My dog won't gain weight, eats little, and sheds fur. What's wrong?

Poor Max! Losing weight despite being fed can be a sign of a medical illness, such as diabetes, intestinal parasites, or an inability to properly digest nutrients. I would make sure Max is up to date on his deworming treatment, and if he isn't, you will need to get one from the vet. The constant scratching could be caused by fleas, mites, ringworm, or allergies. If he isn't up to date on his flea treatment, he will need a spot on treatment such as Advantage or Revolution. You will need to disinfect the environment as well. I recommend taking him into your vet for an exam. The vet can do a physical exam, routine blood tests, and a urinalysis to see if there is a medical cause behind him losing weight. The vet can also do blood tests, skin scrapings, and use a Wood's lamp to diagnose allergies, mites, and ringworm if he is up to date on his flea treatment. I would take him into the vet tomorrow for an exam.

I am sorry to hear about your concern for Max. With these concerns I would recommend an examination at his veterinarian. Rubbing at the face and small dots could be a sign of allergies. The cough could also be related to allergies but he should be evaluated to ensure there is not another cause. Weight loss should also be investigated by his veterinarian . They may test for parasites, discuss his diet with you, or recommend a dietary change.

There could be a few reasons why Bella is not gaining weight. I would recommend checking a stool sample to make sure there are no intestinal parasites since if she does have them this could be a reason why she isn't gaining weight. I would also recommend talking to your veterinarian about Bella's diet and exactly what she is eating. If these both are good then I would recommend getting blood work to make sure there is nothing systemic going on with Bella. Thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

If you think he is too think you need to feed him better quality food or feed him more (maybe feed three times a day). If he has not been wormed recently you should also worm him. If he keeps losing weight even after worming and feeding him more food then you should take him to a veterinarian for an exam and blood tests. It is normal for a dog to shed in spring. Keep brushing him to help remove dead hair and to massage his skin with the brush. This will keep his fur in good condition.

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Part of her not gaining weight could be due to an intestinal malabsorption issue. Your veterinarian could consider further advanced diagnostics like an abdominal ultrasound and a GI panel to check for something like that. I do suspect that her skin issues are possibly due to allergies and that probably plays a role in her quality of life. It really comes down to figuring out what is causing her allergies so that they can be treated or the specific allergen avoided. There are many things that can cause allergies though in most cases they can be broken down into 3 big categories: flea, food and environmental allergies. Allergies are usually worked up in a stepwise fashion starting with flea allergies as this is the easiest and cheapest to take care of. If not on a flea preventative, then it would be a good idea to get started on one. If already on one then it would be a good idea to change to something else (there are many new products out in the market). If not improved in 1-3 months then it is time to move on and check for food allergies by switching to a novel diet (new protein and new carbohydrate). If that does not seem to be the issue then you are left out having to check for environmental allergies which require blood and/or skin tests. Allergies can be very frustrating to deal with at first but so rewarding at the end when we are able to treat them effectively!

I am not sure the amount that you are feeding but he should be getting between 3 and 4 cups total a day. If he is not gaining weight then you could increase the amount that you are giving him. The food should provide all the necessary nutrients for a puppy. He should have a stool sample tested for parasites, even if he has been dewormed. There are some parasites that are not treated with the regular puppy dewormer and require a specific dewormer. If he still is not gaining weight then your vet will have to do a work up to determine the cause. Your vet can run lab-work to help diagnose the problem.

He definitely looks very thin. The biggest concern with a dog that eats well, but doesn't gain weight is that he has a disease or heavy parasite burden. There are some inherited diseases like liver shunts that can cause them to be unthrifty like this and there are some acquired infections like Babesiosis that can also cause them to look like this. The only way to know is to have him evaluated by a veterinarian. I recommend taking him soon, because he doesn't look like he has much left to lose. It's also good to bring a stool sample to the vet, so they can check for worms. I hope that helps and Wekko gets better soon.