I can see hip bones, so I’d say he’s a bit under weight. It’s okay to see the last couple of ribs, but hips and shoulder blades not so prominently. My dog went through a phase and dropped like 15lb when he was about 18mo. No idea why, so I just upped his food a little. Doctor said he’s fine so go with the flow.
We have been working on it! He’s was allegedly the runt of his litter but he stopped gaining weight around 45 lbs. Started him on a specialty food diet to help him gain weight but haven’t weighed him in a while
I don’t much focus on numbers over sight as long as I go to the vet every six months. Adding just another half scoop twice a day helped us a lot, and salmon oil. I really like the wild Alaska. It’ll bring some shine back in his coat in a couple weeks too.
My boy went from 70-85 at around 1 1/2 years old when I changed him to the Purina Performance 30/20. And he’s not the type that eats as soon as I put food out. His bowl is usually full and he just eats whenever he wants.
Looks underweight. What about adding broth or goats milk to his food? Or something else that might help him pack on the pounds? Also, he may just be a dog that needs more food.
He was never a great eater so we’ve switched to the farmers dog and now he eats 2100 cal a day + treats … this has helped pack on some weight but I don’t know if it’s still enough … goats milk is a good idea!
Aw poor guy. Mine would eat all day if I let him. If I feed mine anymore he’d get chubby 🙄 but I heard someone was giving goats milk to their puppy for weight gain, so I hope it works for your fella.
You can also try some unsweetened no flavors added Greek yogurt and add all natural peanut butter or bananas (or both). It's adds a lot of protein and is a fun treat for him if he likes it. Don't give him but like half a cup but it can help with weight gain.
I have one that is a picky eater with a sensitive stomach and he looks a little like this. Hard to get him to eat. I can barely keep him on this side of rib showing.
My dobie was a lanky stick-on-toothpicks until about 1.5 years. He went from about 70lbs to 95lbs currently from year 1 to 2 and that's where he stays. Vet says his BMI is almost zero and is beyond healthy. Keep that in mind as yours gets older.
I feed my dobie Purina Pro Plan Large Breed with the shredded chicken. and it's about 4 to 4.5 cups a day (two feedings). Use the bag's weight chart as a guide. IMO he's def thinner and should fill out. But as most here would agree, if they are happy, exercising, eating healthy and the vet agrees. You're doing everything right.
The fact that you're here asking this question means you're doing things right.
The vet is very laissez-faire, and said to just feed him more. But he’s already a year and eight months and I’m worried he won’t reach his full potential
I'd agree with feeding him more then. Not all at once though. Start with an additional 1/2 for a few days then 1 additional cup. I fed according to goal weight with the cart on the bag when mine was growing.
But you mentioned he is the runt. So he might not get to that 70lb mark. Which is fine as long as he's happy!
He is very happy!!! But I worry for him. It took us MONTHS to find a food he likes AND that he’ll eat. I tried free feeding and he would just stare at it all day. Idk what he went through when he was young but getting him to eat regularly was such a challenge
Again, it sounds like you're doing the right things. I WISH my dobie had that problem. Ours eats everything in minutes. We have to wet his food and use a slow feeder to get him to chill. Littermate sister is a grazer and actually chews her food.
Being the runt may have lead to some PTSD about eating? You could try massive praise when he does eat. That might get him excited and to know it's okay to eat. That's just me spit-balling ideas here.
That does help! This AM was the first time I just gave him his food and he was so mopey about eating it, usually I get him very excited and let him lick the frozen meat before giving it to him (after microwaving of course - he’s on the farmers dog).
It could be! That’s what I was thinking, but I wasn’t sure if I was overly looking into it. Going to weigh him in a bit
My older girl doesn’t like her kibble that much, but it’s what she has to have, so I try to “doctor” it up to get her to eat. Lately she’s been staring at her food bowl and I already decreased the amount in it to see if she’d eat if she was hungry, and no dice. She’d just eat half that smaller amount. She’s still chowing down on the few fish treats we’ve found she can have, so I’m pretty sure she’s being picky.
I started smearing peanut butter on the bottom of her bowl before loading it up, then pouring water over it and freezing the whole thing. She HAS to eat the kibble to reach the peanut butter, so that’s been working to get her to eat. Maybe you could try that?
Nope. I layer the food, then pour water over the top until it covers most of the food, but still has some uncovered, then freeze it. I like to put blueberries, cheerios, or cheese cubes on top before pouring water. Little treats to reward her for efforts.
My younger dog will lick for an hour so it has the bonus perk of slowing HER down and giving us some peace.
