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    mackiedog's Avatar
    mackiedog Posts: 1, Reputation: 1
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    #1

    Jun 23, 2011, 10:21 AM
    Best cheap dry food to make pitbull gain weight?
    9 yr old female pitbull needs gain weight what is best cheapest dog food I should feed her
    Lucky098's Avatar
    Lucky098 Posts: 2,594, Reputation: 543
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    #2

    Jun 23, 2011, 11:16 AM

    Any thing worth feeding is not cheap.

    Since your dog is aging, you might want to find a senior food that is formulated for high energy dogs.

    You can also supplement your dog with regular senior food. You can feed him Satin balls, which is a treat you make and give him. It helps skinny dogs gain weight. I have also had a lot of success with feeding a tablespoon of cottage cheese and/or a sliver of butter. Fat creates fat. However, you need to be attentive when feeding these suppliments, it can give the dog diarrhea, in which case, decrease the amount or stop.

    You can also try good 'ol canned food. Canned food does have some extra nutrients in it, however, you don't want canned food to be your dogs main meal. Canned food does lack a lot of vitamins and nutrients that are in the dried kibble.

    Good foods that can be found in any pet store would be :

    Nutro Natural Choice
    Pro Plan
    Wellness
    Chicken Soup for the Dog Lover's Soul
    Innova
    Blue Buffalo
    If your desparate: Iams

    And I'm sure others were be on shortly to name off some food that worked good for them.

    But like I said.. good food is never cheap
    paleophlatus's Avatar
    paleophlatus Posts: 459, Reputation: 112
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    #3

    Jun 24, 2011, 12:43 AM
    Amen to Lucky's summation. There's good food, and there's cheap food, but very seldom good, cheap food You really do get what you pay for, unless it's some 'designer or celebrity' food.

    Quality food is supposed to be made of quality ingredients which simply cost more, which don't necessarily mean organic. But of course, the best food in the world is not any good until it gets INSIDE the dog. If he absolutely will not eat it, you may have to figure out what to do with a 50 lb bag of food the dog won't eat... so start small.

    A fairly good yardstick of the value of a food is how much yard cleanup it makes. That's dog food you paid good money to get. It didn't quite turn into dog, did it. So, start with a smallish bag to get a handle on how much your dog likes it, and how much sticks to his ribs. When changing foods, start mixing the new with the old, a little more each day till it's all new. This should take about 5-7 days and will give his intestines a chance to accustom to the different foods.

    Dogs may suddenly change eating habits, especially with simply starting a new bag of the same food. Subtle changes in the ingredients in the food can give a different taste to the food. Manufacturers do this based on what is available on the market, but it doesn't change the nutritional value of the food, as written on the side of the food label. Flavor enhancers are common in all foods, as the colors which are there to make YOU think it looks good.

    Canned food is mainly more palatable, not necessarily more nutritious. Percentage wise, it is mostly water, while dry is only about 10% water. Mixing dry and canned is often done to get a dog started eating dry, but isn't usually necessary. Once you land on a brand, plan on sticking to it and hope it's a brand that's readily available.
    shazamataz's Avatar
    shazamataz Posts: 6,642, Reputation: 1244
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    #4

    Jun 24, 2011, 01:36 AM

    How long has she been skinny for?
    Is this a sudden weight loss or gradual?

    I would be concerned about a drop in weight in an older dog, it is often a sign of an underlying problem.
    You first stop should be your vet to rule out medical problems as to her weight.

    After she has been given the all clear then you can look at diet.

    I had a pup who just would not put on weight, lamb worked a treat for him.
    It's a fairly fatty meat, but a healthy fat.
    You can pick up cheap off-cuts from your local butcher or supermarket, a lot of butchers these days are selling bags of meat and bones specifically for dogs.
    You can feed a cheaper dry food say for breakfast, then give a nice meaty piece of lamb for dinner.
    I would avoid feeding all raw unless you understand about BARF diets and the nutritional requirements.
    Also, NEVER feed a dog cooked bones, feed raw only.

    When introducing any new food you need to do so slowly.
    Dogs have trouble handling sudden changed in diet and it can cause upset stomachs.
    I start with 75% old food mixed with 25% new food and each day gradually up the percentage of new food.

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