Help Putting Muscle Plz

[mack01]

Hi All,

I own a lovely male english staffy who i picked up from the pound about a year ago.. I have been taking him for walks and feeding him at least twice a day. He only weighs 18kg and i am wanting to put some more size on him. Does anyone reccomend any dog suppliments that can help put on lean muscle mass along with proper eating and daily exercise. I have researched and found a product called muscle up powder by big dog pet foods. Does anyone have any review on this?.

Thanks for your help.

[Nekhbet]

How much muscle depends on the dog genetics. If he is from small stock then he will remain small and over supplementing and over proteining his diet long term can he harmful. If he's a healthy weight then dont push him.

What are you feeding him? Lean protein and regular exercise builds muscle. Dont go for runs all the time, try swimming, there are also weight harnesses available on the net where you SLOWLY add more weight (like human resistance training) Any exercise you do has to be slowly built up in order to prevent joint and organ damage. Dont just start a hard exercise routine. The Alaskan Malamute Club and American Bulldog Club run weight pull events which might be something to consider as well for muscle building.

[sas]

If the dog is getting suitable diet and exercise then it should be able to build muscle mass, also considering Muscle....the amount of it etc. can also have a genetic link.

The exercise you are doing might not be suitable for really building muscle i.e. Hill work up and down, galloping, trotting all does different things.

Why are you wanting to muscle the dog up? Is it because you don't feel the dog has enough now or you want it to look tough or something?

You would be best speaking to the makers of the Muscle up Powder to see if it is suitable for your dog, I believe they also do general feed as well so maybe you might look at changing to a diet that is more suitable for building muscle mass i.e. Protein % and so forth.

[dancinbcs]

The breed standard for male SBT has the weight as 13-17kgs, so at 18kgs he already bigger than most. How big do you think he should be

[persephone]

Any photos?

[Clyde]

18 kgs is good. My bitch is 15kgs so 18 sounds about right to me. From what I gather, muscle is genetic. There is only so much you can do but if the genes 'aint there then that's it!

Is he even a pure bred? If you want a muscled dog then you need to buy from lines that muscle up. Head over to the Stafford thread with some pics.

IMO this is a nicely muscled Stafford http://www.dogzonline.com.au/breeds/profile.asp?dog=3157 Look at her 3rd pic. Her owner is on here and has better photos showing good muscle.

More here: Look for dogs starting with JODEN http://www.dogzonline.com.au/breeds/profil...ype=&state=

Do you have any photos of what you would like your dog to look like?

Edited July 16, 2010 by Clyde

[mack01]

Thanks all for the reply.

http://www.dogzonline.com.au/breeds/profile.asp?dog=3157 - Wow that staffy is fit, prob wanting mine abit bigger then him . How old is he?? Is 18kgs and 3 years old normal? The Vet said mine looks like he is cross with american staffy as his head is not as boxy as a pure english..

Well to be honest some weeks i dont get to walk him as much and with starting a new job recently the last couple of months i have not had time to walk him everyday. I feed him some chicken necks in the morning with a little bit of supercoat biscuits, and in the evening for dinnner i give him a cup of supercoat biscuits with either mince beef or kangaroo.

Yes i just recently purchased a doggy backpack from ezydog which he seems to be enjoying! im slowly added weight to it but am aware its a gradual process so i dont want to harm his joints.

People i know who have staffys they seem to be much more muscular and i know some who weigh up to 25-30kg!

I cant seem to attach pics sorry..

CHeers

[Crisovar]

People i know who have staffys they seem to be much more muscular and i know some who weigh up to 25-30kg!

That's rather over size for a Staffordshire Bull Terrier

Your dog can only get as big as it's genetics have it programmed for, same goes for muscle mass, exercised and fed right your dog will reach his potential. He is a pound dog yes? So you have no idea what his bloodlines are.

Sounds like you are expecting the dog to be something he isn't.

[WreckitWhippet]

Thanks all for the reply.

http://www.dogzonline.com.au/breeds/profile.asp?dog=3157 - Wow that staffy is fit, prob wanting mine abit bigger then him . How old is he?? Is 18kgs and 3 years old normal? The Vet said mine looks like he is cross with american staffy as his head is not as boxy as a pure english..

Well to be honest some weeks i dont get to walk him as much and with starting a new job recently the last couple of months i have not had time to walk him everyday. I feed him some chicken necks in the morning with a little bit of supercoat biscuits, and in the evening for dinnner i give him a cup of supercoat biscuits with either mince beef or kangaroo.

Yes i just recently purchased a doggy backpack from ezydog which he seems to be enjoying! im slowly added weight to it but am aware its a gradual process so i dont want to harm his joints.

People i know who have staffys they seem to be much more muscular and i know some who weigh up to 25-30kg!

I cant seem to attach pics sorry..

CHeers

That he's a she and she's about a 15.5 kg bitch.