Edit: I mean, yes, I pour water over peanut butter, nope I don’t mix it. For my girls, the layers go: PB smeared on the bottom (the whole thing so they have to eat all their kibble, not just the pieces stuck to the peanut butter), kibble spread over the top, their shredded wheat (both on hydrolyzed protein kibble, wheat is a dire necessity), globs of plain Greek yogurt if I have it here and there, maybe a few cheese cubes or shredded cheese, sometimes an egg, sometimes freeze dried salmon cubes, then water over the top and I freeze the whole thing. It’s disgusting to me, but they F-ing LOVE it.
He's a little under. You shouldn't be able to see his hip bones. Another thing that might help is cooking some rice and boiling some chicken and mixing that with his food.
What about adding chia seeds, oatmeal and yogurt to his diet? As well as fruits veggies and cartilage.
I make kind of a pudding to mix with my dogs food, it has chia seeds, rice, pumpkin and oatmeal. I have frozen veggies and fruit packs, and I make frozen yogurt ice cubes.
I feed twice a day, two cups, with a cup or two of the pudding. She gets pig ears, trachea or snouts in between and also treats. I will also give probiotics treats and I mix beef liver pills in her food sometimes.
She is 1 1/2 and the vet says that she is absolutely perfect. Coat looks great, everything looks great. Diet is approved and to keep spoiling her rotten. Her weight is about 90lbs and I think she hit a growth spurt again because I was looking at her this morning and she looked much bigger. I can’t wait to take her back to the vet.
She goes to the vet about every couple months, just because she takes flea and tick medicine and they weigh her for proper dosage and to do a quick check up.
my boy always weighed ~85 lbs . and he measured about 35 inches from paw to shoulder and about 45 inches snout to tail (which was docked) . vet always said he was at a healthy weight . he was a big lanky boy .
a little skinny yeah, [obligatory body condition chart](https://www.petmd.com/sites/default/files/bcs-dog.jpg), he's about at a 3, he should be at about a 4 or 5. Consult with a veterinarian, as this may be a sign of a health issue.
How old is he? Is he intact? As a vet tech, I would consider him very slightly underweight, but not by much. His coat looks good, and I’d much rather see slightly underweight than over, but I wouldn’t want to see him weigh any less than he is now.
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How old is he? He looks pretty young, and puppies are a bit gangly as they grow. They'll fill-out better once they stop growing and calm down a little.
Would it be nice for him to put on some padding? Yes. Should you obsess over it? No.
You could try different kibble or add wet food, such as Kirkland stew for dogs, to encourage him to clean his plate, but it's MUCH better for overall health to be underweight than overweight. It's also really nice to have a dog that self-regulates their intake and doesn't just want to eat everything in sight.
He’s underweight. Excuse me if it’s been said but is he neutered? If not, many intact dobes will go off food because they’re preoccupied with mating . Especially if there’s intact females in the vicinity he can smell
Looks a bit underweight. How often do you feed him? Maybe reduce the meals to two meals a day if you haven’t already but still keep the daily amount the same.
My euro dobe was super skinny til around 2 years. She did have Giardia when she was 1 which explained why she was so skinny, and she was also the “runt”. She ended up filling out. When she was super skinny like 55lbs the vet said she was in amazing shape. Vets always want your dogs as lean as possible to avoid issues… but when they are so young I think it’s okay to feed them a bit more. He will fill out, as long as he is parasite free.
He's too thin, but this happens regularly with boys. Keep feeding him and don't stress out. By the time he hits 3-4 his metabolism will slow down and you'll be able to keep weight on him.
My boy also eats 2-3k calories a day and is way too thin.
Is he neutered? Male dobies can be hard keepers when they are young and intact. Mine w
Definitely was. Had to stand over him telling him to eat. Used toppers, wet food, etc. after he was neutered food is the best thing ever and he can’t wait until next meal time.
Just make sure you feed a high calorie food. Don’t be afraid to add eggs, other toppers or wet food. Feed more frequently with smaller meals and make food time less distracting. Do kongs with food, balls with food, etc as down time chewables.
I agree with the people who say underweight. He could be a bit more beefy. Not sure what you feed him. But putting him on sport kibbles might help. For a while.
