Axel is 17 months old now and has been on Acana ever since we brought him home and slowly switched him to it. He does great on it, soft and shiny coat, two good poops a day, very lean. The bag says to feed 4 1/4 cups a day. Well, I have always had to feed more than the bag says. I feed him 6 cups a day plus he gets a chew for his teeth to eat mid day. Any training treats comes straight from his breakfast or dinner. I have tried cutting his food down but he went skin and bones very quickly, so I went back to 6 cups. The vet also told me that he has skin to grow into still and that he was underweight, this was a couple weeks ago. So I just assume he has some filling out to do and it will happen, I can't imagine feeding more than 6 cups but I will if he needs it. My question is should I switch him to a higher protein food such as Origen? When I was first looking at kibble they told me Origen would be too much protein for a lab unless I was planning on working him. I do not work him... he gets a walk a day, on days he doesn't get a walk he goes to day care. He also plays fetch for a bit on some days to get some good running in. I just wonder if I would be able to feed less food on Origen due to the higher protein?
If it's the volume of food you're concerned about, then it's not the percentage of protein that is the issue, it's the caloric density. A food with a higher nutritional density has more calories for the same volume, so you need less of it. Orijen has a high caloric density, I believe, so may be a good choice. Carbohydrate and protein both have the same number of calories per gram (4) and fat has 9 calories per gram. So, if you were to take the same food and simply replace the carb weight with protein weight, you're not making any difference to the number of calories being taken in. So, things to look at for feeding an underweight dog without dramatically increasing the amount of food going into him: - Physically dense food - ie, a handful weighs more than a handful of your existing food. - Calorically dense food - ie, the food has a high nutritional value, the weight doesn't come from indigestible ingredients and water. Think broccoli, which is high in fibre, high in water, low in nutritional density (meaning you'd need to eat a LOT in order to get your calories in a day) compared to roast beef and potatoes, which are low in indigestible fibre but high in accessible protein, carbohydrate and fat, so you don't need much to hit your calorie limit.
Good quality fats are just as important as protein for a growing dog. I really struggled with Bramble at about a year old, after her season she became really quite thin, which worried me as she was still growing. Even now at the same age as Axel, she weighs 35.3kg, and you can clearly see all her ribs. We went for a calorie dense dry kibble, with a high fat content, that really did the trick. I didn't like the idea just increasing the amount of kibble, as this would just go straight through her system, and I don't know why I just don't like feeding dogs large amounts. Also, I only substituted a few meals week, wanting just a slow, steady increase. I used Millies Wolfheart, probably the same league quality wise as Orijen. The kibble I used for Bramble was peak performance @ 433Kcal per 100g and 23% protein 30% fat. Most kibble is around 350 kcal per 100g. So a very dense kibble indeed. Peak Performance is part of their sporting dog range. The usual kibble from their range is Salmon and Veg - @31% protein and 17% fats and 350Kcal per 100g. Do Orijen have a similar range to Millies Wolfheart? Or maybe you could find a sporting range to supplement his diet?
One of the things with protein, is that excess protein is just got rid of, and not readily stored in the body. So, maybe something with either a high fat content, as already suggested, or high fat and high carbs might help him put on weight. Lucky wouldn't put on weight, but now is on kibble with 24% protein and 15% fat (so low protein, medium fat and high carb) and has put on weight. When he was on a higher protein food he was too skinny.
Sorry no help here but... 6 cups! 6 cups! Ella is in utter shock and about to contact the Rspca about her measly rations!
I know!! It's crazy! I wonder if just adding coconut oil to his diet (he's allergic to salmon oil) could help.
6 Cups!! Tilly gets 2 cups of Blue Wilderness a day, and Cooper about 2-1/2 The package says they should get about 4 cups/day, but I think I would need a wheel barrow to move them if they got that much. Tilly is about 65# and Cooper is around 85#, but she is a much taller, lankier dog.
We use Blue Buffalo Wilderness too. He gets 100 grams twice a day plus treats. Weight gain has been very stable now compared to before when he was getting what the bag suggests plus treats. He was gaining like 5 lbs a week! We considered Orijen, but I'm afraid the cost will be too much for us, so we opted Blue Buffalo Wilderness which is a close alternative and almost half the price of Orijen.
Yes I'm not sure if it's because he is still growing or what. He should be 92 pounds(what he was day of neuter) but he's 88 pounds right now... he just doesn't hold any weight since getting neutered. Which is ironic because it should be the opposite. This weekend I'll be popping in to the store I get his food and compare some labels. Axel is very tall and lanky as well. He definitely needs to fill out still I think (hope)
