Help Needed! Jackson's weight!

[mer55]

Hi All!! I had my son's 2 bulldogs with me last week. Ruger and Jackson are littermates. Jackson was "the runt" and was much smaller than Ruger at 8 weeks. NOT ANY MORE!!! Ruger is muscular but thin. He eats Fromm's 4 Star - 1 1/2 cups twice a day. Occasional treats but I know they give him people food at times. Jackson of late has exhibited some allergy issues, so I switched him from Fromm's 4 star to Stella and Chewys baked raw kibble, which he has done well with except for him having 5, sometimes more large BM's per day. Very formed, easy to pick up, but ALOT! He seemed to go alot on the fromms too, but not that much! On fromms he was getting a generous cup twice a day ( like a cup and a 1/4). His treats are now solely frozen broccoli, frozen green beans, apples with PB2( very low cal). I have cut out all dairy and am sticking to lamb as his protein but Stellas does add beef to the mix. He gets 1 level cup twice a day. Now I am having difficulty getting the stuff. In all of this, Jackson looks like he is gaining weight. Seeing him next to his brother was very bothersome to me- everyone commented on what a "porker" he is. I really don't want to go to a weight management formula as they have grains. Until we get any allergy issues confirmed, I want to keep him off of them. I really cant cut the food any lower, I am already giving him less than is recommended. He is neutered. I am thinking of trying Acana single proteins to limit any added ingredients, especially since I am having difficulty with getting the Stellas. And I am thinking the Stellas is causing the frequent and LARGE bm's as well as the weight gain. I try to get him to walk twice a day, but the heat in Florida is ungodly right now. He got plenty of exercise with his brother here for 10 days, yet still looks like he is gaining. Any suggestions @hellsonwheels, or any others with input!! Want to keep him healthy!!! Thanks!!

 

[helsonwheels]

[MENTION=7064]mer55[/MENTION]

If it’s kibbles you want to stick with yes Acana has the highest protein count to any other kibbles out there.
Why don’t you add raw organs as a topper if Stella is hard to get? 1/4cup 2x a day as topper. Pumpkin purée will help the stools. But when we do changes in diets, it’s normal stools will be outta whack.

A month ago I put Nyala n Jake on a diet. I cut half of the requirement n they are still alive... As you know both on raw. Nyala was getting 3/4lb per day n now 1/2lb n Jake 1.5lb n now 3/4lb. But thy still get their whole frozen fish as noon snack which is about 4oz each. I now feed them only at supper time n removed their morning meal. Both lost weight. In one month, Nyala lost 4lbs n Jake 6. Got Jake at 66lbs over 1.5yr ago n was still at 66lbs before the diet. He didnt gain but cause of his breathing I rather have him down a few pounds. Nyala is taller breed but was at 59lbs before diet. She can go down a good 10lb. So I wouldn’t worry about following requirements on a bag. I personally find all bag requirements are too high. If it said 1cup per day I use to give 3/4.

 

[2BullyMama]

Hi All!! I had my son's 2 bulldogs with me last week. Ruger and Jackson are littermates. Jackson was "the runt" and was much smaller than Ruger at 8 weeks. NOT ANY MORE!!! Ruger is muscular but thin. He eats Fromm's 4 Star - 1 1/2 cups twice a day. Occasional treats but I know they give him people food at times. Jackson of late has exhibited some allergy issues, so I switched him from Fromm's 4 star to Stella and Chewys baked raw kibble, which he has done well with except for him having 5, sometimes more large BM's per day. Very formed, easy to pick up, but ALOT! He seemed to go alot on the fromms too, but not that much! On fromms he was getting a generous cup twice a day ( like a cup and a 1/4). His treats are now solely frozen broccoli, frozen green beans, apples with PB2( very low cal). I have cut out all dairy and am sticking to lamb as his protein but Stellas does add beef to the mix. He gets 1 level cup twice a day. Now I am having difficulty getting the stuff. In all of this, Jackson looks like he is gaining weight. Seeing him next to his brother was very bothersome to me- everyone commented on what a "porker" he is. I really don't want to go to a weight management formula as they have grains. Until we get any allergy issues confirmed, I want to keep him off of them. I really cant cut the food any lower, I am already giving him less than is recommended. He is neutered. I am thinking of trying Acana single proteins to limit any added ingredients, especially since I am having difficulty with getting the Stellas. And I am thinking the Stellas is causing the frequent and LARGE bm's as well as the weight gain. I try to get him to walk twice a day, but the heat in Florida is ungodly right now. He got plenty of exercise with his brother here for 10 days, yet still looks like he is gaining. Any suggestions @hellsonwheels, or any others with input!!View attachment 119911 Want to keep him healthy!!! Thanks!!

what protein are you feeding with those brands?

 

[mer55]

what protein are you feeding with those brands?

With Fromms I was switching proteins about every 6 weeks- chicken, pork, salmon, beef, whitefish. Stella I started with lamb ( but it has beef in it). Acana I will start with lamb as I know he tolerates it. And they don't mix another protein in.

 

[Cbrugs]

All dogs are different with how much they eat so don’t worry about what the bag tells you to feed. Jax and Louie eat raw. Louie is currently getting 20 ounces a day but can probably eat a little more than that. He’s harder to keep weight on. Ella is 11 months old and eats Open Farm kibble and has been getting 1 cup twice a day for the last few months as anything more than that gives her soft stool. For dinner, I add a little Stella and Chewy’s meal mixer freeze dried raw. She has done well on the Open Farm and is at a good weight.

I know when Louie was on kibble I tried Acana and he pooped a lot more on it. So different kibbles give different results for each dog. Just need to find one that works!


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[ddnene]

It's been a struggle here on my end... I was giving the pups Earthborn Holistic Venture and now I can't find that in the stores, so I had to do another switch. Acana makes Willow gag... it's way too rich for her digestive system. I have the dogs on Zignature Pork, and Primitive Raw patties for dinner. I cut Walter's food amount down some... he tends to gain weight quickly. Are you giving them a probiotic? I noticed that my two had less bowel issues when I added that to their food. We JUST got to the point where we can take walks now... the weather is finally getting cooler in the mornings.