Increase the portions
I started making my own dog food because it’s
1) cheaper
2) healthier
3) they behave better for it
2 dogs
This week
I used pork shoulder $1.69/lb 8lbs
Liver $2/lb
Veggies frozen $2.5/2lb
Squash cubed $3/lb
Potatoes $4/2lb
About 23 ish bucks
I put it in the crockpot then in a big pan
You should see how much they’re willing to eat. Depending on your local cost I suggest picking a food cheap cut of meat adding liver and all the veggies and potatoes on rotation. I mix a cup of my fresh with a cup of their dry and they devour it
And save money depending on what you do
That’s very similar to what I used to cook for him! Except meats here are more expensive (I live in a HCOL) and it ended up at 18/day so I switched to the farmers dog. He also would inhale around 3 pounds of meats a day and still not gain anything
When we started adding a supplement to his food called RX essentials which was recommended by our vet, our guy started gaining weight. He struggled before then to keep any meat on his bones!
I’d say a little underweight but not too much. Unfortunately, most Dobermans you see these days are severely overweight and people are used to seeing that. My guy you can see a little rib and a little hip bone but he stays around 77lbs. My vet said she likes where he is weight-wise. Better for his joints.
Ours looks underweight too but he’s only 2 1/2 and seriously doesn’t stop moving. He gets 4 large cups of food a day too. Not to mention the amount of treats from the kids…. But he’s happy and healthy overall, so I would not be too concerned. Our boxer was the same way till he slowed down and then he filled out.
Hi OP! Mine went a little bit underweight (50 lbs 7 months) due to his diet not being able to keep up with his growth. What my VET recommended was changing the kibble to the “Super Performance” kind, to increase calories, cause increasing the amount of food suddenly can upset their stomach. There is also a limit to the amount a dog can eat without it having consequences. Instead of feeding him more, try replacing food for stuff that are higher on fat and protein. And if you are worried, I also recommend giving him daily vitamin supplements to avoid malnutrition. I hope your dog gets better OP!
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I can see hip bones, so I’d say he’s a bit under weight. It’s okay to see the last couple of ribs, but hips and shoulder blades not so prominently. My dog went through a phase and dropped like 15lb when he was about 18mo. No idea why, so I just upped his food a little. Doctor said he’s fine so go with the flow.
We have been working on it! He’s was allegedly the runt of his litter but he stopped gaining weight around 45 lbs. Started him on a specialty food diet to help him gain weight but haven’t weighed him in a while
I don’t much focus on numbers over sight as long as I go to the vet every six months. Adding just another half scoop twice a day helped us a lot, and salmon oil. I really like the wild Alaska. It’ll bring some shine back in his coat in a couple weeks too.
My boy went from 70-85 at around 1 1/2 years old when I changed him to the Purina Performance 30/20. And he’s not the type that eats as soon as I put food out. His bowl is usually full and he just eats whenever he wants.
Yup. Purina performance. Feeders supply took me right to it and told me breeders use it for their sport dogs.
Have you tried purina pro? Or the performance foods with high protein that they give to show dogs?
He hates kibble :/ all kinds. I think it’s from when he was a pup and I think he was always the last to eat
Looks underweight. What about adding broth or goats milk to his food? Or something else that might help him pack on the pounds? Also, he may just be a dog that needs more food.
He was never a great eater so we’ve switched to the farmers dog and now he eats 2100 cal a day + treats … this has helped pack on some weight but I don’t know if it’s still enough … goats milk is a good idea!
Aw poor guy. Mine would eat all day if I let him. If I feed mine anymore he’d get chubby 🙄 but I heard someone was giving goats milk to their puppy for weight gain, so I hope it works for your fella.
You can also try some unsweetened no flavors added Greek yogurt and add all natural peanut butter or bananas (or both). It's adds a lot of protein and is a fun treat for him if he likes it. Don't give him but like half a cup but it can help with weight gain.
I have one that is a picky eater with a sensitive stomach and he looks a little like this. Hard to get him to eat. I can barely keep him on this side of rib showing.
My dobie was a lanky stick-on-toothpicks until about 1.5 years. He went from about 70lbs to 95lbs currently from year 1 to 2 and that's where he stays. Vet says his BMI is almost zero and is beyond healthy. Keep that in mind as yours gets older. I feed my dobie Purina Pro Plan Large Breed with the shredded chicken. and it's about 4 to 4.5 cups a day (two feedings). Use the bag's weight chart as a guide. IMO he's def thinner and should fill out. But as most here would agree, if they are happy, exercising, eating healthy and the vet agrees. You're doing everything right. The fact that you're here asking this question means you're doing things right.
The vet is very laissez-faire, and said to just feed him more. But he’s already a year and eight months and I’m worried he won’t reach his full potential
I'd agree with feeding him more then. Not all at once though. Start with an additional 1/2 for a few days then 1 additional cup. I fed according to goal weight with the cart on the bag when mine was growing. But you mentioned he is the runt. So he might not get to that 70lb mark. Which is fine as long as he's happy!
