Have a ?

I've had my dog now for about a month, right now she is about 3 1/2 months old. I'll post pics later when i can find my scanner . Anyway my question is her weight a problem? she is about 20 or alittle more lbs. Just asking because she don't seem to eat that much and her ribs do show a bit. thx!

 

I don't think that sounds bad at all. Perhaps more people can offer info. My AmStaff Harley is quite lean and when I first got her I was constantly taking her to the vet to check her wieght. He finally told me she is just a lean dog and to stop comimg in so much!

She is now 18 months and 52lbs. When she stands you can see the ribs a bit, not much though. I recently read that you are not supposed to see a dogs ribs, but should feel them to the touch.

Here's a pic of Harley.

 

I think her weight is just fine. All dogs are different. I have 4 APBT and the all vary in weight/size. If you really feel like she is to thin you can try this recipe called satin balls (listed below) it's from the holistic dog it's great for putting on weight quick. My girl Punkin had parvo and I used this recipe except I cut it in half. She began to gain her weight back in a day or two plus some.
http://www.holisticdog.org/Nutrition/Sa ... balls.html
SATIN BALLS
Ingredients

10 pounds hamburger meat [the cheapest kind]
1 lg. box of Total cereal [or comparable natural brand]
1 lg. box oatmeal
1 jar of wheat germ
1 1/4 cup veg oil
1 1/4 cup of unsulfured molasses
10 raw eggs
10 envelopes of unflavored gelatin
pinch of salt

Mix all ingredients together, much like you would a meatloaf.

Divide into 10 quart freezer bags and freeze.

Thaw as needed.

Uses

I take a frozen pack to dogs shows with me, kept on ice, and never have had any trouble with it spoiling, even in the heat of Texas summers...

All my dogs go crazy over this stuff...but you have to be careful, it will put wt on the dogs pretty fast if you feed enough....I feed a pack a day...half in am , half in pm.

When I want to increase the weight on a dog, I feed more; so far I haven't got to the point where they won't eat anymore, and believe me, Satin has eaten a lot at one setting. It will put on the weight, make the coats soft and blue black (on black dogs at least, that's all I have).

The dogs stop all the itching and chewing at their coats/skin, their eyes get this bright look and the energy level goes out the roof(not that Belgians need any more energy).

The bitch that I got this recipe for is a picky eater, but when this in on the food(I long ago stopped trying to "bury" it the other food; they just hunt it down to eat first, and making a mess trying) she eats much better. It seems to whet her appetite.

Comments

Per the information received after having the Satin Balls recipe checked by several vets/labs:

Satin Balls is a total canine diet. It can be feed by itself or as a supplement, for however long you wish. My dogs have been on Satin Balls for over a year; the only time that I have fed it alone is when I had a sick dog needing to be built up or an underweight dog that I plan on showing.

The only problem with feeding it by itself is figuring out the amount. It will put weight on a dog in a few days...that's why it is so great to feed just before a show. If you have a dog that is in good weight, but you just want to build coat/endurance, you would have to figure out how much to feed (cal per kg), or you would end up with a fat dog in a very short time. At one point, I let Satin eat as much as she wanted, just to see how much she would consume. I never got to that point! After a pound pack, she was still looking for more, so I stopped. I have been told a dog will stop eating when full on it, and that you can then gauge the amount needed to maintain weight!

I just fine that per the pocketbook and ease, my dogs do very well on it as a supplement. I give about a 1/4 pound each night to maintain beautiful coats, energy level, and a full appetite...no picky eaters here.

Just don't try to hide it in the kibble...they will make a mess throwing out the kibble, digging for the Satin Balls! My dogs have never gotten sick on Satin balls...not even when I am at a show and feed only that. I feed less kibble, so I saves money there. There is also less stool to pick up as the dogs are able to digest all of the Satin Balls.

I have been playing with the recipe. I now use the Knox Joint Gelatin instead of the plain Knox unflavored gelatin. Since this is high in vit C and protein, and is good for the joints, it would be good for the dogs. They don't seem to mind the added flavor.

I am also adding Flaxseed oil. They probably don't need the added oil, but so far I have not seen it hurt anything.

Fix some up and let your dogs enjoy. They will love you forever and forever!

 

Here's a pic

Here is my baby pebbles . Just click on the pic to your left. Can anyone tell me how to post pics?? Thx again!! http://www.picturetrail.com/gallery/vie ... &members=1

 

Right click on the picture click on properties then copy the url then paste it here then highlight it and click the img tab above.

 

BTW She is gorgeous!! Here's a few pics of Pinky your little girl reminds me of her when she was a baby.

 

Thx guys :y_the_best:

 

sounds right to me. dogs are going to be different sizes. I had one that was 18lbs about that age. One that was less and one that was a little more.

 

I agree that you shouldn't go by age vs. weight alone. If your dog looks healthy, that matters more than comparing her to another dog's size. Reason being, your dog's parents might have only weighed 40 lbs full grown, whereas somebody else's pup might have come from 55 lb parents. Plus, yours might have been the runt, and another pup might be the biggest of it's litter. As long as your pup acts and looks heathy, and you take her for her vet checkups and they say she is healthy, that's what matters. And as far as ribs showing - (in my opinion) that would depend on the breeding of your dog. When fit (not "couch potato weight") all of my dogs' ribs show (to different degrees). And that is from simply walking them a little extra, playing fetch, tug of war, etc. Ceratainly not from starving them. And one of my dogs, B.J., even when she has been a couch potato, she is still so muscular and lean - some peole think she looks a little underfed, but it is simply her breeding. When I bought her, I asked her previous owner what he did to keep her so muscular and lean - and he even told me it was all in her breeding. He had a spring pole that a lot of his dogs liked, but he said B.J. didn't even like it. Anyway - sorry to ramble so much. Your dog looks perfectly fine. She's a real cutie, by the way!

 

Hi:
The weight sounds about right to me.
Last month pulled an American Pit Bull Terrier out of the SPCA. She is full grown and only weighed in at 33lbs.
She looks great and her weight fits her frame. She is just a petite gal.
:mrgreen:
Sue

 

puppies ribs should never show.

unfed..lol my aunt (the one always telling me crap about dogs) said mine looked malnurished. Coming from some one with a grossly overweight dog, the dog is huge with curled toe nails too.


This is my 32lbs bitch, she isn't skinny at all, this is the one she said was malnurished???? I just don't see it. I guess when you're used to seeing a dog who's a blimp she may look that way...lol