[Brianchris]

Cairo is now 10 months old, weighing in at a VERY LEAN 55lbs (he's pretty tall)... NOT that I want to EVER have an overweight dog, BUT, he only CHOOSES to eat approx 1.5-2 cups of food PER DAY.... 2-2.5 cups MAYBE if i mix it with some soft food. He is on a Holistic diet. He eats Chicken Soup for the Puppy Lover's Soul (Its the one food that gave him a great stool every time, and that he actually doesnt mind eating). Ive bounced from Innova, to TOTW, Kirkland, and nutro ultra... His eating habits have NOT changed since he was 3 months old, it HASN'T INCREASED... I thought maybe it was because he was young that he didnt eat much, but as he has gotten a bit older he still hasnt eaten much. (He doesnt even really beg for human food, often).... sometimes he does, but usually he will eat his food when i eat.

Herein lies the problem, I DONT want to have to mix in soft food every time he needs to eat. that is MUCH too costly for me to maintain right now. I used to feed on a twice a day basis, 2 cups in the am, 2 cups before bed. but like i said, he eats about half of each serving, totaling 2 cups. Because he is eating so little, i have resorted to FREE FEEDING, leaving 3 cups of food in the bowl all day (which he still doesnt finish).

Is it healthy or OK for him to eat so little, he is never starved, as he always has the option of food, he is well exercised and walked, and enjoys the comfort of our home whenever he wants. in other words, he is SPOILED rotten.

WHAT DO I DO?!?!?!?! ANYTHING? or not worry so much about his diet.

 

[Carriana]

Sounds normal to me. At 10 months he should be done with any major growth spurts and 2 cups a day sounds about right. Loki weighs 65lbs and eats about the same. As long as Cairo doesn't have protruding hip bones or vertebrae I wouldn't let yourself get stressed over his eating habits. Be thankful you don't have a food grubbing drool monster

 

[kodiakgirl]

I agree with Carriana. Can you post some photos of him as well? Sounds like a decent weight for an APBT to me, but pics would be helpful. Increasing the amount of exercise he gets could increase his appetite as well, but as long as he doesn't have any protruding bones and looks healthy, I wouldn't worry about it. You're lucky that he's not a pig, my boy gobbles his 2 cups of food every time as if he's never eaten in his life! :roll:

 

[angelbaby]

Is he losing weight? does he look extremely thin? does he have lack energy? if any of those answers are yes then you may want to have a vet check. It sounds normal though and nothing to be concerned about , If you want peoples oppinions on if he is thin just post a pic.

 

[Firehazard]

^^^ what them ladies said, and lets see a pic or two ..

 

[performanceknls]

Carriana nailed it! If he is not sickly he is fine. Dogs will not starve themselves and it sounds like you have already made him a picky eater.
Feed him his normal amount twice a day, if he does not eat with in 5 min pick up the food. If he has not finished it all, bummer for him. The next feeding feed him his next measured amount, then repeat that every day. He will eat when he is hungry and when offered or he won't eat all. Switching foods and adding things to the food to entice him to eat is not the way to go.

He will even out and remember many puppies go through a very skinny stage when they are 9 months to 18 months and can look like sting beans. Varro my pup is at that stage right now, he is really lean and just the way his body is developing, he is 12 months. His brother is very developed and looks like a body builder next to him.

 

[SweetMelissa]

I feed one cup morning and nite (Natural Balance Venison and Sweet Potatoe - She gets a 1 tbsp of Organic Plain Yogurt in the evening feed because I have to sneak a Capsule of Cephalexin in daily due to allergies. and she is very wise to Pill Poppers, etc. Try the yogurt instead of wet food. One 32oz tub is about 3 dollars and should last ya 10-12 days. just enough to wet the food. I don't think you should stress too much. The weight doesn't seem off. My girl is 15 months old, and weighs 60 lbs. But if I take her to Show Meets they always call her chubby.

 

[kodiakgirl]

Feed him his normal amount twice a day, if he does not eat with in 5 min pick up the food. If he has not finished it all, bummer for him. The next feeding feed him his next measured amount, then repeat that every day. He will eat when he is hungry and when offered or he won't eat all. Switching foods and adding things to the food to entice him to eat is not the way to go.

I second that. :goodpost:
If you follow along with picking up whatever he doesn't eat after 5 minutes, it will eventually make him eat his entire meal because he will realize that he will miss out if he doesn't eat what you give him. Mixing in "yummy stuff" can also make him even pickier, he will learn to eat what you give him as long as you are consistent in what you give him and when he gets it. Also, make sure you aren't giving him any snacks or treats in between feedings, as that can only worsen the problem. It might take a couple of weeks for him to get on a regular feeding schedule, but just stick with it and it will happen.

