Quote Originally Posted by Varga
Hi. I don't post here often but I've been fostering a dog for a couple of days so I was hoping for some advice.

First of all how do you tell if a dog is too skinny? I know it’s something about the ribs but I can never remember if your suppose to see the ribs or only feel them.. And also, this dog is about a year old, so really he's just a teenager and since my own dog is 9 I can't really remember how they are suppose to be built at that age.

Anyway. You can clearly feel the ribs on this dog.. also the hip bones and shoulders. If he had a smooth coat they would definitely be visible.. That's not normal is it? Even at his age?
Should I be feeding him more fatty food or do I just feed him normal food?
So far I've been feeding him the same kibble my own dog eats but I have to soften it with water for him to eat anything. If I don't soften the kibble he'll just eat one or two bits and then trot out of the kitchen again.

Might also be worth mentioning that he definitely does not lack energy. He plays with Tiki and generally is a very happy and active dog. .

-Varga


P.s. If anyone of you has a dog around the same age (about a year old) could you perhaps post a picture of him/her so I can compare them?
Unfortunately I can't post a pic myself because my friend borrowed the cord for the video camera.

P.s.s. Sorry if my English is hard to understand.
No, it is not normal for the shoulders and hip bones to be showing. When a puppy is growing you may get periods where they appear to be walking on stilts, as the legs tend to grow faster than the rest of the body. But even then there should be muscle around the bones. The rule on the ribs is that you should be able to feel them without exerting much pressure with your fingers.

Probably the dog food formulation you are feeding has low fat/protein which is suitable for an older dog. But for a growing puppy you should feed a puppy formula of 15% fat, and as high a protein content of 28-30%. You would probably find puppy wouldn't care if such a food was moist or not.

Besides diet, another cause for lack of weight gain are worms or other parasites. There is also the chance puppy has a metabolic disorder that is causing him to burn calories faster.

You should have the dog examined by a Vet to eliminate parasite or other health problems. If no metabolic problems are present, then try a puppy formula.