I rescued a saluki 4 years ago,

When I had him he was nearly dead, but I didn't give up on him and gt him back to the dog he should be, however he suffers from depression and is treated for this but he loses weight...

At his top weight that I can get him to he is still underweight, his ribs stick out and the joints on top of his back legs stick out..

The vet has said he is underweight and has run a lot of test to find out why and drew a blank...

So I am wondering what is the best way or best food to help him put on weight,

I darnt take him for walks in public places because people stop and stare and comment and his ribs

Will show a pic of before and after

The 1st pic is 3 mnth after I had him, the pics frm when I had him first are to disturbing to post

http://i29.photobucket.com/albums/c300/mrssittingduck/DSCF0024.jpg

This is one of the pics

http://i29.photobucket.com/albums/c300/mrssittingduck/DSCF0025.jpg

These are the afters

http://i29.photobucket.com/albums/c300/mrssittingduck/pip011.jpg

http://i29.photobucket.com/albums/c300/mrssittingduck/pip005.jpg

Firstly can I say that he is a gorgeous dog and you are so kind to have taken him in.

Have you not asked your vet to suggest foods, though with pets they are most likely to be too fat then too thin due to their owners, and this is where you get your answer - why are too many dogs fat, well because their owners over indulge them, from the sounds of it your dog isn't a big eater which is a good and bad thing so you need to give him something that is healthy to give to him that will also help him gain a few pounds.

Now to help him eat more you need to make the dinner really tasty, now you can get sauces and gravy specialy designed for dogs - make sure you don't use human ones - these are often too salty, then secondly give him caned mix - not dried. If I were a dog I wouldn't want to touch the dry - its doesn't look apertising.

Now as for fatty foods suitable chicken seems a good starting place. It will be a little pricy, but to get him up to a nice weight it should be worth it. I suggest to try it for 2 weeks and then take him to be weighed again. And see if there are any results.

Can I stress though that its important to remove all bones from the chicken as they can splinter if eaten!

Oh I forgot, also encouragement. If he doesn't eat all of his dinner then you need to encourage him to eat bigger quantities. The best way may be to put a little food down and once he has finished it praise him lots and lots so that he knows he is a good boy for eating his dinner and keep doing this building up the portions so that he is still capable of eating all of it and once again when he has finished it all praise him lots, hopefully this will help

Hope this helps

What a pretty dog!! I would try to feed it a high quality puppy chow because it contains a lot more protein than regular dog food which will help with weight gain. Canned puppy food is also a good choice because it is often more appealing to dogs. Just remember to always buy products that have a first ingrediant that is meat, not grain. This is a lot more healthy for any dog. You could also try feeding it real meat; if you do this, beef is the best choice because it has a higher fat content. Good luck and let us know how everything goes.

Hi thanks for the info, the vet didn't give me much info with regards to food fr gaining, he said if he had have been overweight he would have been easy to fix lol

Pip has a mix of canned and dry but the dry is always soaked in the dog gravy or chicken sauces, we also mix in pasta , any meats we have available including chicken, beef, and all the left over scraps of food , he is on a working dog mix of dry biscuits as it contains a lot of protein, he doesn't eat a great deal so we had to feed him little and often,even then he doesn't eat all of it , I take it away after so long then put it back down later.. if we put a full bowl down he will leave most of it and it is tipped away in the bin.. as he will point blank refuse to eat

I haven't fed him and nothing but chicken before s will try that mixed in with pasta and a couple of bits of veg and if my brother can get any (I know this sounds desgusting ) rabbit meat from the butchers..

I never feed my dog anything with small brittle bones in always make sure they are completely removed :)

He has made a lot of improvement since I had him as he was nearly dead but I know his weight is a problem :( when he gets depressed he loses even more and looks like a skeleton.. he was starved when we got him and severely beaten, tied up with barbed wire around the neck and cuts all over due to barb wire etc he was covered in fleas and allergy rash and had no hair at all :(
Just hoping I can sort his weight out !
Thanks for the help and I'm willing to give anything a try at any cost :) just hping I can get something to work as I have tried a million different types of dog food and non seem to help :(

The dark stripe down his spine is where he has a scar under it and s his hair grows the wrong way, they get him mistaken with a cross ridgeback sometimes :o then I have to explain lol

Excuse the spelling errors as my 0 key is only working when it wants to..

Again thanks

Well like I said with the depression, like a human needs to be treated by both medication and by psychological means, so you need to support your dog and praise him when he eats. After all dogs need love!

I agree with the attending Vet with his Diagnosis he is under weight, Just think that's years or schooling giving you that info, lol

I don't know why Mrs sittingduck that drew so much humor but it did, Since you have to go out and purchase the food anyway, might benefit from asking the suppler of the food you are going to purchase from. They have to hear what every thing is an what it does each an every time some little goofy salesman makes his routine delivery of stock. We can spit of brands an ingredients till cows swim but it might not even be available for you to purchase anyway.
His obvious nutritional needs according to the suplyed picture, are very simple, High Caloric, and Protein based foods commonly found in most any puppy food.

That's extream loss of muscle mass, wow good luck!

Looks like puppyfood for him then... will give him a try for a few months as well as chicken and beef etc thrown in for good taste hopefully helping him in the process,

I'm wondering and I know this sounds stupid, but when I cook my meats the fat that is left over , is this OK t mix in with his gravy ? Or will it poison him or something , or seriously desturb his digestive bits...
Well if you don't ask.. you don't know do you? Lol
The only stupid questions are the ones never asked !

Thanks for all your help will get some puppy food first thing in the morning :)

Katie

Humm I personally don't think its great to. Even though you do want to get him eating more fat you still have to remember that too much is still unhealthy for any animal.

well like i said with the depression, like a human needs to be treated by both medication and by psychological means, so you need to support your dog and praise him when he eats. After all dogs need love!

I agree completely with this and this is what I have been doing with him,

Also with his depression it can be triggered by certain things which we have learnt to avoid as much as possible

However he still has unpredictable bouts of it and sometimes there is no hiding from trigger objects as loud bangs and chains rattling unsettle him and make him depressed

Katie

DONTTTTTTTTT do that,. cholesterol from that is so tasty it could actually cause fatal results!

Thanks :)
You have all given me some great advice, which is certainly more than the vet has been doing this last god knows how long,

All I seem to have done was frk out hundreds or even thousands in different tests to see if they can find out why he isn't adding weight,
I am definitely feeding him the right amunt by ding the little and often so they decided t d a million tests to come up with nothing :o

Will give the puppy food a go, again thank you all :)

Seriously all of that added goodies sounds great an thoughtful, it can very easily send his thyroid,pancreas, heart, into more work than its capable of producing at the moment.sick dogd survive basically on body mass, as you can see, he is not in the condition to spare any at the moment. His diet if involves people food at all should be boneless skinless white meat, white rice, cottage cheese, all bland. We don't need to love him to death literally.

Keep us updated on how things work out

Just plain ol puppy food it is then :)

The vet has been running tests for a period of round abut 3 years and can't test him for anything else,
They even kept him their for a month in order to make sure I was feeding him properly and not starving him, they fed him their way and he didn't gain anything just lost weight due to the depression he went in...

The tests haven't been a constant stream , they wanted to do a bit at a time to help stop the depression and to spread out the cost , in reality they would have been better doing them all in 1 or 2 goes as prolonging and running up and down sent him to depression each time, but then they did have t wait for the test results to rule out certain things before they could do the next test :(...

