[zinomori]

I have 10 months old male Basset Hound and I am really worried about his weight. No doubt, he is a very active dog, but seems underweight. I can feel his ribs if I rub his belly and also feel his spine very easily. He was on Pedigree dog food and I even started adding canned food to his dry food, but he stopped eating after a few days of the new diet, so I switched back. I always keep his bowl full, but he eats whenever he wants. Is there any food to gain some weight in a healthy way?


Any recommendations?

 

[LottesMama]

I am no expert to be sure, and their are really knowledgable members who will give you much better advice, but our Charlotte (who is also 10months) is a super picky eater too. She was under weight for a lot of her puppy months because she will only eat when she feels like it no matter what we offer her. She is at a good weight right now, almost 40lbs, and she is eating a little better but its still on her terms. We give her a beneful prepared meal every morning which she loves and keep her bowl filled with dry food all day. She also gets plenty of natural treats like yams wraped in duck or chicken...just be careful and read the label to make sure there isn't added sugar or something like that. She also gets a couple of teaspoons or natural peanut butter in her Kong ball. It was just trial and error for us trying to find stuff she will eat but as she got a little older it became easier.

 

[Mikey T]

No doubt, he is a very active dog, but seems underweight. I can feel his ribs if I rub his belly and also feel his spine very easily.

All signs he is not overweight not signs he is underweight. The average basset you see is overweight to obese so it clouds peoples judgements on what the ideal weight is see the following

Corpulent Canines?

I have assessed the weight on hundreds of dogs of a variety of breeds over the past year at seminars all over the country and a conservative estimate is that about 50% of the dogs that I see are overweight; approximately 25% are actually obese. These are not couch potato dogs. These are dogs whose owners expect them to jump in obedience, to run over rough ground in retrieving tests, and to perform in agility.

1. People don't know how to determine the correct weight for their dogs. Dogs vary in height, bone structure, and muscularity, so there is no one correct weight for a dog of any given breed. The best way to determine whether a dog is overweight is to test 3 different parts of the body: the neck, the ribs, and the hips.<LI type=a>To check the neck, press your thumb and index finger deep into the side of the neck just ahead of the shoulder, and pinch them together. If your fingers are more than 1/2" apart, the dog is overweight. (Note: this is where old dogs tend to carry most of their excess fat, and they may actually be thin in other locations.) <LI type=a>To check the ribs, stand with your dog beside you, facing his butt. Place your thumb on the middle of his spine half way down the back and spread your fingers out over his last few ribs. Then run your fingers up and down along his skin. You should be able to feel the bumps of his ribs without pressing in.
2. To check the hips, run your hand over your dog's croup. You should be able to feel the bumps of his two pelvic bones without pressing down.

1. Some of you may be reading this and thinking, "I would never want my dog to be that skinny!" Think about the Olympic athletes. If you want your dog to be an athlete then it is only fair that you do what you can to help him achieve the body that he will need to perform and stay healthy and injury free for many years.

Dog Diet Do's and Don’t's

According to Dr. Tony Buffington, Professor of Clinical Nutrition, Ohio State University College of Veterinary Medicine, your puppy can be fed a regimen of specific caloric intake compared to his body condition score (BCS), using a simple one to five scale, from overly thin to obese. Using manufacturer feeding recommendations as an initial starting point, feed your puppy to a score of two and maintain this weight until he's fully grown.
... 2 Thin
- Ribs easily palpated and may be visible with no palpable fat. Tops of lumbar vertebrae visible. Pelvic bones less prominent. Obvious waist and abdominal tuck.

you should be able to see the tops of the dogs spine not just easily feel it.


Purina Body Condition Chart


even with all this information owners are still very bad a judging their own dogs body condition thinking the are thinner than they really are
Nestlé Purina study confirms link between body fat, certain health conditions

Other Purina research found that most owners couldn't accurately assess their dogs' body conditions. When owner and expert scores were compared, only 28 percent of owners characterized their pets as above ideal body condition, while 79 percent of the experts scored those same animals to be above ideal body condition. Dr. Larson says this gap is serious because pet owners are not likely to recognize that their pets are overweight and even moderate excess body fat can lead to problems.

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The odd are that you passet is not underweight but if you are still concerned after reading the above links get second opinion from your vet on the dogs body condition before embarking on a weight gain. When trying to put on weight on a dog there are two very important factor. First you want the dog to gain muscle mass not simply body fat this takes time, exercise and protein. You als need to increase the caloric content and digestability of food feed and this comes down to fat. Feeding a High protein, high fat caloric dense 9per volume diet) this is most easily found in diets disigned or designated hi-enery, or perfromance loog for a minimium of 30 percent protein and 20 percent fat. Als ome of the no grain diets meat these requairement but many if not most don't especial on the fat content. And remember weight gain should be a slow process if not all you are adding is excess body fat which is not health. The recommendation is to feed the dog at the level to maintain the body weight you want.

 

[Soundtrack]

It's very common for adolescent males to appear thin. Not to worry, as long as he's healthy. He'll eat what he needs to and leave the rest.

 

[Mr. Woofus]

I've never understood this. People think bassets are suppposed to be those chubby waddlers. I've had people tell me I need to feed Woofus more cause he's too skinny. I just went to the vet and weight wise she said he's the best basset she's seen to date.

 

[mhvonalmen8908]

I get the same thing! Our friends all talk about how skinny Virga is at 5 months old. I keep having to remind them that she's a baby still. She's got (hopefully) a lot more growing to do. But the vet said her weight was right on track for her size and age.

 

[EdieBird]

I took Beau to PetSmart today and while one person commented on him being heavy (because he was standing up with his paws on her arm LOL) I had several people comment on how nice it was to see a Basset that wasn't fat. I've occasionally thought Beau looked skinny, but an unbiased examination of his weight, build, energy, and food intake says he's right where he ought to be.

If it was up to him he'd be a blob, though, he loves treats and will mooch them from anyone who has some. I've never seen a dog so successful at getting treats from total strangers! (on the plus side, they always ask me before giving in completely)

 

[SophieB]

I have 10 months old male Basset Hound and I am really worried about his weight. No doubt, he is a very active dog, but seems underweight. I can feel his ribs if I rub his belly and also feel his spine very easily. He was on Pedigree dog food and I even started adding canned food to his dry food, but he stopped eating after a few days of the new diet, so I switched back. I always keep his bowl full, but he eats whenever he wants. Is there any food to gain some weight in a healthy way?


Any recommendations?

How heavy is your pup? Has he been wormed recently? Can you please post a couple of pics of your pup so we can see what he looks like?

My Bassets have always been chunky 'ish, so your pup may look skinny to me, but not to someone who also has a slender hound!

At 10 weeks:

At 8 mths:

At 9 mths: