season, pointers are lean and mean anyway but the first week they are on the dirt I notice a big weight drop so feeding is same food just more or less.

The lab is a whole other ball game they have a tendency to just get fat. So I make adjustments

tabbycat · « **Reply #11 on:** January 21, 2004, 03:00:01 PM »

I would have to agree with seven dogs reply. I keep all my hounds at what we call a running weight. Since you shop at wally world have you ever tried
the Ol' Roys hi pro? This is actually Purina in a different bag. Good luck with your hound.

Tabbycat Elkins

dawg_doc · « **Reply #12 on:** January 23, 2004, 08:42:09 AM »

If you run hard (e.g., coons, hounds and the like) be careful with Ol Roy, or any kibble that is 90% corn. Blood coming out the hind end after heavy exertion is not an uncommon occurrence. I've seen it more than once with cheap foods. Not trying to hammer on Wally world, lots of companies make food with way too much corn content that is real rough on the insides.

Quote from: tabbycat

I would have to agree with seven dogs reply. I keep all my hounds at what we call a running weight. Since you shop at wally world have you ever tried
the Ol' Roys hi pro? This is actually Purina in a different bag. Good luck with your hound.

Tabbycat Elkins

tabbycat · « **Reply #13 on:** January 24, 2004, 03:58:38 AM »

Thanks I'll definitely keep that in mind.
But I've never had that problem. During season we run hard all day every day. Tell me how to determine content amount of corn & such is it right there on the bag? When I kept 25 head I used Gainer which is an excellent feed.

Tabbycat Elkins

dawg_doc · « **Reply #14 on:** January 28, 2004, 06:21:33 AM »

Quote from: tabbycat

Thanks I'll definitely keep that in mind.
But I've never had that problem. During season we run hard all day every day. Tell me how to determine content amount of corn & such is it right there on the bag? When I kept 25 head I used Gainer which is an excellent feed.
Tabbycat Elkins

Take a look at the ingredients. Ingredients have to be listed in order of quantitiy, but if you have corn, ground corn, corn meal, etc, these are all the same thing, but different ingredients. Look at the cheaper food and you'll find 4/5 of the first ingredients the same thing.

99% of the time it's not a big deal and you may never have a problem, but the first time you run a dog hard on fresh snow and end up seeing red snow because of it, it'll convince you. Sort of like running a test-tube brush up the hind-end.....

LegendPup · « **Reply #15 on:** December 14, 2004, 09:27:24 PM »

Have you considered trying BILJAC? it has more meat in it and has a beet pulp base { less energy is used to digest it = more energy for the dog} even very picky eaters will go for it. You can send for a free sample at their web site. Think about it dogs were meant to eat Meat.. not corn
Started feeding it to my Dutch sheps and noticed Less output for the amount they were eating! Coats even got glossier. All of our dogs look great and don't have the weight problems associated with hard work. I even add some corn oil or rice brand to our dogs diets when they are working really hard. More calories with out the gas and you don't have the problems with the bloody stool under extreme working conditions as with corn based feed.

DirtyHarry · « **Reply #16 on:** December 15, 2004, 08:46:32 PM »

If you feed kibble I suggest a food in which the first two ingredients are some type of meat, like chicken and chicken meal. Avoid any food whose first ingredient is corn. The Diamond brand mentioned is a good brand but be sure you get the Adult Large Breed 60+ as it is the only Diamond food in which the first 2 ingredients are meat, plus it has glucosamine and chondroitin.
To add weight you can add plain old raw oats to the food....

blackdirt beagles · « **Reply #17 on:** December 16, 2004, 05:05:37 AM »

i use MAXXIMUM NUTRITION CHICKEN AND RICE 30/20% from walmart for a winter feed. my beagles keep great even when run 5 days a week and the temp is 0 or below at nite.

D.G. · « **Reply #18 on:** December 17, 2004, 11:25:37 AM »

If your dogs are on a good food try adding a product called Canine Red Cell. It works wonders on hard working dogs.

www.cabincreekfeedandsupply.com

tomaldridge · « **Reply #19 on:** December 21, 2004, 08:28:07 AM »

We feed top quality kibble, supplemented with meat, rice, and eggs, and I pick the bowl up after 10 minutes. Our dogs are up for a run any time, day or night. One thing we have to look out for, though, is moles. Our dogs catch them , and get tapeworm from them. Tapeworm will take a working dog down quick.