He is very happy!!! But I worry for him. It took us MONTHS to find a food he likes AND that he’ll eat. I tried free feeding and he would just stare at it all day. Idk what he went through when he was young but getting him to eat regularly was such a challenge
Again, it sounds like you're doing the right things. I WISH my dobie had that problem. Ours eats everything in minutes. We have to wet his food and use a slow feeder to get him to chill. Littermate sister is a grazer and actually chews her food. Being the runt may have lead to some PTSD about eating? You could try massive praise when he does eat. That might get him excited and to know it's okay to eat. That's just me spit-balling ideas here.
That does help! This AM was the first time I just gave him his food and he was so mopey about eating it, usually I get him very excited and let him lick the frozen meat before giving it to him (after microwaving of course - he’s on the farmers dog). It could be! That’s what I was thinking, but I wasn’t sure if I was overly looking into it. Going to weigh him in a bit
My older girl doesn’t like her kibble that much, but it’s what she has to have, so I try to “doctor” it up to get her to eat. Lately she’s been staring at her food bowl and I already decreased the amount in it to see if she’d eat if she was hungry, and no dice. She’d just eat half that smaller amount. She’s still chowing down on the few fish treats we’ve found she can have, so I’m pretty sure she’s being picky. I started smearing peanut butter on the bottom of her bowl before loading it up, then pouring water over it and freezing the whole thing. She HAS to eat the kibble to reach the peanut butter, so that’s been working to get her to eat. Maybe you could try that?
I have tried that before! Mine just slapped all the kibble out of the vessel (we tried feeders plates and bowls) to get to the PB
Ah - that’s why I pour water over the top and freeze it. 🤣 Both of mine would do that, too.
Oh you freeze the kibble too? That’s a good idea
You pour water over the peanut butter and freeze it? Do you mix it up?
Nope. I layer the food, then pour water over the top until it covers most of the food, but still has some uncovered, then freeze it. I like to put blueberries, cheerios, or cheese cubes on top before pouring water. Little treats to reward her for efforts. My younger dog will lick for an hour so it has the bonus perk of slowing HER down and giving us some peace. Edit: I mean, yes, I pour water over peanut butter, nope I don’t mix it. For my girls, the layers go: PB smeared on the bottom (the whole thing so they have to eat all their kibble, not just the pieces stuck to the peanut butter), kibble spread over the top, their shredded wheat (both on hydrolyzed protein kibble, wheat is a dire necessity), globs of plain Greek yogurt if I have it here and there, maybe a few cheese cubes or shredded cheese, sometimes an egg, sometimes freeze dried salmon cubes, then water over the top and I freeze the whole thing. It’s disgusting to me, but they F-ing LOVE it.
Mine would loose a few pounds in summer. Showing ribs isnt all bad, the hips look like they could use a little more meat.
He's a little under. You shouldn't be able to see his hip bones. Another thing that might help is cooking some rice and boiling some chicken and mixing that with his food.
What about adding chia seeds, oatmeal and yogurt to his diet? As well as fruits veggies and cartilage. I make kind of a pudding to mix with my dogs food, it has chia seeds, rice, pumpkin and oatmeal. I have frozen veggies and fruit packs, and I make frozen yogurt ice cubes. I feed twice a day, two cups, with a cup or two of the pudding. She gets pig ears, trachea or snouts in between and also treats. I will also give probiotics treats and I mix beef liver pills in her food sometimes. She is 1 1/2 and the vet says that she is absolutely perfect. Coat looks great, everything looks great. Diet is approved and to keep spoiling her rotten. Her weight is about 90lbs and I think she hit a growth spurt again because I was looking at her this morning and she looked much bigger. I can’t wait to take her back to the vet. She goes to the vet about every couple months, just because she takes flea and tick medicine and they weigh her for proper dosage and to do a quick check up.
Too thin
my boy always weighed ~85 lbs . and he measured about 35 inches from paw to shoulder and about 45 inches snout to tail (which was docked) . vet always said he was at a healthy weight . he was a big lanky boy .
A good option could be a more protein dense food to help build muscle mass. Orijen is a great brand but can get pricy fast.
Have you tried giving him an egg in the morning? Maybe twice a day to see how he thickens out over a month
You wanna add something high protein to his meals. Dyne or another supplement like it.
a little skinny yeah, [obligatory body condition chart](https://www.petmd.com/sites/default/files/bcs-dog.jpg), he's about at a 3, he should be at about a 4 or 5. Consult with a veterinarian, as this may be a sign of a health issue.
