How long should it take Aspen to gain weight?

[stacwase]

Aspen has been living with us for 15 days now. She was very underweight when we adopted her from the shelter. Her stool was negative for parasites.

She weighed 55 lbs last week - the vet says she needs to gain at least 10 lbs.

Max weighs about 90 lbs. I have been feeding Aspen the same amount of high-quality dog food that I give Max every day(about double the recommended amount for her), plus supplementing with scrambled eggs, grilled chicken breast, etc.

She sure doesn't look like she's gaining any weight. How long does it usually take?

[Shelteez2]

I'm not sure how long it should take, but I don't think I would feed her the same ammount you feed Max. I would feed her what it suggests for a 65 pound dog (since that is what the vet figures her ideal weight is). Then she won't gain it too quickly and you won't have any problems cutting back when she reaches the weight you want her to be.

Maybe you could weigh her every couple weeks so you can keep an eye on the weight gain? Then adjust the food accordingly.

[stacwase]

I'm getting worried, though. I think she needs to put some more weight on soon. I can easily see every single rib, and her hip bones jut out.

She's reluctant to go outside much - I think because she doesn't have enough fat to keep her warm. To get her to potty, I have to make her stay outside longer than she would like to.

I think I might need to bring her to a vet, but I don't want to jump the gun and bring her in unnecessarily. She was just in to see a vet last week and had a complete exam, but the vet was so mean and awful. If I bring her in, I'll bring her to a different vet an hour's drive away from here.

I don't know if I'm just imagining it, but I think maybe she's actually getting thinner. I don't think her hip bones were sticking out so much last week, but I'm not sure. My friend says he thinks she's gaining a little (but men can be so unobservant).

I don't know what her personality is normally like - so it's hard to tell if she's acting "normal" or not. She seems distant, and she sleeps a lot. She's only 1 1/2 and it seems like such a young dog should be more energetic and playful.

?????

[sammy101]

how many times are you feeding her everyday?I would recommend 2-3 meals a day/that might help some. I dont really know how long it takes for a dog to gain weight.I watch the Animal Cops shows on tv,and the thing dogs on there can easily gain 15 lbs in a week.
hopefully she puts on some weight soon!!

[stacwase]

Sammy, I'm feeding her full meals twice a day, plus snacks.

[stacwase]

Bump

Can any of you who have rescued emaciated dogs give me any ideas?

I'm just wondering if Aspen is normal for not gaining or if I need to get her to a vet.

[Pit Chick]

I've rescued emaciated dogs that took just 8 days to plump up and I've had some that took about 3-4 weeks. I would have her checked again for any internal parasites and given her condition, it doesn't hurt to take a dog like that to the vet every week to monitor her progress. I would get a copy of her medical records from the vet who was mean to you and take them to the other vet also. What does her stool look like? Is it formed and firm or is it softer than it should be?

[stacwase]

Sometimes her stool is very soft - kind of like a cow pie. And there's a LOT of it. But other times it's formed and firm. She goes 1-2 times per day.

I know this is gross, but maybe it means something - I did notice a great big glob of mucous hanging from her bottom the other day after she went pottie. I didn't see the stool that time - but I had to wipe her butt.

It couldn't hurt for me to develop a relationship with a new vet. I think I'll go to the one I brought Max and Kamble to one time. I wonder if it would be OK to give it just 1-2 more days?

[ramanth]

Zam, my cat, was underweight when I rescued her and the vet told me to feed her Kitten chow even though she was a year old.

Once Zam put on the weight, I weened her off the kitten chow and started her on adult food.

Maybe puppy chow would have the same effect?

[Pit Chick]

It definately sounds like there's still something not right going on in her tummy or intestinse.

[stacwase]

Kimmy, I thought of the puppy chow, too. I asked the vet about it and she said not to give it to her because she's a large breed dog, still growing, and it wouldn't be good for her.

Maybe I'm overreacting, but this kind of scares me. I'm almost certain her hip bones were not sticking out so much when I brought her home. In fact I thought she was just "a little skinny" at first. My son asked me yesterday if she was losing weight.

She has a vet appointment at 3:20 today at the new vet. I think you're right, Pit Chick - something is wrong with her digestive system.

Oh, I hope it's just worms or something easily curable. She's less active now than she was when I brought her home. I don't know if she's just "settled in" or if she's sick.

[wolfsoul]

Might want to try Satin Balls . Great for fattening up. If you look on google, you will find recipes that are similar but varied, incase you don't have the right ingredients on hand.

Mucous in the stool can be causes by intestinal worms. Definatly get her checked for that, and keep the other dogs away from her stools or anything her stools might have touched, including her bum. It would be a good idea to wash their paws after they come in from the outside.

Intestinal Worms

[Denyce]

Mucous could also be from colitis or an inflammatory bowel condition which would also explain the periodic loose bowels and lack of weight gain also. It seems like a vet check is definately in order.

Denyce

[dragondawg]

Have the Vet run a thyroid panel, as the dog may have a hyperactive thyroid condition. Also have the gastric/pancreatic enzyme levels checked. Supplementing the enzymes may be a good first try. If the food isn't absorbed and broken down, it does not matter how much the dog eats.

[stacwase]

Thank you VERY much for all of your advice, everybody! I took her to the vet, and she said that it's most likely either whipworms (which might not have shown up on my visit to the other vet) or a pancreatic deficiency.

We're going to treat her for whipworms and switch her food. She has another appt. scheduled for 3 weeks from now - when she'll be getting her second Lyme and Giardia vaccines. If she has gained weight by then, she'll give her a 2nd round of whipworm treatment. If she hasn't gained she'll do some pancreas testing and maybe thyroid, etc.

She had me switch her to Eukanuba and told me to give her as much as she'll eat every day until her ribs stop showing.

Thanks for the Satin Balls recipe, Wolfsoul - I think I'll try them.

Here are some pictures of how skinny she is right now: