# New- Dog seems lethargic



## Rtrain (Aug 13, 2012)

Hello,

I started my 5 year old boy on raw Sunday and he's taken to it better than I could have expected with eating, he loves it and doesn't hesitate to eat. My concern is he seems lethargic, he's never been an overly active dog but seems to be laying around much more. He jumps when its time to eat or for our daily walk but its just in between that bugs me. Is it normal and hes just getting used to the changes?

Thank you


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## lauren43 (Feb 6, 2011)

From what I understand dogs can go through a bit of a detox while transitioning from kibble to raw. Give it time. Also some ppl say they notice there dogs have a different type of energy being fed raw, less hyperactive type energy...

Of course my dog is still full of himself and never went through detox but all dogs are individuals.


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## Donna Little (May 31, 2011)

After my dogs eat they have a level of calm that they didn't have from eating kibble. All of them will go get in the bed and chill for a couple of hours after each meal. They seem totally satisfied and that's a good thing around here. My Min Pins are off the charts with energy so to have a few hours of calm a day makes me very happy.


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## MollyWoppy (Mar 19, 2010)

My neice's 1yo German Shepherd dog that we are still in the process of transitioning over went through a bit of a lethargic stage a week or so in. She was also a bit worried and we weren't sure whether to put it down to the new diet or to the heat at the time. But it didn't last long, he was back to his normal self in a week or so.


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## magicre (Apr 7, 2010)

how much does your dog weigh and how much are you feeding?


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## Rtrain (Aug 13, 2012)

Thanks for the responses.

He is 100lbs and i'm feeding him 2lbs per day split into 2 meals, morning and evening. From what i read it was suggested 2% of body weight


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## magicre (Apr 7, 2010)

is 100 lbs a good weight for him?

the only reason i ask is you just started feeding raw....i'm glad you are divvying up the amount into two meals for now. you may always do that or at some point, you might turn it into one meal a day.

for now, you are learning your dog...and if you are feeding chicken, which is a gentle nutritional panel, a dog can go through what some people think is a lethargic period of time.

but lethargy and being full without carbs or starches are a little different.

lethargy means work to lift his head...is that happening?

lethargy means he takes a while to get up...is that happening?

if his eyes are perky and his tail is wagging and he does move around and exercise and go on walks, then i'd say he's doing fine....

if he has other symptoms that you want to include, please let us know....

and pictures are a must.


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## MollyWoppy (Mar 19, 2010)

Good point re, we should clarify exactly what is meant by 'lethargic'. What I think of as lethargic might be vastly different to yours. 
(We've learnt that lesson before - the hard way!)


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## Rtrain (Aug 13, 2012)

He's a big boy, the vet says he'd be better around 95 so I guess I should drop the amount a bit. 

Lethargic is the wrong word. Much calmer I guess is a better description. He's as happy as ever to go for walks and cant wait for his food or to play. Its just everything in between he's laying down, i know what else can dogs do right but hes usually all over the house and now he just kind of plops. Eyes are perky, doesnt take long to get up. He's definitely not chewing himself as much, we couldnt get him to stop eating his feet for 5 years and i dont know if it could be helping this quickly but my wife and i are crossing our fingers.


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## MollyWoppy (Mar 19, 2010)

re no doubt will correct me if I'm wrong, (she's good at that), but maybe the carbs in his old kibble were giving him excess energy?


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## Maritan (Nov 11, 2011)

I strongly believe the dogs can have the low carb "flu" just like humans when we cut out certain carbs. When you get them off all the starch that was holding the kibble pellets together, and put them on real raw food, you've cut out all carbs.

My Border Collie went through a nasty detox and the low carb flu. She still has a TON of energy, but it's not a frantic energy. It's much more even keeled and she still will run me into the ground and make me beg for mercy and a little rest before she decides it's probably in her best interests to have her human refreshed and ready to go in about oh, say 5 minutes time. *groan* 

I have no idea why I love Border Collies this much... *SMH*


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## MollyWoppy (Mar 19, 2010)

Thanks Maritan, you explained it a lot better than me!


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