To get they to lay down some nice muscle, you have to work them, rest them and feed them well. Anyone can make their dog into 25-30kgs of fat.

Genetics plays a huge part and some dogs will never have it, regardless of how hard you work them. I aim for nice healthy looking pets, with just a little covering over the ribs and for your average SBT that's somewhere between 14 and 20kgs ( taking into account the dogs on the larger side of the standard ).

ETA: When dogs are in super fit and ripped condition, their weights do not fluctuate anything like from 18- 25-30kgs. They tend to vary by a couple of kilo's here and there. Mine drop about a kilo when they are ripped.

You need to judge your dog by the way it looks, not how much it weighs.

Bigger is not better, bigger often means fatter.

Do you have an idea of what yu are hoping to achieve ?

Edited July 16, 2010 by SBT123

[Clyde]

Here's the standard of what they *should* look like:

http://www.akc.org/breeds/staffordshire_bu...rrier/index.cfm

See how it doesn't look massive and over sized? They aren't meant to be a big boofy dog, which sounds as though what your mates have. Chances are none of them are from a reputable registered breeder, if you want a dog to look like the ones in those links then you need to do your research and buy one.

Even if your dog is crossed with an AmStaff it can still muscle up - but then again if it's not in his background then he won't.

Try to work out how to post pics so we can have a look

[poodlefan]

You will not build muscle on a dog unless you WORK the dog. Roadwork is usually the key to getting a dog fit and muscular. Mixed with a couple of good offlead runs week should see the dog in optimum condition.

Walk your dog a minimum of 5km a day, switch to a better grade of kibble (a performance one would be ideal but ONLY if the dog is getting a lot of exercise) and add some whey powder to his diet and you should see results.

A terrier should be a lean, fit, agile animal, not a tub of lard or a muscle bound, no necked lump. Its like comparing heavy weight boxers to body builders. Bigger is NOT better for a dog that should be able to sprint, dodge and turn with the best of them.

Go to a SBT speciality and you'll see what the breed is supposed to look like. Or look at SBT123's dogs - they get roadwork daily.

Edited July 17, 2010 by poodlefan

[Nekhbet]

if people are touting 25-30kg then their dogs are either crosses, or amstaffs. Without pedigree papers dont let them fool you with 'oh its a purebred' .. not at that size its not.

I agree, supercoat is a lot of filler hence its cheap. Take a look at www.vetsallnatural.com.au, a friend has her dogs on it and they are all in fabulous condition even her greyhound. Unless you want to go on the road of a good kibble like Royal Canin, Eagle Pack, Artemis, etc as well as some raw meaty bones

[luvsdogs]

Give him exercise. My previous border collie built up a lot of muscle in her hips & thighs when we added another dog to the family when she was 7.5 years old, by them playing tug a lot of the time. I was amazed with the difference in her.

[Lowenhart]

When looking to get a good muscle on dogs I've used Feramo Greyhound, and lots of exercise.

Walking for a few klm everyday and at least 30 mins of hard galloping play weekly seems to do the trick. The walking develops shoulders and loins but the hard gallop gives you nice thighs and stronger/broader toplines.

But you maybe looking to have a super macho look like this:

This is a Whippet with a double dose of a muscling gene. A bit much really.

Staffordshires are great agile dogs with a killer smile. I'd suggest you focus more on keeping him trim and fit rather than how big his muscles are.

[Ozstar]

This is my boy Chaos, he will be 4 years old in a couple months (photos where taken about a year ago).

He is fed a good quality diet and gets plenty of free play and exercise.

Chaos is 17 kgs and 16 1/2 inches tall ( he is just over breed standard height).

There is no way I would want my Stafford over 20kgs.

Leanne

[mack01]

Thanks all.

I will try upload some pictures tonight and see if it works. But yeh im not really focussed on what the scales say more on what he looks like.. I was just worried he was abit small then what a staffy should be... But ill focus on daily exercise and proper diet for a month or so and see how it goes... He loves the backpack! so will keep on that and gradually increase the weights.. that should do the trick!.

[mack01]

Thanks all.

I will try upload some pictures tonight and see if it works. But yeh im not really focussed on what the scales say more on what he looks like.. I was just worried he was abit small then what a staffy should be... But ill focus on daily exercise and proper diet for a month or so and see how it goes... He loves the backpack! so will keep on that and gradually increase the weights.. that should do the trick!.

Guys,

Got a photo of the lil fella, this was taken nearly a year ago..

Uploaded with ImageShack.us

Edited July 20, 2010 by mack01

[Clyde]

I think he looks really nice. Staffs aren't supposed to be massive so if that's what your mates have then they haven't got decent looking dogs :D

Your dog certainly looks very happy. :rolleyes:

[WreckitWhippet]

Start with a trip to a canine chiro.

That's certainly a dog that you do not want to add more than a couple of kilo's to

[mack01]

Canine chiro??

Yeh just wanted to get him to fill out abit more..