# raw and weight?



## sourpuss (Nov 24, 2008)

I have been feeding PMR to my Dane X since he was a baby. He is now 5. I have a terrible time keeping him at a good weight on raw food alone. All of his ribs show and some of his back bone. He is currently eating 3 cups of Orijen in the a.m. and 2 lbs. of raw at night to save money. When he was on raw alone he was eating approx. 6lbs of food per day and still not gaining. I would like to stick to only raw but I cant afford that much food! He has been cleared for all parasites and is otherwise very muscular and healthy. Why won't the raw stick to his ribs?

p.s. tried "satin balls" for a good two months with little success.


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## whiteleo (Sep 7, 2008)

What exactly were you feeding?


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## RawFedDogs (Jun 16, 2008)

I would do some more testing to see why he won't keep on weight eating 6lbs of raw. My Danes carry a good weight on half that much food. Sometimes I have to cut it for a while because they get pudgy. There is something the vet is missing. Either parasites or thyroid or something else. I don't know what.


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## Animal Quackers (Jul 10, 2010)

I'm with Whiteleo - what were you feeding?


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## DaneMama (Jun 27, 2008)

I will echo it again...what were you feeding on a regular basis?

Is there any chance you could post up pictures of him? How much does he weigh?

Have you had a full panel of bloodwork done on him at all?

I'd definitely need to know some more information before I could really give advice to you....


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## Newfdad (Sep 6, 2010)

Agree with the previous posts, with that much protein going into his system and no weight gain there is something else happening that you need to be aware of. And honestly, the 3 cups of Orijen he's getting in the morning is less nutritious and probably more expensive than the 2 lbs of raw he's getting at night(I'm just sayin'). But, there is an underlying condition to the lack of weight gain.


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## Mia (Oct 4, 2010)

I agree too. There has to be a reason why he isnt thriving. If anything PMR will make them solid and muscles.


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## sourpuss (Nov 24, 2008)

Thanks for you replies. For the past three months he has been on the raw and kibble combo. Before that he was eating primarily chicken backs and turkey necks in the morning and beef, lamb, or pork meat in the evening. During deer season he was eating a lot of venison. I should also mention that the vet has said he is at a "working dog weight" (whatever that means) and is not overly concerned. He gets about two and a half hours of exercise per day. It is the average dog owner that tells me he is too thin.


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## DaneMama (Jun 27, 2008)

How much does he weigh? 

I can see why the average dog owner would think he's underweight. You have to remember that MOST dogs are at least overweight if not obese. Most people have a warped image of what a healthy dog looks like. 

All of my dogs are kept lean and thin. Most of their ribs are visable and easily felt. Same with their backbones and hip bones. Although you can feel and see most of their bones they hbd excellent muscle tone and build. 

How is his muscle build? How is his strength? Typically dogs who have some kind of health issue regarding weight loss, usually have an issue with building or maintaining muscle tone and build. 

If your vet isn't worried I can say with certainty that he's probably ok...


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## Mia (Oct 4, 2010)

Nat is right on that. I see way too many labs and beagles ready to pop around here. Ted is lean not thin. Alot of people with labs that I have come into contact around here with say he is too thin. He is a perfect ideal weight. I know in the next 6 months he'll gain muscle as well with the diet.

Riley was a marshmellow when we adopted him. I was actually nervous to see THAT much weight on a large dog like him. We slowly ran him, and got him swimming then just as quickly as we got him we switched to PMR. He is 95 now (solid and lean), he was about 15 pounds overweight.

Go with your instincts, get some vet advice or really Jon and Nat and the rest of the gang know what they are doing. Post some pictures and have them guide you.:biggrin:


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## magicre (Apr 7, 2010)

still, he shouldn't need six pounds of food per day....

how much bone is he getting with what you were feeding before you started the kibble again....you're just inviting dental and stomach problems going back to kibble..

you had stated you were feeding backs and turkey necks in the morning....how many pounds of boney food was he getting?


how many pounds of meaty food was he getting?

how much does he weigh now?


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## sourpuss (Nov 24, 2008)

He is approx. 115lbs. Here is a photo from today. Do you think he looks ok?

Thanks for your advice so far.


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## jdatwood (Apr 13, 2009)

He's a little ribby but certaily not malnourished


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## magicre (Apr 7, 2010)

jdatwood said:


> He's a little ribby but certaily not malnourished


that's what i'm thinking...did you see the muscles on his hind legs?

what a pretty dog.....


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## DaneMama (Jun 27, 2008)

He looks perfectly healthy to me! Yes, he's on the thin side but to me that is far better than the other way around. He has good muscle tone and build. I wouldn't worry but it's always a good idea to check bloodwork on routine just to check for any changes. I always recommend it when an annual physical is done. Might as well take a look at how the internal health is!


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## magicre (Apr 7, 2010)

sourpuss said:


> Thanks for you replies. For the past three months he has been on the raw and kibble combo. Before that he was eating primarily chicken backs and turkey necks in the morning and beef, lamb, or pork meat in the evening. During deer season he was eating a lot of venison. I should also mention that the vet has said he is at a "working dog weight" (whatever that means) and is not overly concerned. He gets about two and a half hours of exercise per day. It is the average dog owner that tells me he is too thin.


he gets two and a half hours of exercise per day?

is that walking? working? agility?

because you have to take that into account too....

most feed 2-3% of a dog's ideal weight...

with him, including excercise, you probably could feed him 4% of his weight....
which comes out to about 6 lbs a day....72 oz.

how much fat do you feed him....might want to increase the richer fattier meats....since he does exercise so much...


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