When he stands up he desnt look anywhere near like the pic of him lying down, but he is still underweight, I took that pic at the time as it showed what he was like from a different aspect, will take a pic of him tomorrow of him standing up..
For a 35kg dog he sure is a mess :(

Fingers crossed for the puppy food and I will keep you all updated :)

Katie

He will be fine as long as he continues to eat, its just going to be a long time an lotta work, but nuttin you can't handel!~

I agree with DocWill about the puppy chow. He is new here, but seems to be a great addition covering medical topics where my knowledge is weak. I have been trained to rely on dog chow. He is providing some of the whys not included in my instructions. The small breed is even more concentrated than the regular, and of course, a meat rather than grain based one. I don't know if you looked at the labels, if any one brand is more concentrated that the others or not. Have you tried free feeding? It can be a disaster for some dogs, but might be just what he needs. Have you tried both being present when he eats, and giving him privacy? If he eats unattended, leaving a large bowl of a dry puppy chow out might work. Dry won't spoil. In general adding this people food, and that people food, is not the route to a balanced diet. I think with his failure to eat enough, the complete and balanced diet dog chows provide is even more important. Whatever else you try, I don't see what leaving dry chow out all the time would hurt.

Can you say if it is not eating enough, or not processing what he eats very well? How does what he eats compare to the recommendations on the bags, not that they are that reliable? I once had a Lab I had to feed over 6 cups a day of Pro Plan, when similar ones did fine on 3-4. Being a typical Lab, I had no problem with him eating enough. Labs and Goldens are notorious gluttons. I don't think it was his metabolism or activity level, because he was producing larger, softer stools rather than the typical smaller, firmer ones common with the concentrated meat based chows. I accused them of cheapening the formula, but my friends reported normal result son the dogs they were feeding Pro Plan.

They are those that say a dog will never harm itself by not eating. In most cases, I try to use words like seldom.

One more thing. Here are some exercises designed to help establish your position as leader and help bond. It is possible with the right relationship with you, he could develop more interest in eating.

''Elevation for small puppies: Sit on the floor and gently put your hands around your pup's middle, below his front legs, and lift him up. He is facing you. Hold him for 15 seconds. Repeat until he no longer struggles. If he is past 10-12 weeks, lift his front feet off the ground, but don't pick him up.

Cradling for small puppies: Hold your puppy gently on his back, as you would cradle a small baby. If he struggles, hold him firmly until he quiets for 10-15 seconds. With larger pups, you can do this as your sit on the floor, with your pup between your legs.

Quiet lying down: Place your pup on the floor on his side, with all 4 legs pointing away from you. Use your hands on his neck/shoulder area and middle, to hold him in this position. When he is quiet, praise him. Lengthen the time that you keep him quietly in this position. When he accepts this position well, handle his paws and muzzle, while keeping him quiet.''

The quotes mean this isn't my original work. It is copied from my Puppy Raising Manual. I have long used these or minor variations of them, and they are very effective. You may want to give him a belly rub while he is on his back too. Helps bonding. There is a big difference between him rolling over and demanding a belly rub, and you choosing a time to roll him over and rub his belly. The latter cements your place as pack leader.

I have been to see a saluki breeder with my dog also to ask for help , she took one look at him and laughed.. the salukis are suppost to have the last 3 ribs showing when they are lying down and 2 showing when they stand up, she said if anything he is overweight as the pins on his hips do not stick up but are covered in fat :o

The average saluki weighs about 15 to 25 kilograms and pip weighs 35 the heaviest saluki that is known is around 30 kilogrammes :o

So after all this time it appears I have been worrying about nothing, took him to a different vets and they agreed with the saluki breeder,

I'm still feeding him on the puppy food though... the vet has written out a letter on computer that if I have any trouble with the rspca they will deal with them and give them the letter personally to say he is a sight hound and he is in fact over weight...

I have found a saluki forum who have also reassured me he is fine :)

I think it is just because I am used to seeing rottwhilers and other big dogs that he looks so thin as I'm used to seeing them of different builds...

:o

Katie

Ps thanks for all your help :)

Great news

Maybe I need to refer some of those concerned about their thin Shepherd to this thread.

labman what has a thin shepard got to do with this thread? Are you bieng sarcastic about something? As that is how your post has come across!

I am sorry my meaning wasn't plain. German Shepherds tend to be light eaters too. In many cases, what the dog is willing to eat leaves it thinner than the owner would like. Reading your thread could help them learn to accept it. I am glad you gave me a chance to explain.

