Janelle23 Posted April 13, 2011 Share Posted April 13, 2011 Hi everyone, I have a 1 1/2yr old Labrardor Retriever before he went in to have his castration operation my vet told me he was overweight so i cut him down on his food intake he only on dries atm as well as a bone once a week, however he has been on this diet for a couple of months now and he has become really underweight, what is a good daily intake for him and what is a good weight and how do i go about putting some weight back on him? what sort of other foods can i give him so he has a varied diet? He fairly active dog. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
persephone Posted April 13, 2011 Share Posted April 13, 2011 Hi Hope we can help you. do you have a photo of him standing side on..and maybe one looking down at him ? That is the best way we can judge his condition How much does he weigh? What dry food is he on,and how many cups a day does he get? Some dry food is a good diet ..some is not . is he otherwise healthy and happy ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Erny Posted April 13, 2011 Share Posted April 13, 2011 (edited) I have a 1 1/2yr old Labrardor Retriever before he went in to have his castration operation my vet told me he was overweight ... he has been on this diet for a couple of months now and he has become really underweight That can be a really subjective impression based on what you're used to seeing, not how he should ideally be. It is ok to see the last or second last rib. It is good if there is a light covering over the ribs - enough where they don't stick out but not so much that you can't feel the ribs as you run your hands across the rib-cage. It is good if you can see a waste line (looking from above your dog). It is good if the undercarriage line rises as it goes towards the rear (looking side on to the dog). If your dog is active he should have good muscle tone. Obviously, optimum weight is the ideal, but it is better for the dog if it is a little under optimum than over. A side on photo and a photo from above your dog would be helpful. Edited April 13, 2011 by Erny Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aussielover Posted April 13, 2011 Share Posted April 13, 2011 (edited) I'm always being told my labrador is too skinny. She is 25kg. She is not underweight, she is a healthy weight and could probably lose a kg or two before she was considered underweight. I do not think a normal sized lab should be less than 23kg though. I feed my dog the equivalent of 2 cups of Advance puppy per day. She gets a lot of exercise though, so I guess if your dog is not that active, he will need a bit less. Edited April 13, 2011 by aussielover Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Janelle23 Posted April 15, 2011 Author Share Posted April 15, 2011 He is on supercoat atm but am going to change him onto Royal cannin Labrardor food, he is on a 1 cup food atm he not an overly active dog but am going to start doing more with him as i would like to do some agility work with him. So i know i will have to increase his food, a, just not sure what will be the right amount for him. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sandra777 Posted April 15, 2011 Share Posted April 15, 2011 I would call him slightly light - not skinny or scrawny. 1 cup of supercoat isn't much - if it agrees with him and you want to continue with it try (slowly!) upping his food until you can see he is gaining a little weight. Doesn't matter what food you use - all dry to all raw - you feed a dog as much as it needs to maintain a good weight, ignore what the bag or your neighbour says, every dog is an individual, just like people! If he was mine I'd give him chicken carcases or meaty bones at least a couple of times a week (assuming he doesn't have digestion issues) as these are great for adding a bit of weight. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Janelle23 Posted April 15, 2011 Author Share Posted April 15, 2011 Ok thanks for the advice hadn't thought about giving him chicken carcass before he is getting an extra feed during the day now have noticed a little bit of improvement, but i wanting to put him onto royal cannin Labrardor dry's as the design of the kibble is designed to make the lab feel fuller for longer and also instead of just sucking the food down the design is made so that they have to chew which hoping will help him in his weight gain Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nekhbet Posted April 15, 2011 Share Posted April 15, 2011 (edited) He's too undermuscled - I can see the bones in his upper limbs. One cup of supercoat couldnt keep a rabbit looking good let alone a labrador. He doesn't need 'weight' as in a fat layer, he needs to gain lean muscle bulk which comes from protein. CHange him either to Royal Canin or start giving him mince with his supercoat. If you're using metric cups I would at least double to triple the amount of food he's eating now. Royal Canin try 2 cups a day, if he doesnt gain any weight after a couple of weeks add another cup a day. Edited April 15, 2011 by Nekhbet Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
persephone Posted April 15, 2011 Share Posted April 15, 2011 he does need some muscle whatever food you introduce- do it gradually ... mix in a small amount first, then increase it each day - this avoids the risk of tummy upsets - which will not help with weight gain Glad you put the pics up - looking forward to progress shots, too:) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Janelle23 Posted April 15, 2011 Author Share Posted April 15, 2011 is there any specific excerises i can do with him besides changing his diet to help build up his muscles mass? