Willow is having some weight issues...Still. (Wall of text!)

JLWillow · 09-27-2009, 11:44 PM

So recently I've been noticing that Willow has a slight little pout to her stomach. At first I thought it was nothing, because she still has pretty much the ideal waist a dog should have, but then I weighed her today, and she gained 3 1/5 pounds! I made a thread a while back (I don't know if anyone remembers, I highly doubt it) about Willow's weight. When I first got Willow, she was 19lbs. She looked skinny to me, but I realize now that that's how dogs are supposed to look. A month later she became 21.5 lbs, and that's when I made a thread. I cut her diet in half, and she was getting better. But after she was getting better, I've decided to add some things to her food since her food isn't that great of quality (Pedigree D: ). Her stools were soft and she had dry skin, so I've been adding pumpkin and a half a slice of cheese to her meals. I have to say, the results from adding that were great, but she seems to be gaining weight again/still. I'd like to note that the Pedigree wet food is made with pretty darn good ingredients, the first ingredient is pure chicken, and the fourth ingredient is pure beef (ingredients in between are by products). It's the kibble that's really getting to me. I was told by the shelter that I adopted her from that I should feed her a mix of kibble with a tablespoon of wet food, so that's what I've been doing. But I guess adding the pumpkin and the cheese is making her gain weight? Or am I still giving her too much? I'm currently giving her a half cup of kibble, one tablespoon of wet food, about one tablespoon of pumpkin (any less and it'll be mushy! DX), and a half a slice of cheese, twice a day. I guess I am still giving her too much, but seeing as how she's a mutt, I don't know exactly what she's supposed to weigh. I'm 99% sure she's part Schipperke, the resemblance is striking, and according to Wikipedia, the heaviest a Schipperke should be is 20lbs, and Willow is currently four pounds over! That's so much!

I really would love to say LET'S JUST GO BY INNOVA OR SOME OTHER AWESOME BRAND, but I have no moneyz. I'm 19, searching for a job and failing, and therefore my parents pay for the dog's food. I don't want them to pay for something expensive when we're in a recession and struggling for money. I know I'm probably feeding her too much, and I wish I knew what exact amount to feed her of what, but I don't know what that amount is! I'd also love to be able to prepare home made food for her, I truly wouldn't mind the preparation. I've read a lot about it, found recipes, etc. I know you need to rotate the kind of meats you feed, I know you need to put in a calorie such as rice and vegetables and fruit to balance the diet, and maybe some egg, the problem is I don't know how much to feed her! I've found charts I don't understand, and charts that tell me to feed her more than I'm already feeding her, which can't be right because then she'll become even fatter! Help!

Note: I have considered talking to my vet about it, but I've seen here many times people saying that vets are pretty much stupid when it comes to nutrition, so I'm hesitant.

Also, I've heard a lot that it's best for a dog to be fed two meals a day instead of one big one, but some sites say to feed once a day, and the shelter I got Willow from fed her once a day. What should I do? I'm so confused! I also walk Willow an hour every morning, and twenty minutes at night. I'm pretty darn sure that that's a sufficient amount of exercise for a foot tall dog with low/medium energy level! XD

Michiyo-Fir · 09-28-2009, 12:11 AM

How much do you exercise her? If she runs for 1 hr to 2 hrs a day I'm sure she will be able to lose weight. Also do you or your family have a Costco membership? If you do then buy their Kirkland kibble. It's not more expensive than pedigree actually it might be cheaper. It's of better quality.

Also you can check if your dog has a thyroid problem or something.

Keechak · 09-28-2009, 12:20 AM

Another extremely cheap kibble thats realitivly good is Diamond Naturals Lamb and Rice. it's $20 some for a 40 pound bag. Wheat, corn, and soy free. the meat content isn't the greatest but for the cost it's pretty good.

JLWillow · 09-28-2009, 12:21 AM

Yeah, I edited my post a little late.

I walk Willow an hour and twenty minutes total every day, sometimes more. It's not a run, it's a walk. Is walking and not running okay? I went on the Costco website and I searched Kirkland under pet, and nothing came up.

If she had a thyroid problem, wouldn't she have had it before I adopted her? Is it possible she developed a thyroid problem in three months?

