Too skinny!

[Devin and Indy]

My mini-goldendoodle Indy has always been slim (he definitely has the poodle body), but you can see his ribs and pelvis very clearly when he is wet. I asked the vet and she said he needs to gain weight. 

 

The problem is I cannot, for the life of me, get him to eat more! He is on the Honest Kitchen dehydrated food and I add in a Stella and Chewy's dehydrated patty. He'll eat around 350 kcal a day with no problem, but he needs to be eating at least 520!

 

I got him to eat a little more last week, but since then he has had diarrhea and pooped in his crate multiple times (I don't have access to a hose so this means cleaning it with paper towels, gross!). He also has been panting a lot and acting oddly.

 

It's been a struggle since day 1 to find food that he liked to eat and that didn't give him diarrhea so I'm really at a loss for what to try next. I picked up some Taste of the Wild to mix in the wet food, but I'm really nervous about adding it. 

 

Sorry for the novel, but has anyone else dealt with this successfully?

[Lindsey]

Oh geez...I totally feel your pain.
Our Molly is too thin. We just switched to TOTW and are having diarrhea problems now :-(

Maybeeee, you can add high cal treats like peanut butter. We (were) giving Molly peanut butter filled kongs at least once a day, they were high cal and she loves them. We have recently stopped b/c she is having such bad diarrhea that we're just trying to get her back to eating normal with not problems.

Keep us posted, I'm curious as to what you find out.

[Jane, Guinness and Murphy]

Have you considered supplementing with some higher calorie fresh (human) foods?  That might be an incentive for him to eat a little more.  Also, have you had him checked for parasites?  I ask this because I'm dealing with giardia now with my guys, and one of the things the Vet mentioned is that it results in their bodies not fully absorbing nutrients....which would certainly impact the weight.  Keep us posted, and good luck!

[Jennifer,Chloe & Myla]

Our minis about 3 ponds overweight and always at like they are starving. He''s so sweet looking, I hope he feels better-I would also ask the vet for some tests to be sure.

[Jennifer and Jack]

Jack is a toy golden doodle and he was very skinny for the first 22 months of his life. He just doesn't like to eat a lot of food, I switched him to Orijen food which requires a lesser amount for his body weight because it is more nutrient dense. He has gained weight and now is 13 pounds. I do add a teaspoon or tablespoon of wet food in daily.

 

I agree with adding healthy human food too. Jack loves grilled salmon and it is good for him, also Karen helped me with adding eggs which he loves, You can no longer see his ribs when he is wet!!!

 

Good luck, My vet said it is better to deal with a dog who is thinner then one that is more overweight...

 

I so wish I had that problem

[Devin and Indy]

He was just at the vet and is all clear from parasites (thank goodness!)

 

I'm thinking I'll be transitioning Indy to some more solid/traditional food. It'll be easier for him to eat as much as he wants. I've been trying to feed him 3 times a day too.

 

He's a very active dog too, which I think makes it even harder for him to put on the weight. He runs with me twice a week (6 miles total), we go to the dog park every other day, and he's doing agility! 

[Linda, Webber and Seda]

Gosh, no wonder he is thin.  His six miles of running alone would eat up the calories he is taking in!  Have you considered a food that has a higher caloric count?

[Devin and Indy]

Yes, the Taste of the Wild has a lot more calories per serving. It's just so hard to keep him eating dry food. He gets so disinterested. I'm kind of hoping to do a small serving of the dehydrated/wet food to keep the flavor and texture interesting and then some kibble. He just ate a lot of the Taste of the Wild I got him so I'll see if he can keep that down!

[Nancie & Gracie Doodle]

You might want to cross post this to the food group.  Hopefully, you will hear from Karen and Jack for food suggestions.  My Gracie Doodle was always indifferent to her food and it took all day of grazing to get her to finish her breakfast.  She was much better with her dinner.  She is a 73lb Standard GoldenDoodle and is 4 years old.  Gracie has never been fat and when you see her wet you also can see her ribs and spine.  She also takes after the Poodle structure.  We have always dealt with diarrhea and soft-serve poops.  Karen got us on Acana Grain-Free which comes in four flavors which allows you to change up the flavors without having to ween them off one food to another.  Gracie loves her Acana.  Since then we have added cut green beans and she goes wild over them.  She gets two cups total of Acana a day and then 2/3 cup frozen green beans (cut style) which we have defrosted in the microwave.  They are even good for training treats if needed.  We now have absolutely wonderful consistent poops that leave no residue on the grass at all.  Also, no more Anal Sac smell.  The poops are very firm and so they take care of expressing her sacs very well.  Even her poops don't seem to have much of a smell.  We cut out her dried chicken jerky treats which I think contributed to her messy poops.  They were very greasy.  We only give her grain free Dr. Woofers treats and we now have the perfect balance of food, treats and poops.  She gets no human food ever!  We also don't let people give her "junk" treats.

[Deanna & Desi & Cori]

Has the vet checked his thyroid function?  Our cat became exceptionally skinny (noticeable even though he's a fur ball) and it turned out to be related to a thyroid disorder.  Now, he gets a little thyroid med in cream form rubbed into his ear daily.  He's back to his normal weight and energy level.

[Devin and Indy]

Hmmm, as someone who has thyroid problems myself I should have thought of this! If I can't get any additional weight on him soon I'll definitely be going back for them to test it.

[Leslie J]

All I can say is to keep trying to find something he likes.  Cocoa is also very picky and very skinny.  I tried the Honest Kitchen food for her thinking it would taste fresh- she hated it.  I think all the herbs in it were too strong for her.  Definitely post on the Food Group.  I learned about Orijen/ Acana food there which Cocoa is better about- but I have to mix something yummy in or she eats so little she has problems pooping.  I mix in ZiwiPeak which is pure air-dried meat.  She is still skinny, but she eats two meals a day now.  I also mix in some plain chicken or fish when we have that for dinner.  Just like some people, some dogs are naturally skinny.  If he is active and healthy I wouldn't worry about it too much.

[Sami Lee]

Did you have your vet perform a fecal exam?