Thank you for the explanation :)

I have got to accept him for what he is, even though he eats the proper amount I now know he will not get any bigger than what he is.. I now have to accept that and stop worrying.
I guess when you compare a dog like a sight hound to that of a different breed it can get very worrying weight wise,
I am not used to seeing salukis and went off different breeds of dog for how they should look and not by his own breed standard which is what I should have done :o
I was looking for things that shouldn't have been their but now I know it is all in my head it is very reassuring..
As with many dog lovers I am sure from some of the comments that I got about how thin he is that other people did what I did and went by what they are used to seeing instead of his breed, weight wise... so at least the letter is their at the vets waiting in case somebody does report him for bieng underweight..

A lesson learned and hopefully a lesson for others to , go by the dogs breed standard and not compare to other dogs you have seen of different breeds...
If in doubt ask somebody who specialises in the breed of dog you have and hopefully they can put you on the right path :)

Again thank you all for your help :)
Katie

Katie, I am glad that you were able to get confirmation regarding your baby's weight. I stayed away from this thread because, from his pictures, your dog looked fine to me and I was pretty sure those back hip bones are supposed to stick out like that. But, I only have previous experience with one saluki, and DocWill is a vet, which I am not. So, I did not want to go against his advice and get into an argument about it. When my experience is limited or I am not sure of something, I have a tendency to keep my mouth shut. I know that isn't something that a lot of people do here on this forum, LOL. I am glad that you have found other Saluki owners & breeders to speak with. This must be a huge relief to you. He looks like a very content dog. :)

I know the feeling ruby

I have learnt a lesson, and a site like this is for help and a healthy debate, if I know something of a subject I will answer to it, if I don't and I think I may be wrong or compare to experts then I keep shut... always a fault I had lol

My expertise is in birds and not dogs hence where my problem is, too long concentrating on the one subject I think :D if I had thought on I would not compare the macaw to any other species of bird and should not have done it with my dog :o

As different species or breeds have different requirements, sizes and weights...

And thank you :)
Now that I have seen pictures and also in the flesh living salukis to compare him to he is perfect :)

In my eyes he will always be perfect anyway :D

Perhaps I should have gone to my S&S dog guide book before my first post to this thread. It was a gift, and I think there are better books out there. It does have a picture of a Saluki. The inside of the bent dog's body is toward the camera. You can still see 3 ribs. Your picture plus your vet's opinion made it easy for me to jump to the conclusion that this was indeed the rare case of a dog needing to eat more. Now we all know a little more about Salukis, as usual, I will say stick to what the vet says. If I really don't like what a vet says, I tend to suggest a different vet, or a least a second opinion.

I tend to be biased toward the idea of how much alike dog breeds are and how much individuals vary within a breed. Occasionally that leads me astray. It is good that you kept digging on your own and finally found the right answer.

At least we all learnt something from this one :)

I am always learning something new everyday and the day I stop learning is the day I die, even with subject I have delt with for 20 years I still learn more and more about it as the days progress :)

With birds I should have known about bieng biased as even birds of the same group all have different standards, different sizes, weights, dietry requirements, etc etc one species of macaw is far from the same as another species of macaw also I would not associate a militry macaw with that of a blue and gold if you Google it you will see what I mean, they are same type of bird but different altogather..

I never even thought to think this of a dog as many do have the same requirements or at least I thought they did up until now, so thanks labman :) if it wasn't for you and this site I wouldn't have learnt this lesson and learnt something new and prob wouldn't have found anything different and been living in a world of paranoia for the rest of pips life :)

Katie

Mrssitting duck how is your saluki?

