Too Skinny, and also Some Sort of Leg Injury

[AnonyManx]

Back Story (since history got lost in the Great Board Fail):

Jake is a 5.5 YO black lab who was given to us by a church friend just this past January. We had been wanting to get a dog for the boy, who was getting over a serious dog phobia; we basically hit the dog jackpot. He's a really good dog - crate trained, good house manners, great with kids, learning not to chase kitties. He doesn't chew things (not even chew toys or antlers), but is obsessed with playing BALL! and also enjoys playing tug with his 5YO boy. He lets the boy win about half the time. I don't think he's had his hips/knees/elbows graded.

He's just too skinny!

Jake is currently about 75 lbs, and I'd like him to GAIN 10-15 lbs (not many on here saying THAT). He is currently eating Canidae Pure Sky (duck-based) kibble with water, enzymes, and probiotics added. It's about 550 kcal/cup, and he gets 4 cups/day (split into 2 meals). Yes, you read that right. And he's not gaining weight. Poops are good on this food. I transitioned him off of BB Wilderness about 2 big bags ago, and no more dog farts! Hallelujah!

Increasing his food, even by splitting it into more meals, results in him puking during the night (he self-cleans, but then I still have to wash bedding and whatnot). He is up-to-date on vet stuff, fecal check last Mar was clear (no parasites) and he doesn't eat poop. He doesn't get much people food, though he did score the (raw) wing tips from the duck I was prepping yesterday, and I will give him the neck today. He's just so skinny. His fur is absolutely great, his teeth are good but a bit worn (in his previous home he was crated more than half the time and not exercised much - he was a chewer there). I can see his ribs. I could also do a study of canine musculature on him.

How do I fatten him up just a bit?

And he hurt his leg yesterday.

He was playing out in the street with his boy and the neighborhood kids, which may be how he hurt himself. He wasn't limping when he went back into our backyard afterwards, nor did I see it when I brought him inside while prepping the duck. But at dinnertime last night we noticed that he was favoring his right rear leg a LOT. I took him to an emergency vet last night, who examined him and said that it seems to be a soft tissue injury rather than a break. She was willing to sedate and x-ray if I wanted, but indicated that she didn't think it was actually necessary based on her physical exam. She gave us a week's supply of Rimadyl and told us to keep him off it as much as possible and follow up with our regular vet.

Needless to say, he's restless. It doesn't take pain for that - he's a real pest when he doesn't get daily exercise anyhow. I can't imagine what his energy level must have been as a puppy... He's also panting, but it's humid and we set the thermostat at 75 during the day. Our house is not a ground-level entry - all ways in/out have a couple of steps; he seems to be handling them okay. He doesn't go upstairs in our house because that's a dog-free zone for the benefit of the cats. We crate him at night or when we leave, and he has a dog cot for general laziness purposes (at the moment he's sacked out on the floor at my feet).

Any ideas or advice for either issue?

Bonus: Our regular vet practice is located in a split-foyer office building. All of the businesses in our neighborhood's "village center" office area are like this. Who in the world thinks this is a good idea? Ridiculous! But we do like the vets.

[smartrock]

I haven't had to fatten up a dog but I'm wondering if a grain-inclusive food would work better for him than a grain-free. It sounds like he gets plenty of calories, way more than mine do! Maybe this coming week, when he's on house arrest for his leg injury, he might pick up a few lbs.

The Rimadyl might make him feel so good that he will want to run and play the way he normally does and not give the injury a chance to heal. I'm not sure what instructions the vet gave you but I do some serious rest if there's an injury- only go outside on a leash and, if necessary, crate them or confine them in one room inside the house. Having some Kongs frozen with kibble mixed with peanut butter in them might both keep him busy and add a few calories.

Good luck, keeping a lab quiet is a challenge!

[AnonyManx]

Ihaven't had to fatten up a dog but I'm wondering if a grain-inclusive food would work better for him than a grain-free. It sounds like he gets plenty of calories, way more than mine do! Maybe this coming week, when he's on house arrest for his leg injury, he might pick up a few lbs.

When we got him he was on a grain-heavy food (Eukanuba), and the dog-farts were nauseatingly bad. And almost continuous. Cutting grain reduced the dog farts by about 75%. Enzymes and probiotics helped a little when he was on BB Wilderness. Getting him onto the Canidae with the added enzymes and probiotics has reduced the dog farts to pretty much none. This is MAJOR.

The Rimadyl might make him feel so good that he will want to run and play the way he normally does and not give the injury a chance to heal. I'm not sure what instructions the vet gave you but I do some serious rest if there's an injury- only go outside on a leash and, if necessary, crate them or confine them in one room inside the house. Having some Kongs frozen with kibble mixed with peanut butter in them might both keep him busy and add a few calories. Good luck, keeping a lab quiet is a challenge!

The Rimadyl is not making him feel particularly great. I'm not sure if it's helping or not. Not only is keeping Jake chill a challenge, I have to keep the Boy from stirring him up or playing tug with him... Jake does have chew toys available still; he just never uses them now.

Curiously, Jake seems to be stretching his rear legs a lot. And that may help some.

[SunDance]

The only dog I've known who was skinny/vomited with more food/very energetic had pancreatic enzyme deficiency. He was a yellow named, interestingly enough, Jake. That Jake was put on enzymes and he gained weight, no vomiting, etc. Haven't seen him for a few years....he looked really good when last I saw him.

["Village Center" makes me think Columbia....]

[smartrock]

Oh yeah, ImWithThePyr, I don't recall the real name, her Great Pyrenees had EPI, didn't he? Lost to the crash and I can't figure out how to access the archives and do a search. Wasn't he taking enzymes with success?

[SunDance]

Oh yeah, ImWithThePyr, I don't recall the real name, her Great Pyrenees had EPI, didn't he? Lost to the crash and I can't figure out how to access the archives and do a search. Wasn't he taking enzymes with success?

Yes....Maxwell (her name is Leah and one of the other dog's name is Chunk)...I'd forgotten about him having this, too.

[AnonyManx]

The only dog I've known who was skinny/vomited with more food/very energetic had pancreatic enzyme deficiency. He was a yellow named, interestingly enough, Jake. That Jake was put on enzymes and he gained weight, no vomiting, etc.

The enzymes seem to help a lot, and they aren't particularly expensive. I bought a tub of bulk enzyme powder geared for dogs (and a corresponding tub of probiotic powder). It's a powder that we mix in with his food. We also add water to his food, of course.

This: Amazon.com : NWC Naturals Total-Digestion Mini-twin Pack Total-Zymes, Total-Biotics Each Jar Treats 100 Cups of Food : Pet Digestive Remedies : Pet Supplies

["Village Center" makes me think Columbia....]

Ding, ding, ding! You win the prize!

[SunDance]

I just remembered something....

I don't know what kind/source of enzymes Maxwell (dog on this board) or the other Jake were on, but my friend's cat was on a year's course of vet-prescribed enzymes and then she was OK. Penuche's enzymes weren't OTC. I don't know if the vet told you what to get for Jake or if the enzymes were your thought....but if the vet wasn't involved specifically with this, you might want to run it by him/her.

Take a look at my sig pic....if you ever see us in Centennial Park, say "hey".

[AnonyManx]

I just remembered something.... I don't know what kind/source of enzymes Maxwell (dog on this board) or the other Jake were on, but my friend's cat was on a year's course of vet-prescribed enzymes and then she was OK. Penuche's enzymes weren't OTC. I don't know if the vet told you what to get for Jake or if the enzymes were your thought....but if the vet wasn't involved specifically with this, you might want to run it by him/her. Take a look at my sig pic....if you ever see us in Centennial Park, say "hey".

The vet didn't recommend or prescribe enzymes - she's not particularly concerned about his skinniness or gas. I need enzymes and HCl supplements with my food, as well as a ton of probiotics (on my doctor's advice), so that type of thing is on my radar already. I don't tend to lurk in Centennial, but wouldn't be opposed to a meetup. We are in Owen Brown (off of Oakland Mills Road).

[SunDance]

The vet didn't recommend or prescribe enzymes - she's not particularly concerned about his skinniness or gas. I need enzymes and HCl supplements with my food, as well as a ton of probiotics (on my doctor's advice), so that type of thing is on my radar already. I don't tend to lurk in Centennial, but wouldn't be opposed to a meetup. We are in Owen Brown (off of Oakland Mills Road).

An actual meetup would have to be just me....I am so embarrassed to admit that my guys are less friendly than they look....that's why I mentioned only a chance encounter. They have a whole list of things they don't like about other dogs....Danny much worse than Sunnie. Jake would have his size, color, enthusiasm level and normal instinct to sniff all working against him. Sunnie would growl and just back up (unless he raised a paw to play and then she'd snap).....Danny would make pit bull noise and his jaw would be working. Luckily, they listen to "leave it" but they're still an embarrassment. They just look so much like they'd be friendly. (They absolutely prefer people to other dogs.)