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mason_Gibbs Posted April 15, 2011 Share Posted April 15, 2011 is there any specific excerises i can do with him besides changing his diet to help build up his muscles mass? Not sure about muscle mass but swimming is great exercise Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Erny Posted April 15, 2011 Share Posted April 15, 2011 (edited) is there any specific excerises i can do with him besides changing his diet to help build up his muscles mass? I would suggest exercise variation is the key. A good free run; a good on-lead controlled jog interspersed with a sprint here and there; choosing landscapes that are sometimes flat and also sometimes hilly. All of this (in my unprofessional opinion) covers many, most if not all of the important muscle groups. ETA: Swimming is another form of exercise and in that you can include some walking at chest height water - don't over do it, keep it short sessions to begin with, as this latter form of exercise can be hard going on a select muscle group and your aim is not to shatter muscles, just to build them. I worked my dog at the beach in chest height walking exercises and I promise I noticed the (good) effect in my thigh and butt muscles, lol. (Mind you .... that's not to say anyone else did, ). When you add to your dog's exercise, consider this when feeding him. You can up the quantity of food to account for the extra energy he's expended. I agree that I think your dog is a bit underweight, but it's not just about putting fat on - it's about putting healthy weight on and I think that's what other posters referring to "putting on muscle" mean. So, increase the food quantity (move to a premium food - and note that premium food also means healthy natural feeding such as chicken frames; RMB's etc. etc) but also increase the exercise regime and try to supply some variation to it. I am actually delighted to NOT see an overweight Labrador :D and I reckon your dog will come up a treat with the combo of increased food and steady exercise. Know that your dog is probably less likely to suffer from being slightly underweight than he would by being overweight. ETA: There's something that looks uncomfortable about your dog in those two photographs. Is that just a once off posturing, or is it common place for him? My boy has digestive issues and when his tummy is uncomfortable his posture can immediately make it appear that he has lost weight. When he's comfortable his back is flat/straighter, he's not so tucked and he immediately appears to be more covered across the rib cage. ETA (looking yet again at the photos) .... or is it that you've needed to put some food down so that he would stand still for the photo's and that's what is making his stance that it is? Edited April 15, 2011 by Erny Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Janelle23 Posted April 15, 2011 Author Share Posted April 15, 2011 I used to take him down to the beach a lot with a friend and her dog but as she no longer has her dog i dont take mine down there anymore as he doesn't have good obedience i keep working on his obedience but he just likes to ignore me not sure what else to try he sits and drops fine, but come he not very good at he fine at home but when take him out all the training goes out the window Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Erny Posted April 15, 2011 Share Posted April 15, 2011 Taking him out somewhere doesn't mean he must go off-lead. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Janelle23 Posted April 15, 2011 Author Share Posted April 15, 2011 yeh i had to put food down he very exciteable dog and wouldn't stand still even when i was trying to take photos while he was eating he was moving which made it hard to take a nice decent picture of him Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
persephone Posted April 15, 2011 Share Posted April 15, 2011 get yourself a nice LONG line .. like a horse lungeing rope .. then he can get his beach fun, and you can reel him in :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Janelle23 Posted April 15, 2011 Author Share Posted April 15, 2011 Luckily i work with horses so the lounge line easy to get for him, i been trying to find the long tracking dog leads but have not hadd any luck finding them. wouldn't have thought about using a lunge line on a dog before lol gd use for one though lol thanks :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aussielover Posted April 16, 2011 Share Posted April 16, 2011 get yourself a nice LONG line .. like a horse lungeing rope .. then he can get his beach fun, and you can reel him in Yes, because labradors will swim to Tasmania if you let them I don't think he is too skinny, but as others have said he needs more muscle. He is probably a good weight now to do agility as labs should be kept really light for jumping. Unfortunately people are so used to seeing fatty labs they don't know what a healthy one should look like! I would also add in a meaty bone (my pup loves lamb shanks) to his diet, but if you don't want to do that then I'd give him another cup of food. My pup gets a lamb shank + 1 cup dry about 4 times a week and 1 cup dry + carrot + apples + mince or oily fish on the other days. I figure this is about equivalent to 2 cups of dry food a day. Your boy is a different build to my dog, but this is what she looks like on 2 cups dry food. she has lost a a little bit of weight since she went on a food allergy trial though and can only eat roo meat and pumpkin. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Janelle23 Posted April 16, 2011 Author Share Posted April 16, 2011 (edited) You lab looks great how much carrot+apple+mince are you putting in with the 1 cup of dries? just as a rough guide so i can add it into his diet. Edited April 16, 2011 by Janelle23 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aussielover Posted April 16, 2011 Share Posted April 16, 2011 I generally put in a whole carrot and half an apple. They aren't really very nutritious for dogs, so they won't really put any weight on with these, no matter how much you give (within reason). i use the other half of the apple as a training treat. I feed the dry food in the AM and the carrot, apple and mince/fish in the PM, being a deep chested dog she can't really have one large meal only. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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