Willowy · 09-28-2009, 12:31 AM

Costco does have that food, but it might be under a different name....something Premium or whatever. I remember I went to Costco once (I don't have a membership, because it's 90 miles away, but they let you look around if you ask) and I looked for "Kirkland" because that's what everyone always calls it here, but it said something else on the bag in big letters, and Kirkland was in smaller lettering that I had to really look for. Anyway it is quite cheap and a decent food.

Purina Dog Chow or Purina ONE would be better than Pedigree. Pedigree is preserved with BHA/BHT and those are known carcinogens. And Dog Chow has less food coloring. Purina ONE doesn't have any coloring, I think.

JLWillow · 09-28-2009, 12:36 AM

Thank you all so much for the kibble suggestions! But none of you guys think that I'm feeding Willow too much food or I'm not exercising her enough?

Oh, and I typed in dog food at costco.com and only got eight results, none of which were food, but treats and other things.

Michiyo-Fir · 09-28-2009, 01:07 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Keechak

Another extremely cheap kibble thats realitivly good is Diamond Naturals Lamb and Rice. it's $20 some for a 40 pound bag. Wheat, corn, and soy free. the meat content isn't the greatest but for the cost it's pretty good.

Where can you find this for that price? This is actually the same food as Kirkland but sold under different names. If it's actually this price (online I could only find about $35 for 40 lbs) then you don't even need a Costco membership to get this food!

Willowy · 09-28-2009, 01:36 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JLWillow

Thank you all so much for the kibble suggestions! But none of you guys think that I'm feeding Willow too much food or I'm not exercising her enough?

Probably a little of both. Try cutting back her food a little bit at a time until you find what works for her, and giving her some more exercise. One cup a day of dry food seems to be a lot for a 20-pound dog. Shug eats that much and she weighs 40 pounds (should be 35....

). Plus all those treats...definitely cut back at least a little.

Quote:

Oh, and I typed in dog food at costco.com and only got eight results, none of which were food, but treats and other things.

I'm sure they don't sell it online. Shipping would be insane. Sam's Club doesn't list their dog foods online either. I'm pretty sure most Costcos have it in the stores, though. If you have a membership, check it out next time you go. If it's a long way, you can call before you go to make sure.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Michiyo-Fir

Where can you find this for that price? This is actually the same food as Kirkland but sold under different names. If it's actually this price (online I could only find about $35 for 40 lbs) then you don't even need a Costco membership to get this food!

At the feed store I go to, the Beef and Rice formula is $23.99 for 40 pounds and the Chicken and Rice formula is $26.99 for 40 pounds. I'm not sure about the Lamb and Rice formula because lamb doesn't agree with my dogs. Feed stores and hardware stores seem to be most likely to carry it.

At Costco (when I went to the Omaha NE store) the Chicken and Rice formula (only one I saw) was $21.99 for 40 pounds.

Keechak · 09-28-2009, 12:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Michiyo-Fir

Where can you find this for that price? This is actually the same food as Kirkland but sold under different names. If it's actually this price (online I could only find about $35 for 40 lbs) then you don't even need a Costco membership to get this food!

I don't know any chain stores. but there is a small place called "Family pet food center" that sells it for that price I think around $26

JLWillow · 09-28-2009, 04:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Willowy

Probably a little of both. Try cutting back her food a little bit at a time until you find what works for her, and giving her some more exercise. One cup a day of dry food seems to be a lot for a 20-pound dog. Shug eats that much and she weighs 40 pounds (should be 35....

). Plus all those treats...definitely cut back at least a little.

I don't know how much I should cut back her food by, though. And with the crappy quality of food, no matter how much I feed her, she constantly acts like she's starving, and she didn't always act that way. I guess I'll try cutting her food down a little bit tonight. Should I try bringing her food down to 1/3 or 1/4 a cup twice a day?

Is there a guideline somewhere as to how much food you should feed a dog? I don't know how I'd have the time to exercise her more than I already do... I don't know how I'm supposed to know what 'work's for her. She's my first dog, and I have no idea.

lexilu · 09-28-2009, 05:14 PM

First thing is to stop feedin her the cheese - that's 100 calories or so immediately gone. Give her slightly less than 1/2 cup kibble and add some no salt canned green beans to it. You can even eliminate the canned food. The green beans will fill her up and they are only 20 calories. So she will lose those few pounds and not feel hungry.