Hi :)
We decided to have him castrated due to people trying to steal him to breed with,
We had the op done in November and since then he has gone downhill :( while they were doing the operation they found lumps around the same area and so did biopsys, scans, and removal of most of the lumps, however they had to leave some behind as it was to close to a nerve, it was then confirmed as cancerous,
Anyway since the op he seems to have lost all feeling of when he needs to urinate, and now and again he keeps losing his footing on his back legs and his weight has become highly unstable, we have him booked in at the vets again for in 2 weeks time to have more blood tests, urine tests and another scan, depending on his results and the severity of the problem I am fearing the worst and hoping for the best, I'm hoping that I will know when it is the right time for him to slip away.. it will severely upset me if he does have to go but I don't want to watch him suffer because I'm to selfish and don't like to have it done

Oh, I am so sorry to hear this. I was hoping he was doing well he is such a beautiful dog. You have to take comfort in the fact that you have provided him with a loving home and you have tried to help him in every way possible.I know it would be hard to let go, but as you said you will do whay is best for him. I will be thinking of you and your dog and hoping that all goes well.

Hi! When my small dog had a litter of 6 puppies, it was very hard on her little body and we had to get some weight on her fast. The vet told me to feed her some beef/rice wet food in with her dry and alternate giving her some cottage cheese or a scrambled egg. I would also make my own beef/rice mixture for her too as opposed to just the canned and it all worked like a charm. She loved getting a scrambled egg or cottage cheese. Good luck!

I watch a lot of "It's me or the dog" and she said one time that the easiest way to get a dog to eat all of it's food is to make it smell better. To do that, take canned dog food and heat it up. I had pit puppies and one of them got worms really bad and stopped eating. After treating the worms she would barley eat so we try that out and it worked wonders.

Hope this helps.

Few fat gaining recipes for dogs for ya:

FATTEN 'EM UP QUICK MEATLOAF
Note: This requires a huge pot for mixing! Makes a two week supply for one dog.

1 dozen hard boiled eggs, chopped
10 lbs of inexpensive hamburger meat
20 oz Jar of Wheat Germ
1 canister of Knox Gelatin, joint complex, (Knox Unflavoured NutraJoint Powder 5.5oz)
1 large box of Total breakfast cereal [Australians use 340 grams of Sanitarium Weetbix]
2 x 1 lb boxes of Quaker oatmeal, (the kind you cook)
1½ cups Canola Oil
12 oz jar of unsulfered Molasses
¼ tsp salt
1 heaping teaspoon minced Garlic, (jarred variety or fresh, NOT dried)
Box of 1qt Freezer bags

Just dump all into huge pot and dig in. It takes some effort, and you will be up to your elbows, but you want to mix thoroughly.
Separate into 14 freezer bags, gently squeezing out the air before sealing. Flatten out the bags, (this will allow for a quicker thaw period), and lay flat on a freezer shelf.
Feed one packet each day, half in morning, half in evening. Breaking up into chunks, or rolling into meatballs.

FAT BALLS
... for weight gain...
10 lb (4.53kg) Hamburger
10 oz (.28kg) Oats
6 Egg Yolks
10 oz (.28kg) Wheat Germ
10 oz (.28kg) Molasses

Put in a big bowl and mix.
Roll into one inch balls and freeze.

FAT BALLS #2
... for weight gain...
lb (.45kg) hamburger mince (high fat content)
1 package cream cheese
1 jar all natural peanut butter
1 dozen egg yolks
1 cup rolled oats soaked in milk
1 jar wheat germ

Mix thoroughly (with hands is best).
Freeze into meal sized bags and thaw as needed.

FAT BALLS #3
Small container of heavy cream
1 dozen egg yolks
2 blocks of cream cheese (room temp)
5 lbs ground beef
1 small box TOTAL cereal (crunch up into small crumbs)
1 cup wheat germ

Mix dry ingredients, add heavy cream, add cream cheese
Mix together.
Add ground beef
Mix together
Roll into balls, and freeze

FAT BALLS #4
2 cups Dry Dog food
2 packs cream cheese
1½ cups Peanut Butter
½ cup Corn Oil
1 cup Cottage Cheese
1 pound Browned Hamburger (save some of the grease)

Blend dog food (crushed fine) and add remaining ingredients.
Mix till you have a doughy mixture add more dog meal as needed if consistency is too thin.
On wax paper spread some meal and roll out mixture into log shape.
Refrigerate until firm and slice as needed.
Feed them a slice or two several times during the day. Very high calorie... will put weight on fairly quick.