 

[Brianchris]

AngelBaby: is he losing weight? does he look extremely thin? does he have lack energy? if any of those answers are yes then you may want to have a vet check. It sounds normal though and nothing to be concerned about , If you want peoples oppinions on if he is thin just post a pic.

Thanks all for your responses, no, he isnt losing weight, nor does he look extremely thin, and as for energy, he has always been a low energy dog, and that hasn't changed. He isnt lethargic, and has no problems running around and being a pup or playing when he wants to.

I will try picking up his food if he doesnt eat after 5 mins, and then just feed him again at night.

Nothing is protruding, no spine, no hips or ribs... feels nice and solid.

TRUTH IS... whenever i walk with him, people are always COMMENTING on how skinny he looks because theirs is (overweight IMO) and it got me starting to second guess his eating habits. before that though i have had no issues with his dietary needs. (P.S i saw one of the guys feeding his unfixed female pitty ice cream and turkey sandwiches, something i would NEVER do). so his opinion in and of itself was insignificant, but it did get me questioning...

Attached are the pics i JUST took of him, what do you guys think of his size to weight proportions?

 

[Saint Francis]

Looks good to me, my pup is very similar in weight (and probably a little lankier/taller). Lisa, Carriana, FH, etc. know what they're talking about. Good looking pup

 

[angelbaby]

yup he looks just fine to me as well I wouldnt worry to much obviously he is getting enough food.

 

[kodiakgirl]

I think he looks great as well. The general public thinks any dog that doesn't have a chubby belly is skinny. For a dog to be a good weight, they should have what's called an abdominal tuck, or a nice slope from the base of the chest to the hips, which your dog has. Their ribs should be easily felt through the skin without much fat covering, but should not be necessarily visible. Here's a chart so you can see exactly what I'm talking about. The listed numbers 7 through 9 on this chart is what the majority of the public think a "healthy" dog should look like, but in reality that's a little too healthy. lol. A very well conditioned dog may appear to be in the too thin range (like number 3), but being conditioned is a totally different story.

 

[Indigo Bully Connection]

I feed one cup morning and nite (Natural Balance Venison and Sweet Potatoe - She gets a 1 tbsp of Organic Plain Yogurt in the evening feed because I have to sneak a Capsule of Cephalexin in daily due to allergies. and she is very wise to Pill Poppers, etc. Try the yogurt instead of wet food. One 32oz tub is about 3 dollars and should last ya 10-12 days. just enough to wet the food. I don't think you should stress too much. The weight doesn't seem off. My girl is 15 months old, and weighs 60 lbs. But if I take her to Show Meets they always call her chubby.

Disclaimer for anyone who is searching this forum for allergy advice: This is NOT a sufficient regiment for the battle with allergies. If anyone has any questions on allergies please feel free to research my old posts or PM me or Deuceaddicted.

 

[Brianchris]

sounds good guys! thanks for the reassurance, i knew that was a good weight, just everyone saying he was too skinny and looking like a greyhound was bugging me so i thought i'd hear it from you guys instead. most people around here ALSO confuse having a bully as an APBT.. so they already have misconceptions of the breed from the get go.

 

[SweetMelissa]

Dear Indigo - Just to clarify, I was merely commenting on the amount of food I feed, and was trying to recommend an alternative (yogurt) to the wet dog food the original poster was using to entice his dog to eat more. I, was not, in any way, trying to give ANYONE advice regarding allergy treatments.
Thanks!

 

[Pacifico23]

Your dog looks like complete ideal shape! That diagram is awesome. My pup Maggie falls into the ideal category :hug:

 

[performanceknls]

I feed one cup morning and nite (Natural Balance Venison and Sweet Potatoe - She gets a 1 tbsp of Organic Plain Yogurt in the evening feed because I have to sneak a Capsule of Cephalexin in daily due to allergies. and she is very wise to Pill Poppers, etc. Try the yogurt instead of wet food. One 32oz tub is about 3 dollars and should last ya 10-12 days. just enough to wet the food. I don't think you should stress too much. The weight doesn't seem off. My girl is 15 months old, and weighs 60 lbs. But if I take her to Show Meets they always call her chubby.

Cephalexin should only be used if the dog has an infection and not good for long term use. It does nothing to stop allergies only secondary infections due to scratching.