Why is my Boxer gaining weight

When a Boxer Dog Seems too Skinny

While it is not uncommon for a Boxer dog to be skinny for anywhere from 2 to 10 months while he is transitioning from puppy to adult, it will be important to rule out any possible health issues before you take a few steps - and have some patience- for him to gain a bit of healthy weight.

Possible health conditions include but are not limited to:

Thyroid issues

Parasites (worms)

Inflammatory bowel disease

Disease of the pancreas

Liver or gall bladder disease

Heart conditions

Liver problems

Kidney disease

Addisons disease

Diabetes

Immune system problems

The Boxer should have a complete physical along with stool and blood testing. Also, even if your dog has recently been to the veterinarian, you'll want to have your Boxer examined if he/she seems too skinny and additionally has any of the following issues:

Moderate to severe loss of appetite (Boxers that are a bit too skinny simply due to the normal growth stage will eat as normal- or just a tad less - as the body temporarily stalls before filling out)

Vomiting, dry heaving

Diarrhea or any changes in stools

Changes in mood or energy level

Why Your Dogs Losing Weight and What to Do

Its normal for a dogs weight to vary a little bit over time. If you change their diet to one that isnt to their liking, theyll probably lose a few pounds. Or maybe they are staying inside more during the winter; in this case, theyll probably gain a little.

But what about a dog that keeps losing weight and you dont know why? Unexplained weight loss can be the first sign that a health problem is brewing.

Why Is My Dog Losing Weight?

Weight loss in dogs has many causes. Problems with a dogs diet, environment, and health could all be to blame. Here are a few of the most common causes of unexplained weight loss:

• A problem with their food: Dogs may eat less when there is something they dont like about their food. A change in diet may be to blame, or perhaps a large bag of food has started to go bad before your dog has finished it. Feeding too little or giving your dog low-quality dog food can also lead to weight loss.

• Stress:A dog thats anxious or stressed may find it hard to relax and eat because they feel like they always need to be on alert.

• Exercise: Dogs that start exercising more but dont take in more calories will lose weight.

• The environment: Dogs require extra energy to stay warm when they spend lots of time in the cold. Conversely, hot temperatures can reduce a dogs appetite.

• Reproduction:Pregnancy and lactation (nursing puppies) put extra nutritional demands on dogs. If they dont take in more calories, they will lose weight.

• Dental disease and other oral problems: Any problem that makes chewing and swallowing painful or difficult will discourage a dog from eating.

• Intestinal worms and other parasites: Parasites get their nutrition from their hosts, which can lead to weight loss in dogs.

• Cancer: Cancer cells use energy to grow and divide, and this means that the energy is not available to the dog, so they often lose weight. Cancer can also directly affect a dogs digestive system and appetite.

• Gastrointestinal (GI) disorders: Problems that affect the functioning of the digestive tract can reduce a dogs appetite or their ability to digest and absorb nutrients. Inflammatory bowel disease, lymphoma, adverse food reactions, or partial intestinal blockages could be to blame.

• Nasal problems: Any condition that affects a dogs ability to smell their food can lead to a reduced appetite.

• Diabetes mellitus: The changes in glucose metabolism seen with diabetes mellitus frequently lead to weight loss in dogs, even when they have a good appetite.

• Exocrine pancreatic insufficiency (EPI): When dogs have EPI, they dont produce enough of the digestive enzymes needed to break down food and absorb nutrients.

• Infections: Bacterial, viral, or fungal infections can directly affect the GI tract and lead to weight loss. Fighting an infection anywhere in the body requires extra energy, and if dogs dont eat more, they will lose weight.

• Kidney and liver disease: When the kidneys or liver dont function properly, waste products of metabolism build up in the bloodstream, which can make a dog nauseated and not feel like eating. Dogs with kidney disease may also lose protein in their urine, which can lead to weight loss.

• Heart disease: Weight loss is common as heart disease progresses. The exact causes of this are unknown, but the condition goes by the name cardiac cachexia.

• Addisons disease:Dogs with Addisons disease (hypoadrenocorticism) dont produce enough of certain types of adrenal hormones, which can lead to poor appetite and weight loss.

