worried about pups weight

shivkk06

i got a staff pitbull X about 5 months ago, he has been wormed regularly and until last week was on 1 tin of puppy food a day, i ve now moved him to adult food but im worried im under feeding him as he is not gaining any weight and his ribs are visible any advice greatly appreiated

TwilightWillow

Can i ask what you're feeding him? Dried food or canned wet food? And what weight is he?

andreac

How old is this dog?

Sorry but one can of puppy food wouldnt be anywhere near enough for a puppy if it is a pup.

How often are you feeding the dog? If its between 3-12 months it needs at least 3 feeds a day on a good quality dry complete puppy fodd divided into 3 feeds.

If the pup is underweight then just increase the amount of food hes getting to help put weight on, its not that hard, if you think the dog is skinny then feed it more.

Growing pups need a lot of energy, and protein to help it grow and if its not getting enough then the pup will look under nourished and ribby, so just feed more and more often until it puts on a sufficient amount of weight.

Make sure the pup is wormed every month until 6 months of age, then every 3 months from then after.

shivkk06

feeding him tinned pedigree chum and he approx 1 st

TwilightWillow

First of all I would stick to the dry nuts for him. A lot more nutrition in them for what the growing pup needs (canned food are 70-85% water!). Pedigree is said to be like the McDonalds of dog food!

As Andreac said, he's needs to be fed 3 times a day, and if he's looking for more food, give it to him.

andreac

Sorry, but tinned pedigree chum is pure shi**. No wonder the dog isnt putting on weight if you are only feeding 1 tin per day?

You need to get the dog on a good quality dry complete food that you get in any good pet shop, stay away from supermarket brands as they arent good quality at all, its like mcdonalds for dogs.

That tinned stuff is made up of mostly water so it deffo wont give the dog enough protein, and energy to grow.

One tin alone wont be enough.

If the dog is just a year old it should have been getting fed at least 3 times a day. Now that its a year old you can feed it twice a day with a good dry complete food.
I would even try feeding 3 meals to help get the weight on, but stay away from tinned stuff or you will never get weight on your dog.

shivkk06

i work most of day its not possible to feed him 3 times a day, the pup is not 6 months old and he was wormed every 2 weeks until he was 6 months

TwilightWillow

shivkk06 wrote: »

i work most of day its not possible to feed him 3 times a day, the pup is not 6 months old and he was wormed every 2 weeks until he was 6 months

How old is the pup so? If you cannot feed him the correct amount, can you organise someone that can do it for you during the day?

Its vital that this pup gets the right amount of food and nutrition to help him grow.

andreac

Get up early and feed him before you go, feed him when you get home and then before you go to bed, 3 times.
He needs to get weight on and you need to help him. At least feed him twice a day but 3 is better to help put the weight on.

How old is this dog then?

As i said 1 tin is not enough for this size dog and even more so if its a growing pup. If you get a dog you have to be able to commit to looking after it properly and establishing a feeding routine.

shivkk06

TwilightWillow wrote: »

How old is the pup so? If you cannot feed him the correct amount, can you organise someone that can do it for you during the day?

sorry that should have read he is 6 and half months and no i dont have anyone who can come in during the day......i could feed him before i leave n when i come home that not a problem

lorebringer

Pedigree is a low quality dog food, changing to a higher quality food will help with the weight situation. There are lots of very good quality foods out there, Arden Grange, Burns, Origen, Acana, James Wellbeloved to name just a few. Try to steer clear of the Supermarket brands because they are very low in the quality range. Generally, you need to feed the pup based on it's predicted adult weight and age - not it's current weight. Your vet can advise you on good foods for your dog. It will have guidelines on the side of the bag of food, and you can adjust it depending on your own dogs needs. Feeding twice a day when the dog is over 6 months is not a perfect situation but is fine, although if he isn't able to eat enough in these two meals it may be necessary to sort out a way of feeding him during the day.

Pitbulls and Staffs tend to be quite muscular dogs, and can appear very skinny if they are not built up. Also, growing pups go through phases of being being thinner and then start to gain weight - esp. between the ages of 3/4 months and 7/8 months. If you are very concerned about your dogs inability to gain weight or if he is not being a typical pup (lazing about, not wanting to eat etc.) you should talk to your vet. There is probably nothing wrong but sometimes an infection or something quite minor can have a big effect on a young pups weight.

Because you cannot feed your dog in the middle of the day, I'm assuming you are not home all day. The lack of weight gain could be due to stress and separation anxiety from being left alone all day. Quite a lot of dogs manage just fine in this situation all day but some don't. It might be worth while trying to looking into this just to make sure.

TwilightWillow

That would be much better than just once a day, just make sure he's getting the right amount spread over the 2 meals.

shivkk06

great thanks for yer advice was really helpful

andreac

Well a 6 month old pup NEEDS to be fed at least 3 times a day to help gain weight and grow properly. It could actually be very bad for his health in later life if hes not getting the correct nutrition at this age.

So take him off that tinned crap and get a good food like Arden Grange, Red Mills, Royal Canin, James Wellbeloved, Burns, theres loads of them out there.

A big bag will last a dog of his size over a month or more so they are very economical even if you think they are expensive.

Your dog is getting nothing from tinned food so will not gain weight on them.

iw82

Hi, I have experience with breeding and rearing giant breed dogs and I'm in total agreeement with the previous posters.

Pedigree chum is rubbish, I would avoid both their tinned and dry food at all cost. And as one poster already said their is practically zero nutritional value in tinned food.

It really is preferable to divide meals into 3 meals per day. My youngest is 5 months old and her diet is a mixture of dry Royal Canin with the right protein content for her age/breed (I always soak) and we also give her some pasta or rice with some minced beef or sardines and a good dollop of natural yogurt. In addition, I give a few hard biscuits to crunch for their teeth.

There are plenty of other good brands that the other posters have mentioned and if you buy a 10 - 15kg bag it does work out to be more economical in the long run.

There really is no comparison between puppies that are on a poor quality diet & a good quality diet, their growth rate is better, their coats are much healthier, their eyes are brighter.

Just one thing... puppies only need to be wormed every 2 weeks until they reach 12 weeks, after that every 3 months and over-worming does more harm than good.

EGAR

APBT and SBT pups at that age should not have their ribs visible. Feed him at least twice daily (if you cannot give him a midday meal) with a good dry food not too high in protein as it can drive Bull Breeds up the wall and make them very hyper. All mine are on 20% protein which is plenty for a non working dog. Minced beef and natural yoghurt is also a good supplement as already posted. You got good advise on this thread, OP, if the dog's digestive system suffers at this stage due to underfeeding then the dog will have a lifetime of problems. At that age the dog should be gangly but not thin.