Forums Home » Food & Nutrition

Needs more calories

Please keep discussions fun, friendly, and helpful at all times. Non-informative posts criticizing a particular brand or another poster’s choice of food are not allowed in this Forum. References to any brand of food as "junk," "garbage," or other harsh names will be removed.

Moose I love sitting- in laps     Barked: Sun Mar 3, '13 4:17pm PST  Moose is now eating NB Lamb and Rice and his poops are perfect. But, he's been losing weight since the caloric intake is less per cup. He's currently eating 8 cups a day (3 meals a day) and a small amount of training treats and about a tablespoon of wet NB food at night in his Kong. I didn't notice any weight loss until last week so today I'm going to go to feeding him 4 times a day and adding another cup or so of food to his daily rations. My question is-- would it be better to add goodies to his food rather than increase to 9-10 cups a day? And if I add goodies, what would you suggest? My only concern with adding toppings is it possibly giving him loose stools. Of courseI can go by trial and error with the topping. my posts | my page | msg me | my family's posts | gift me | become pals [notify]

Conker - CGC, CA OBEY ME!     Barked: Sun Mar 3, '13 7:01pm PST  Raw eggs, high-fat ground beef (80% lean 20% fat), chicken quarters (with skin), and oatmeal have worked for me before. I usually add in a dash of beef liver too, but if your dog has a sensitive stomach that might cause loose stools at first. my posts | my page | msg me | my family's posts | gift me | become pals [notify]

Member Since 02/28/2013     Barked: Mon Mar 4, '13 5:23pm PST  Why not increase the amount of food instead of the number of times you feed him? I feed my dog once a day and he maintains the same weight. I rarely give him any snacks. Is your dog at his optimum weight? Perhaps the weight loss is healthy my posts [notify]

Moose I love sitting- in laps     Barked: Mon Mar 4, '13 9:03pm PST  Moose is a growing boy still and will be for the next year. His weight has always been perfect with a nice waist line and ribs that could easily be felt. This weight loss isn't welcome. my posts | my page | msg me | my family's posts | gift me | become pals [notify]

Dexter *CGC- silver* If it moves - Herd it!     Barked: Tue Mar 5, '13 5:17am PST  He's a big boy so it's normal for his weight to fluctuate as he grows. I had the same problem with Dexter, I increased his meal intake instead of giving him extra treats This worked for us and now, instead of extra kibble (as he got a bit bored of more kibble after a while) I add some wet food to his meal in the morning, which he loves I get what you mean though, Dexter became very skinny at one point and I panicked... He was always quite skinny but in an athletic sense as I'm sure Moose is too, so weight loss wasn't welcome with me either... There are also supplements you can get which adds calories to a meal without adding bulk. Good luck with it and I'm sure he'll be back to his normal weight in no time my posts | my page | msg me | my family's posts | gift me | become pals [notify]

Mulder Spooky Mulder     Barked: Tue Mar 5, '13 8:37am PST  The Natural Balance is extremely low in just about everything... fat, protein, and calories. Have you considered switching to a denser lamb/rice food? Holistic Select makes a lamb/rice food thats 22/15 protein/fat and just over 400 cals/cup. Seems like a way better choice, especially for a growing puppy, who NEEDS that good fat for energy. The Cal/Phos numbers aren't insane for a growing giant breed either, though they do also make a lamb/rice LBP food too (don't like it as much as the adult in your situation, though). my posts | my page | msg me | my family's posts | gift me | become pals [notify]

Moose I love sitting- in laps     Barked: Tue Mar 5, '13 1:06pm PST  I wasn't too keen on NB fat/protein levels, but Moose's stools went from soft to runny on the NV he was on, (2 different bags so I don't think it was the batch of food). I switched him to NB to get his poops normal and I'm really happy with the results, but now I'm dealing with the weight loss. After I posted the question, I thought about whether trying a different brand where the fat and protein were a bit higher but I'm afraid the food just may be too rich for him. I'll check out Holistic Select and compare the ingredients to NV. For now I'm just adding egg and will slowly introduce other proteins. my posts | my page | msg me | my family's posts | gift me | become pals [notify]

Beasley I'm the Bee's- Knees! moderator     Barked: Sun Mar 10, '13 8:13pm PST  my posts | my page | msg me | my family's posts | gift me | become pals

Bam-Bam, CGC Lil' Rubble     Barked: Mon Mar 11, '13 4:59am PST  I will say it's normal for the giants to fluctuate... One minute they are nice and solid and sturdy and the next it's like, "Wait... What is this ribby thing?" Do you know exactly how much weight he has lost? Is it possible that the weight just shifted as his body used it elsewhere? I honestly wouldn't be too concerned unless it became excessive and the amount lost continued to increase. Otherwise... I don't see a problem with either suggestions: adding an extra meal or switching to a denser food. my posts | my page | msg me | my family's posts | gift me | become pals [notify]

Bullie 1284557     Barked: Wed Mar 13, '13 12:08am PST  Natural Balance is not high quality food. The poop may be perfect looking but the dog may not be digesting the food as efficiently. Does he have larger poops? There are other alternatives to NV too. Blue Buffalo, Fromm, Taste of the Wild, Earthborn Holistics just to name a few. my posts | my page | msg me | gift me | become pals [notify]

(Page 1 of 2: Viewing entries 1 to 10)   Page Links: 1  2