• Hyperthyroidism: Although hyperthyroidism is rare in dogs, it can increase their metabolic rate and lead to weight loss.

• Neurologic conditions: Any disease that adversely affects a dogs ability to eat and swallow can result in weight loss.

Is My Dog Too Skinny?

Regularly checking your dogs weight by using an accurate digital scale is the best way to monitor for weight loss or gain. However, evaluating a dogs body condition score can also help you determine if your dog is too skinny. In general, a dog might be too skinny if:

• You can easily see their ribs or other bony points.

• When looking down from the top, they have a very pronounced waist.

• When looking from the side, they have an exaggerated abdominal tuck.

When to See Your Vet About Your Dogs Weight Loss

A little bit of weight loss isnt always an emergency. As long as your dog doesnt have any other signs of illness, you could try to change their diet or environment to see if it solves the problem. But there are times when you should get your dog to a veterinarian ASAP:

1. Puppies shouldnt lose weight! As they grow, puppies should be gaining weight, so call your veterinarian immediately if your puppy is losing weight or getting too skinny.

2. Weight loss in a dog thats older or has an underlying health problem is always concerning. The risk of serious diseases that cause weight loss increases as dogs get older.

3. Weight loss combined with symptoms of illness is never normal. Make an appointment with your veterinarian if your dog has difficulty breathing, vomiting, diarrhea, coughing, sneezing, weakness, lethargy, increased thirst and urination, or any other worrisome symptoms. If your dogs symptoms are severe, call a vet immediately to determine if you should head to the clinic right away.

4. Rapid or pronounced weight loss should always get your attention. Any health problem can lead to serious weight loss. Make an appointment with your veterinarian if your dog has lost more than 10% of their normal body weight or is losing 2% or more of their body weight per week. Heres what that can look like for dogs of different sizes:

Serious Weight Loss in Dogs

How Do Vets Treat Unexplained Weight Loss in Dogs?

A veterinarian will start by asking you a lot of questions about your dogs diet, appetite, environment, behavior, medical history, and any current medications (including parasite preventives) or supplements that you are giving. They will also determine how many calories your dog is taking in each day and if this amount should be meeting their energy needs.

Next, they will perform a complete physical examination and use the information they uncover to recommend treatment or further diagnostic testing. A basic laboratory workup includes a fecal examination, bloodwork, and a urinalysis. Additional testing can involve x-rays, ultrasound examinations, specialized lab tests for specific health problems, endoscopy, exploratory surgery, and tissue biopsies.

Whenever possible, veterinarians will recommend treatment for a dogs weight loss that aims to cure or at least improve its underlying cause. For example, they will prescribe a dewormer if a dog has intestinal parasites, dental care for damaged teeth, or antibiotics for a bacterial infection. Oftentimes, a change in diet can also help dogs regain the weight theyve lost. Options include:

• High-calorie, nutrient-dense dog foods for generalized weight gain

• Highly digestible diets when GI function is impaired

• Dog foods with added fiber may be appropriate for some types of GI problems or for dogs with diabetes

• Hypoallergenic dog foods made from novel ingredients, hydrolyzed proteins, or individual amino acids for food allergies and intolerances

• Disease-specific diets like those designed to help manage kidney or liver disease

The right food and other treatments will depend on the specifics of your dogs case. Dont wait too long to get your dog the care they need. Its easier to manage a dogs weight loss when it hasnt had a chance to progress too far.

Featured Image: iStock/Capuski

How to Help a Puppy Who Isnt Gaining Weight

By Paula Fitzsimmons

Youre feeding your puppy a nutritionally-balanced diet and following the directions on the label with precision. You watch as your new best friend voraciously eats his dog food, and surmise his appetite isnt the problem. Despite your best efforts, however, hes not gaining weight as he should. Puppies grow at different rates, but if yours is below the average for his breed, there may be an issue. Anything from ineffective feeding methods to underlying diseases can cause slowed growth in puppies, says Dr. Dan Su, a clinical nutrition resident at the College of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville.

You may unwittingly be feeding your puppy an insufficient number of calories or a diet that lacks essential nutrients for growth. However, medical causes of slowed growth are more common and can include parasites, digestive issues (such as inflammatory bowel disease), a liver shunt, and diabetes, for example, Su says.

