My dog is skinny. What's the best diet to help him gain weight?

If he isn't the appropriate weight then there is likely an underlying cause for this. Most healthy pets should be able to remove all the vital nutrients from their food and use it for energy; however there are certain disease processes that can interfere with this, including intestinal parasites, malabsorption/maldigestion issues, certain endocrine disorders such as Addison's disease, and pancreas disorders like Exocrine pancreatic insufficiency. So I think the first priority here is to get Peanut examined by your vet to determine if he is ind Ed underweight to begin with. We achieve this by determining his current body condition score, where 3/5 or 5/9 is considered ideal weight. Then determine if the pet needs specific testing to look for certain disease processes that would lead to the weight loss, such as decal examination, pancreas testing and so forth. And of course generally speaking you should be feeding your pet a high quality adult small breed formula, such as Royal Canin, Hill's Science Diet, Evo or Natural Balance just to name a few. I hope Peanut turns out to be ok. Best wishes!

If you can’t increase the volume of food the pups will eat, try to increase the calorie content. Also making sure you feed a high quality food will ensure that the pups absorb the nutrients appropriately. I like Royal Canin and Purina Pro Plan. You will find information about the calories on the side of the package. They are called Kcalories in dog food. I hope this is helpful and please feel free to post any additional questions.

Hi there! Let me see if I can help you with Brownie. I always recommend "The Big 4" as far as brands, as they are the most balanced diets on the market for dogs and cats. They are Purina, Science Diet, Royal Canin, and Eukanuba-Iams. That being said, I always point out that when changing diets we go slowly over a week to ten days' time. You can follow the guide in this link to try to avoid causing any gastrointestinal upset like vomiting or diarrhea: https://www.hillspet.com/dog-care/nutrition-feeding/how-to-transition-my-dogs-food I would check the bag and make sure that you measure the food and stick to the recommended calories per day, taking into account any additional calories like treats, table food, or dental chews. We can sometimes be surprised how many calories are in a milkbone even. You can try a reduced fat or weight loss diet made by one of the brands mentioned above, and see if that helps. Before starting I always recommend a vet visit. An exam can be very helpful in making the initial weight loss plan. I will often discuss trying cutting out snacks and treats, a reduced fat diet, and monthly weight checks. If there isn't a difference in about 6 weeks, I will recommend checking thyroid levels to see if that is functioning OK. If not, that can slow down metabolism and cause weight gain. And if all is well and we're still having trouble, there are prescription diets that we can try to help reset the metabolism like Hill's metabolic. I hope you find this answer helpful. Best of luck!

Thank you for submitting your question regarding Bruno. If you veterinarian has found him to be healthy, then I recommend feeding a high energy food. Purina ProPlan Performance diet is formulated for athletic dogs. This or something similar should help him gain and maintain weight. I hope this information helps!

Finn is a very cute boy! At this point I would recommend to feed a high-quality and easy to digest dog food brand such as Royal Canin, Science Diet or Purina Pro Plan. Since he is not yet one year old, make sure to buy the large breed puppy formula. I would also recommend to increase his food intake to 4 cups a day and monitor him closely that he does not get too much weight gain. Once he is an adult dog, you can change him to an adult large breed formula. Make sure he’s up-to-date on his deworming as well. I think at this point, give him time to gain weight with a high-quality food and an increase food content. Then go from there if needed. I hope this helps and please post again with any further questions.

Provide food that is high in calories, like puppy food or a food that’s designed for active, athletic, or working dogs. Higher protein and fat pet foods are best. Underweight pets should be eating foods that are around 30% protein and 20% fat if they’re eating dry kibble; 7% protein and 5% fat (or higher) if you’re feeding a wet food. Intersperse your pet’s diet with small amounts of high-calorie supplemental canned food or canned products made of 100% meat sources. These will have a high protein and fat content, like 100% pheasant or bison, for example. They won’t say “complete and balanced” but rather “for intermittent or supplemental use” because they’re not meant to replace regular feeding. Some moist foods may be easier to digest, so your pet may retain more nutrients, and more importantly these products tend to be more palatable and tempting to a pet who isn’t eating enough. Any diet changes should be done gradually over a week's time as to not cause any GI upset. Hope this helps. Best wishes.

I would recommend a really good deworming since he is young. However it would be best to take a fecal to the vet to determine if he has parasites and if so what kind. If he does not have any parasites I would recommend a food change. I would try a basic diet like purina, royal canine, or science diet puppy food.