Jane12 Posted June 7, 2018 Share Posted June 7, 2018 Hi, Just rescued a male staffy x cattle dog from the pound. He is approximatley 2-3 years old and after any advice, particularly on how much I should be feeding him. Thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
karen15 Posted June 8, 2018 Share Posted June 8, 2018 I asked my vet that exact question when I got my staffy. He advised to monitor his weight daily by looking down while he's standing and making sure he has a waist. As long as there is a waist (straight line from ribs to hips) he's the right weight. My staffy was 20-21 kg. He was fed up to one cup of kibble daily (1/2 cup am and pm), plus a small amount of fresh mince and fresh bones. Depending on how he looked, weight was easily managed by adjusting kibble from a scant scoop (lose weight), normal cup (maintain), good cup (gain weight). Doing that weight would change in 2-3 weeks. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
karen15 Posted June 8, 2018 Share Posted June 8, 2018 Waist 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
karen15 Posted June 8, 2018 Share Posted June 8, 2018 No waist Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dogsfevr Posted June 8, 2018 Share Posted June 8, 2018 Its not a simple question because it depends on what your feeding ,how much treats it also gets & exercise /weather i will factor in & body shape .If a dog is barrel chested many will say its fat but you need to understand the shape ,if very long in loin will look underweight & no amount of feeding will make it fat but You gauge the amount by your dog ,if it is fat then feed less,if its under weight feed more. Weight the dog & start from there Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tassie Posted June 8, 2018 Share Posted June 8, 2018 As well as the visual 'waist' check .. which I like ..my other go to test is to place my hands on the dog's back, thumbs pointing towards the tail, either side of the spine, and fingers spread out over several ribs. In a dog of good weight, you should be able to feel the ribs with not much pressure. UnderwEight, dog will feel ribby and spine may feel extra knobbly. Overweight, you'll struggle to feel ribs or spinal processes without pressing in a lot. It's been described as .. running your fingers over the back of your hand ... normal, running fingers over the knuckles of your hand ... underweight, and running fingers over the palm of your hand just below the knuckles .. overwight. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
karen15 Posted June 8, 2018 Share Posted June 8, 2018 (edited) Agree with Dogsfevr and Tassie. If the gold dog (Meg) gets a waist like Max, her ribs are way too prominent, so she's too thin. Westies and staffies have well sprung ribs, the cocker is more streamlined. But the waist is still a great first check and once you get to know your dog, you will know what is right for them ETA Meg puts on weight very quickly. If I think she's thin, it's less than a week with a tiny increase to feed to get her ribs better covered. Responding so quickly to small feed changes makes her a bit trickier to keep at ideal weight. Edited June 8, 2018 by karen15 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jane12 Posted June 8, 2018 Author Share Posted June 8, 2018 thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loving my Oldies Posted June 8, 2018 Share Posted June 8, 2018 Make an appointment with your vet. Before the visit, make a list of everything you can think of that you’d like advice on. It will be money well spent. Good luck and most of all, both of you have fun 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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