AUSTRALIAN SATIN BALLS
... for weight gain...

4.53kg Hamburger Meat
567grams Wheat Germ
1 large box of Oatmeal [uncooked]
340 grams of Sanitarium Weetbix [small box]
1¼ cups Vegetable Oil
10 eggs [boiled in shell for 30 seconds]
10 envelopes of unflavoured Gelatin
1¼ cups unflavoured Molasses [also known as Treacle]
2 teaspoons Kelp
1 cup of ground Flax Seed
A pinch of salt
Garlic to taste

Mix all ingredients together well, much like a meat-loaf, then put into separate freezer bags and freeze, thawing out as needed. It puts weight on in a very short time, not to mention the gloss in their coat. You can use it every day when they have a show to do and it does not produce diarrhoea. It can be fed alone or with kibble.
Satin Balls are a total canine diet. They can be feed by themselves, or as a supplement.

HEALTHY WEIGHT GAIN MIX
1 pint whole fat Cottage Cheese
1 lb turkey (or any other ground meat) burger (raw)
2-3 eggs - boiled in the shell for 30 seconds*
2 tablespoons Flax Seed or Olive oil
1 can sardines or tuna fish

It is full of protein, essential fatty acids and digestive enzymes.

*Boiling the eggs for 30 seconds denature the whites and leave the benefits of the yolks intact.

FATTENING TREATS
Doggie Peanut Cheese Balls

1 dozen hard boiled eggs, chopped
1 lb jar crunchy peanut butter
1 container of Quaker Oatmeal
2 cups of evaporated milk, (Don't dilute! )
1 jar wheat germ
1 lb hamburger
8oz. Package cream cheese
1 envelope Knox Gelatin Joint Complex, (unflavoured)

In one bowl, pour the evaporated milk over the oatmeal and put aside. Go have a cup of coffee, while you wait for oats to absorb the liquid!

In a second Large Bowl, place all the other ingredients. Start mixing together, hands work best. Add the oatmeal and evaporated milk mixture, and mix again. When thoroughly blended, form into meatball sized treats, layering in a plastic freezer container. Freeze until needed. Remove a few at a time, allow to thaw, and feed as fattening snacks!

WEIGHT BOOSTER
• 10 eggs
• 10 packs gelatin
• 12 oz. molasses
• 2 boxes of shredded wheat cereal, crushed
• 1 jar wheat germ
• 5 cups melted lard
• 1 jar peanut butter
Mix with your hands. Roll into balls. Keep all unused in the freezer. Take one meat ball (per dog) out every morning and allow to thaw for evening meal.

TIPS
For skinny dogs, Try some of these suggestions to tempt the appetite:
• Eggs lightly scrambled in butter and adding yoghurt or cream cheese
• Sautéed chicken liver in butter
• Hard boiled eggs
• Cooked or boiled hamburger, mixed with grated or parmesan cheese
• Baby foods, such as puréed meats
• Homemade chicken soup with noodles
• Canned salmon or sardines
• Macaroni and cheese with minced beef or sausage
• Plain yoghurt with puréed liver, mix well
• Canned chicken chunks
• Bites from your own plate

Hi Mrssittingduck -- I came across whatseems to be a 2-year olsd subject. Just interested to hear how your dog is doing. Very interested to know --it's a beautiful dog!!

Give him raw chicken bones and all (he will not choke on the bones because its frozen) it sounds nasty but I give that to my dog and he gained a lot of wait. It has a lot of protein. You can also feed him exceed it also has a lot of protein. Raw ground beef, raw ground turkey are other things you can give him. (its expensive bt if you love him you'll pay watever it takes)

(he will not choke on the bones because its frozen)

O_o

Do not feed frozen bones of any sort, especially chicken!!

Thread closed