Read on to gain insight into why some puppies are resistant to weight gain, as well as what you can do to tip the scale in their favor. Of course, run any changes you plan to make to your puppys diet past your veterinarian first.

Underlying Causes

For pampered pets, the inability to gain weight is rarely due to inadequate food intake, especially if the puppys appetite seems good, says Dr. Cailin Heinze, a veterinary nutritionist at Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine at Tufts University in North Grafton, Massachusetts.

Its best to play it safe and bring your puppy to the vet to rule out medical causes. There could be any number of reasons behind her inability to gain weight, but intestinal parasitesparticularly roundworms and hookwormsare probably the most common, says Dr. Joe Bartges, professor of medicine and nutrition at the College of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Georgia in Athens.

Inflammatory bowel disease, protein losing enteropathy (any condition of the GI tract resulting in loss of protein), and hypoglycemia are examples of diseases your vet may look for, says Dr. Susan Jeffrey, a veterinarian with Truesdell Animal Hospital in Madison, Wisconsin. Or the problem may be dental-related. Is there something painful? For example, the puppys teeth may not have erupted normally and may be coming into contact with the tongue.

Additionally, certain foods can be too rich for some puppies and result in diarrhea. This isn't necessarily a food allergy, but I think some pups with developing gastrointestinal tracts can't handle certain foods, she explains.

Is Your Puppy Getting Sufficient Calories?

If your vet has ruled out an underlying condition, its possible your puppy is not getting the right number of calories. Jeffrey recommends discussing your dogs diet with a vet, and calculating the recommended daily caloric intake for the puppy, a methodology based on breed, a dogs activity level, and reproductive status. Spayed or neutered animals may not need as many calories as intact animals, she says.

Feeding a higher calorie food may be beneficial if the puppy has a poor appetite and isnt finishing the recommended portion of food, says Heinze, who is board-certified in veterinary nutrition. But this should only be attempted after parasites have been checked for and treated and blood work and other diagnostics have been done to rule out health issues.

Examine Your Puppys Diet

Diets devoid of an essential balance of vitamins, minerals, proteins, fats, and carbohydrates may also be to blame, says Jeffrey, whose professional interests include preventative care.

You should be feeding your puppy a diet that is AAFCO-approved (complete and balanced) for growth, as well as choosing a diet that is appropriate for the presumed adult size, Jeffrey explains. For example, large and giant breed puppies should eat a diet labeled for large breed puppies.

Despite what you might think, diets formulated for growth arent always high quality. Consider changing the diet to a more well-known diet from a larger pet food company or even feed a therapeutic diet, advises Bartges, who is board-certified in veterinary internal medicine and veterinary nutrition.

A raw food diet isnt a cure-all, either. While I help people with raw food diets if that is what they want to feed, I discourage pet parents from feeding raw food diets to puppies, he says. The margin of safety is narrow during growthand this can be an issue not only for nutrient imbalances but also infectious disease.

What to Avoid

You may be tempted to add a nutritional supplement to puppy food to encourage growth, but using supplements without consulting a vet can harm your canine companion. For example, excess calcium can increase the risk of developmental orthopedic diseases in large breed puppies; excess vitamin D can lead to toxicity, Su says.

Another potential problem to avoid is obesity. Many puppies that owners deem too thin are at a healthy weight and the owners are trying to make them fat because they dont have a good understanding of what a healthy puppy looks like, Heinze says. Unless the puppy has a known health issue, being slightly ribby is generally healthier than slightly overweight, especially for large and giant breed dogs.

Vets recommend frequent weight checks to ensure your puppy doesnt become overweight. And if weight gain is faster than desired, calorie adjustments can be made before weight gain becomes excessive, Su says.

In addition to ruling out underlying conditions and ensuring your dogs diet is balanced and provides the appropriate number of calories, you may want to examine your feeding methods. Some puppies need several small meals throughout the day instead of two large meals, Jeffrey says. Feeding small meals may help with weight gain.

Also look for behavioral clues. If the puppy is having to compete to eat with other dogs in the house, the puppy should be fed separately, she says. Not only will this help reduce stress, it will allow the owner to determine the exact amount of food the puppy is eating.