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 Serious Snap Trapper
Posts: 4275
  
Location: In The Snow, AZ | Our female English Mastiff, Riley, is a bit over a year old. She is taller than the average female at 32" at the shoulder. She is a big, beautiful girl and as happy as can be. She's always seemed to be on the lanky, leaner side. I attributed it to not having grown into her skin yet and still being a pup. I understand that Mastiffs tend to not reach full growth until closer to 2 years. But I'd like to see her with a bit more meat on her. I can see every rib, and when she lies down, she looks emaciated.
She is currently on Nutrena Puppy formula for the fat content. And we have started mixing in eggs. She doesn't have the greatest appetite, so it's not a matter of feeding more. She wouldn't eat it if I tried, which I have.
Just wondering what I could add to her diet or adjust to help her fill out a bit??? |
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Expert
Posts: 1611
 
| clovite...annnnd don't leave your clovite out where the pup can get into it because apparently its pretty dang tasty.
My aussie gets greenies with the joint formula. She used to get one a day and was getting a bit too chunky so one every other day now...they aren't really supposed to help with weight but it sure made mine pack on the weight LOL |
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 The One
Posts: 7998
Location: South Georgia | Personally, I'd switch to a higher quality feed such as Blue Buffalo or the like. |
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 Veteran
Posts: 156
Location: Cypress, Texas | There also are plenty of supplements on the market, go on Valley vet. I used to give my pigs cake mix, might be worth a try. Daily wormer, PROBIOTICS! ask the vet for a Dex shot, helps with coat and everything... sorry I'm just shooting ideas off the top of my head. I used to feed my dog white rice with plane hamburger meat or chicken with veggies. I can give you the recipe if you wanna try it. its cheap and quick |
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 Elite Veteran
Posts: 1162
Location: White Mountains of AZ | ~BINGO~ - 2015-01-22 7:47 AM
Our female English Mastiff, Riley, is a bit over a year old. She is taller than the average female at 32" at the shoulder. She is a big, beautiful girl and as happy as can be. She's always seemed to be on the lanky, leaner side. I attributed it to not having grown into her skin yet and still being a pup. I understand that Mastiffs tend to not reach full growth until closer to 2 years. But I'd like to see her with a bit more meat on her. I can see every rib, and when she lies down, she looks emaciated.
She is currently on Nutrena Puppy formula for the fat content. And we have started mixing in eggs. She doesn't have the greatest appetite, so it's not a matter of feeding more. She wouldn't eat it if I tried, which I have.
Just wondering what I could add to her diet or adjust to help her fill out a bit???
Adding a bit of vegetable oil to her food should help as well. My heeler doesn't do as good on the Red Flannel food as my two Aussies, so he gets a can of Retriever brand canned food. It's 13oz, has over 1k calories, but it has really helped! |
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 Midget Lover
Location: Kentucky | horsegirl - 2015-01-22 11:01 AM Personally, I'd switch to a higher quality feed such as Blue Buffalo or the like.
I agree. I would also add some FORCO to her diet.
Have you kept her on a regular deworming schedule too? |
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| I just dewormed mine about six weeks ago, now she is obese!! :) But she enjoys eating horse and calf poop, so it is no surprise that she was harboring some critters inside. |
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 Expert
Posts: 3782
Location: Gainesville, TX | I think there are lots of great suggestions above but you might also have her checked by the vet, make sure she doesn't have some other underlying cause, esp if the other stuff doesn't work. :) |
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 Special Somebody
Posts: 3951
Location: Finally horseback again.... | Make sure your dog food is an all meat food. No corn, wheat or soy. We feed Diamond Naturals Lamb & Rice.
Then add forco to her feed. About 1 teaspoon a day for a dog her size. You will see a difference within a couple of weeks.
We raise and show working border collies. I have a couple that will go off their feed and get very dull occasionally. Since I started adding forco ( I feed it to my horses and thought it might help them too) They will eat as soon as we feed where before they might just nibble every once in awhile. Their muscle tone improved, the coats are fuller and shinier and they seem to have more stamina and not get as tired. |
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 I Prefer to Live in Fantasy Land
Posts: 64864
Location: In the Hills of Texas | I agree about having her checked by your vet first.
Some animals pick at their food because their tummies don't feel good. I would add FORCO to her feed as it will balance out the gut flora. How much does she weigh? A 50# dog should get between 1 to 2 teaspoons. Our 50# dogs do great on 1 teaspoon. So dogs weighing 100#'s or over should be getting between 2 to 4 teaspoons. |
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 Expert
Posts: 1898
| My sister is now the proud owner of a rehomed giant English Mastiff as well. When she got him he was about 20 pounds underweight according to her vet and had a terrible skin rash and rough coat. She put him on Science Diet Large Breed and he has put on some serious mass. It took some time to see a difference. The first month he looked better, his shoulders filled out and his coat and skin was almost perfect but he hadn't gained a pound. The vet said he most likely rearranged his fat content from being on a better quality feed. He has been on it for 3 months now and he looks amazing has gained about half what he needs to and has out grown his collar that was bought for him when she picked him up.
I would definitely look into getting a better grade of food if she is having trouble maintaining. There has been some new research that says raw eggs fed for an extended amount of time can be bad for their hair and skin coat as well as interfere with the absorption of B vitamins.
Maybe you could contact a legitimate mastiff rescue and see what they suggest for putting pounds on an underweight dog. |
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Serious Snap Trapper
Posts: 4275
Location: In The Snow, AZ | Thanks for all the responses. She DOES need to be wormed. That didn't even cross my mind. So we will start there. We will also be heading to the feed store/s this weekend and seeing what other foods they have to offer. The Nutrena came highly recommended...but I guess it isn't that great... The veggie oil is a great idea, and I will start that at her dinner feeding. She is free fed, but doesn't each much during the day. She is right around 110-115# or so. Does anyone know if FORCO is something that tractor supply or cal ranch would carry? Or is it something that definitely has to be ordered? |
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Expert
Posts: 1898
| ~BINGO~ - 2015-01-22 11:53 AM
Thanks for all the responses. She DOES need to be wormed. That didn't even cross my mind. So we will start there. We will also be heading to the feed store/s this weekend and seeing what other foods they have to offer. The Nutrena came highly recommended...but I guess it isn't that great... The veggie oil is a great idea, and I will start that at her dinner feeding. She is free fed, but doesn't each much during the day. She is right around 110-115# or so. Does anyone know if FORCO is something that tractor supply or cal ranch would carry? Or is it something that definitely has to be ordered?
This is going to sound crazy but try taking her off the free feed. Sometimes that will help stimulate their appetite if they know that they can't just nibble around when they feel like it. |
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Midget Lover
Location: Kentucky | ~BINGO~ - 2015-01-22 12:53 PM Thanks for all the responses. She DOES need to be wormed. That didn't even cross my mind. So we will start there. We will also be heading to the feed store/s this weekend and seeing what other foods they have to offer. The Nutrena came highly recommended...but I guess it isn't that great... The veggie oil is a great idea, and I will start that at her dinner feeding. She is free fed, but doesn't each much during the day. She is right around 110-115# or so. Does anyone know if FORCO is something that tractor supply or cal ranch would carry? Or is it something that definitely has to be ordered?
Just some suggestions:
1.) I wouldn't add oil to her diet, especially if something is going on with her belly. I think there are better options to add weight other than oils.
2.) Don't free feed. Put the food down a few times a day. If she doesn't eat it within 10 minutes, pick it back up for later. Free feed allows them to "graze" all day and you cannot monitor her intake.
3.) You can order FORCO from some members on here. I buy mine from NTO, who has commented on this thread.
Good luck! |
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| If you have TSC in your area, their "4 Health" large breed foods are a 4 star food & are reasonably priced.
I feed raw, but since several of my puppy people didn't really have that option, I also fed the puppies a kibble meal. I used the 4 Health large breed (adult). Of course, I drowned it in goat's milk, yogurt, egg & fish oil & probiotics, and they did great on it. ; )
That being said, at this age I wouldn't be overly concerned about her filling out quite yet. I know we all like seeing our critters looking all fat & shiny, but fat isn't any better for them than it is for us, and even less so with a giant breed puppy. So fatten her up cautiously. |
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"Heck's Coming With Me"
Posts: 10797
Location: Kansas | I started feeding my dogs Purina One (with venison) and they both went a little porky on me. Looks good on them though.
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Expert
Posts: 1477
Location: In the land of peanuts and cotton | I've been wondering this same thing. I have a 4 pound chi that is loosening weight. At 4 pounds he doesn't have much to loose. Not stealing OP post but what can I give him? He's older and only has 2 teeth so he's limited on what he can eat. He eats a soft dog food but shares with my doxie and she's obese so I would have to be careful with a weight supplement. |
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Serious Snap Trapper
Posts: 4275
Location: In The Snow, AZ | She has only been started on free feeding for about a week. I was just hoping she would find some incentive to eat throughout the day. Which apparently was a false hope! I didn't realize NTO was a provider of FORCO. We are considering buying a container to see if it makes a difference. It seems to come highly recommended. |
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 Expert
Posts: 1857
| Canchasr1 - 2015-01-22 11:16 AM
Make sure your dog food is an all meat food. No corn, wheat or soy. We feed Diamond Naturals Lamb & Rice.
Then add forco to her feed. About 1 teaspoon a day for a dog her size. You will see a difference within a couple of weeks.
We raise and show working border collies. I have a couple that will go off their feed and get very dull occasionally. Since I started adding forco ( I feed it to my horses and thought it might help them too) They will eat as soon as we feed where before they might just nibble every once in awhile. Their muscle tone improved, the coats are fuller and shinier and they seem to have more stamina and not get as tired.
We feed Diamond Naturals too - Love it and good quality! you can also add a raw egg to the food, it'll add about 70 additional calories. I also take my left over bacon fat, which I save to reuse in place of oil when frying for us, and mix it in to the dog food come winter time. The extra fat helps keep the outside dogs warm and my malamute loves it! |
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The One
Posts: 7998
Location: South Georgia | ~BINGO~ - 2015-01-22 12:53 PM Thanks for all the responses. She DOES need to be wormed. That didn't even cross my mind. So we will start there. We will also be heading to the feed store/s this weekend and seeing what other foods they have to offer. The Nutrena came highly recommended...but I guess it isn't that great... The veggie oil is a great idea, and I will start that at her dinner feeding. She is free fed, but doesn't each much during the day. She is right around 110-115# or so. Does anyone know if FORCO is something that tractor supply or cal ranch would carry? Or is it something that definitely has to be ordered?
If you have a Tractor Supply store, you should have access to Blue Buffalo feeds. |
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 Heeler Hoarder
Posts: 2067
| We have bird and cow dogs they work and burn ALOT of energy. We feed Diamond Extreme Athlete and it keeps them fat with a wonderful coat ! We tryed Blue Buffalo hated it ! |
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Adding weight to a Dog