LittleLuka Posted June 4, 2012 Report Share Posted June 4, 2012 So luka is Almost 12 weeks now and I'm having some issues with his feeding. I took him to the vet for his third set of shots and the vet told me he was too skinny. Now, my vet does own a husky x gsd but is there any chance he could be mistaken? I feed luka two cups a day which I know is a little less than the bad recommends but if I even increase it by 1/4th of a cup he has diarrhea. He plays hard all day and acts fine. I'm wondering if I need to add chicken and rice to his diet or switch his food or what? If I feed him 2 cups he's fine but I don't want to be underfeeding him. (he's on totw btw) Any advice? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mollys_mum Posted June 4, 2012 Report Share Posted June 4, 2012 I wonder if it might be worth taking him to a different vet for a second opinion if you have doubts yourself? Did the vet ask you what sort of kibble your Little Luka is on? Did s/he ask you any questions about Luka's health in general, or did you ask if all seems okay? When did you first notice the problem? Putting your pup on boiled chicken/rice etc is fine short term but I'm not sure that it'll do anything for weight gain. Perhaps changing (over a week) the kibble to one that provides a higher fat content might help. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rosemary Posted June 4, 2012 Report Share Posted June 4, 2012 Can you perhaps post a photo of Luka from the side and if possible from above. That way we can see if he is perhaps on the thin side. Did the vet perhaps weigh him, and if so what did he weigh? I am sure [MENTION=322]Mazz[/MENTION] will be able to give you better advice as he feeds TOTW, I am not sure how much a 12 week old puppy should be eating. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mazz Posted June 4, 2012 Report Share Posted June 4, 2012 How many times per day are you feeding? If twice per day, you might try a third feeding of just a half cup. But in all honesty, I would not supplement his feeding with other stuff. At his age, there is nothing wrong being a bit light. Run your fingers along his rib cage. You should feel each rib with a layer of skin and a bit of fat to cover. You should not see his ribs protruding. Hip bones should not protrude. Looking down onto the back, while standing, he should have an hourglass figure. Looking from the side the tummy should tuck up just about at the front of the upper rear leg. One thing you can do, if you feel he is under weight more than you like, is give him a bit of peanut butter, say a spoonful, once or twice a day. Sent from my HTC with forumrunner. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LittleLuka Posted June 4, 2012 Author Report Share Posted June 4, 2012 I'll post some pictures but honestly I don't feel as though he's too skinny. I can feel his ribs when I touch him but they're not protruding out. I'm feeding him three times per day and the past few days I've been feeding him a cup in the am, a 1/2 cup in the afternoon, and another cup that night and he's been sick. I cut out the 1/2 cup and he's fine. I guess I could get a 2nd opinion. I'm just stressed I thought he was fine. He weighs 14 lbs I think I'll have to check hi records to make sure. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sjwrx Posted June 4, 2012 Report Share Posted June 4, 2012 I feel the same about Panda at times. He's also just like Luka, he gets 2 cups a day, 1 cup each meal. If i give him anything more he gets really loose stool. My vet never mentioned him about being too skinny or anything. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mazz Posted June 4, 2012 Report Share Posted June 4, 2012 It really sounds to me like there's really not an issue going on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sutsibe Posted June 4, 2012 Report Share Posted June 4, 2012 I wouldn't worry too much - most vets are used to seeing dogs that are drastically overweight, first off. Additionally, puppies at 12 weeks are growing so very fast that they tend to be on the thin side - they simply can't keep up with both upward growth and keep very much fat on, and with Siberians, usually DO tend to get diarrhea if you feed even a little too much. If you're really determined to add more food to put on a little weight, get some Metamucil and mix about a teaspoon in with each meal. If you want to go to 3 meals per day, you might try 3 meals of 3/4 cups, or 2 of 1 cup and one of 1/4 cup, which might help (that 1/4 cup less than what you did try), even without the Metamucil. Both Metamucil (which is psyllium husk fiber) and pumpkin (which should be just cooked pumpkin, NOT pumpkin pie filler) are types of fiber which tend to firm up stools which are loose AND soften stools which are too solid/dry (causing constipation) by regulating the amount of liquid held in the stool. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LittleLuka Posted June 5, 2012 Author Report Share Posted June 5, 2012 Thank you all! I think I'll stick to his regular feeding and see what happens! I know he's not starving! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LittleLuka Posted June 6, 2012 Author Report Share Posted June 6, 2012 Heres some pics well the best I could get haha [ATTACH]47663[/ATTACH] [ATTACH]47664[/ATTACH] [ATTACH]47665[/ATTACH] He just doesn't look too skinny to me ... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mazz Posted June 6, 2012 Report Share Posted June 6, 2012 He looks great. Sent from my HTC with forumrunner. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Removed #2 Posted June 6, 2012 Report Share Posted June 6, 2012 He's very young...and is a little peanut! My boys are 56 and 60 lbs and they only eat 2 cups a day and have maintained their weight for a year. Jessy was 38 lbs when we got her, feed her the same or just a little less than the boys and she now weighs 45 lbs. I've never fed a husky puppy, and my last husky ate twice as much as the boys and weighed into the 70s, but she was very tall....and never looked fat. I'd get a second opinion if you are worried. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LittleLuka Posted June 14, 2012 Author Report Share Posted June 14, 2012 (edited) well i finally decided even though i don't think Luka is too skinny he needed to be on a different food. I swear his food was just going straight through him. He was going to the bathroom constantly after eating (which i know is regular in a puppy) but im talking 4-5 times after eating 1 cup of food. We've started gradually switching him over to Fromm Gold Nutritionals Large Breed Puppy. Even though i hate to take him off a grain-free food he is already doing so much better on this. It's still a good food with the grains it does have being rice and oatmeal. It's helped his tummy issues a lot. My vet said sometimes grain-free is just too harsh on some puppies digestive systems and that he would probably be fine on it when he gets bigger. Hopefully, when he is older we can switch him to Fromm's grain-free brand or back to Taste of the Wild. Thanks for everyones advice! "My vet said sometimes grain-free is just too harsh on some puppies digestive systems and that he would probably be fine on it when he gets bigger." - by this he meant he was consuming more protein than he was burning off so he wasn't fully receiving the nutrients from the food. Edited June 14, 2012 by LittleLuka adding extra info Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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