JLWillow · 09-28-2009, 06:44 PM

Ohh, thanks! I'll have to go see if I have green beans lying around and try that, but I don't know how much to add. I've only been feeding her cheese because she wasn't getting enough fatty acids from the stupid Pedigree. I'm going to be slowly cutting down her food to 1/4 a cup twice a day over this week, and see how it goes. Hopefully this week I'll also be able to go out and buy her some new and better food, and I won't have to worry about adding stuff to her food all the time.

lexilu · 09-28-2009, 06:58 PM

just make sure they're the NO SALT kind. The regular canned green beens have alot of sodium and you dont want to create any other problems for your dog. If you don't have canned, frozen green beans have less sodium. MY dogs love em, and you can put in about a forkful or two.

Meant to add - if you do have the regular salty variety, just wash them off before feeding

JLWillow · 09-28-2009, 09:11 PM

Thank you so much! I'll definitely try that. But is that amount okay for a dog who is supposed to be 19lbs? 1/4 cup twice a day?

Is that amount okay for a dog who is supposed to be 19lbs? 1/4 cup twice a day?

JLWillow · 09-29-2009, 04:41 PM

Okay, so...I called the Humane Society in which I adopted Willow, and asked how much they would feed a 19lb dog, which was the original weight she was when I first got her. Long story short, the woman on the phone told me that female dogs tend to gain when after being neutered, and it occurred to me that I pretty much adopted Willow the day after they neutered her. She also told me that if I feed her any less than a cup of food a day, she'll be starved. She told me to go out and buy some weight control food. Is this sound advice?

Willowy · 09-29-2009, 06:30 PM

Well, weight control foods tend to have more fillers, which do help fill the dog up, but also are, in general, pretty low-quality (Wellness has a good weight-control food, but it may be out of your price range). Adding the green beans to her food will have the same effect (filling her up without adding to her weight).

I wouldn't cut her down from 1 cup to half a cup daily right away. Work down to it gradually. The only way to know how much food is right for YOUR dog is trial and error, unfortunately. Like humans, they each have individual caloric needs, metabolisms, etc.

JLWillow · 09-29-2009, 06:45 PM

I know to not cut it down immediately. I'm going to slowly cut it down over this week. I'm just of course, the most worried about my dogs health and how she feels. Will she feel starved as the woman said if I cut her food down? Even if gradually? I'm so worried sick about this, I don't know if I'm doing anything right.

JillyAgility · 09-29-2009, 08:49 PM

It seems like you are getting suggestions to make too many changes at once. If I were you, I would first cut out cheese. Next week, cut out the canned/wet food. Wet food puts on a lot of calories. Probably the reason the humane society was giving her wet food was because she didn't like the dry kibble by itself. However, if you add pumpkin which is a fantastic supplement, it is basically "wetting" the food. Instead of cheese, buy some fish oil gel tabs at WalMart. They are inexpensive for the amount you get. (Ask your vet for the correct dosage for her weight). This will help with Omega 3's and help with her skin/coat and joints. I would stick to 1/2 cup twice a day with added pumpkin for about one month and see if she loses weight. If not, then try lessening the amount of kibble (1/2 cup in morning, 1/4 cup in evening to start).

As far as your thyroid question, their levels can fluctuate and yes - her thyroid level could have decreased since adopting her. Your vet can perform a blood test and if it is low, their is a medication she would need to take for life. Not to worry, it is not expensive.

Instead of added walks (I think you are walking her a decent amount), try playing active games with her in the house.

Good luck with Willow.

JLWillow · 09-29-2009, 09:25 PM

I have already cut out the cheese, and if you think cutting out the wet food will help, then I'll do that next week. I have been using pumpkin for at least a month or more, and while her stool is better, she hasn't lost weight. I didn't think I'd have to send her to the vet, but I guess I should try it just to make sure her glands are still normal. It's a little overwhelming to try everything since I won't know what's going to work, but I'll have to do it. Thank for the suggestions. Oh, and I play tug of war with her in the house, and throw her toys around for her to chase. I don't know if that counts as active games, though.

And it doesn't look like we can afford a vet visit right now...

JillyAgility · 09-29-2009, 09:29 PM

If her fur and skin seem to be normal and her activity level is normal, you may not have a thyroid problem. You may want to try the food reduction first instead of trying to do everything at once. If the food reduction doesn't work, then try having her thyroid level tested. A full blood panel is a little expensive (around $80-$90). Did they do any of that kind of testing at the HS?

I think the games you play are good activities!