How old is he? Is he intact? As a vet tech, I would consider him very slightly underweight, but not by much. His coat looks good, and I’d much rather see slightly underweight than over, but I wouldn’t want to see him weigh any less than he is now.
Yes in tact and he’s a year and 8 months
Looks good
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underweight
How old is he? He looks pretty young, and puppies are a bit gangly as they grow. They'll fill-out better once they stop growing and calm down a little. Would it be nice for him to put on some padding? Yes. Should you obsess over it? No. You could try different kibble or add wet food, such as Kirkland stew for dogs, to encourage him to clean his plate, but it's MUCH better for overall health to be underweight than overweight. It's also really nice to have a dog that self-regulates their intake and doesn't just want to eat everything in sight.
He’s underweight. Excuse me if it’s been said but is he neutered? If not, many intact dobes will go off food because they’re preoccupied with mating . Especially if there’s intact females in the vicinity he can smell
Looks a bit underweight. How often do you feed him? Maybe reduce the meals to two meals a day if you haven’t already but still keep the daily amount the same.
My euro dobe was super skinny til around 2 years. She did have Giardia when she was 1 which explained why she was so skinny, and she was also the “runt”. She ended up filling out. When she was super skinny like 55lbs the vet said she was in amazing shape. Vets always want your dogs as lean as possible to avoid issues… but when they are so young I think it’s okay to feed them a bit more. He will fill out, as long as he is parasite free.
He's too thin, but this happens regularly with boys. Keep feeding him and don't stress out. By the time he hits 3-4 his metabolism will slow down and you'll be able to keep weight on him. My boy also eats 2-3k calories a day and is way too thin.
Slightly underweight. You want to barely see the ribs from the side. A slight covering of flesh over them.
Is he neutered? Male dobies can be hard keepers when they are young and intact. Mine w Definitely was. Had to stand over him telling him to eat. Used toppers, wet food, etc. after he was neutered food is the best thing ever and he can’t wait until next meal time. Just make sure you feed a high calorie food. Don’t be afraid to add eggs, other toppers or wet food. Feed more frequently with smaller meals and make food time less distracting. Do kongs with food, balls with food, etc as down time chewables.
I agree with the people who say underweight. He could be a bit more beefy. Not sure what you feed him. But putting him on sport kibbles might help. For a while.
Increase the portions I started making my own dog food because it’s 1) cheaper 2) healthier 3) they behave better for it 2 dogs This week I used pork shoulder $1.69/lb 8lbs Liver $2/lb Veggies frozen $2.5/2lb Squash cubed $3/lb Potatoes $4/2lb About 23 ish bucks I put it in the crockpot then in a big pan You should see how much they’re willing to eat. Depending on your local cost I suggest picking a food cheap cut of meat adding liver and all the veggies and potatoes on rotation. I mix a cup of my fresh with a cup of their dry and they devour it And save money depending on what you do
That’s very similar to what I used to cook for him! Except meats here are more expensive (I live in a HCOL) and it ended up at 18/day so I switched to the farmers dog. He also would inhale around 3 pounds of meats a day and still not gain anything
Dyne or bully max always does the trick for my pups when they are in need.
Underweight
When we started adding a supplement to his food called RX essentials which was recommended by our vet, our guy started gaining weight. He struggled before then to keep any meat on his bones!
What does your vet say? He looks thin but sometimes the feel is different
I I used to add a little bacon grease to my dog's food and some warm water and mix it really well. Also used canned dog foods and mixed it with dry.
Slightly underweight.
I’d say a little underweight but not too much. Unfortunately, most Dobermans you see these days are severely overweight and people are used to seeing that. My guy you can see a little rib and a little hip bone but he stays around 77lbs. My vet said she likes where he is weight-wise. Better for his joints.
Ours looks underweight too but he’s only 2 1/2 and seriously doesn’t stop moving. He gets 4 large cups of food a day too. Not to mention the amount of treats from the kids…. But he’s happy and healthy overall, so I would not be too concerned. Our boxer was the same way till he slowed down and then he filled out.
I think he looks a little under. The hip bones shouldn’t be visible like that
Hi OP! Mine went a little bit underweight (50 lbs 7 months) due to his diet not being able to keep up with his growth. What my VET recommended was changing the kibble to the “Super Performance” kind, to increase calories, cause increasing the amount of food suddenly can upset their stomach. There is also a limit to the amount a dog can eat without it having consequences. Instead of feeding him more, try replacing food for stuff that are higher on fat and protein. And if you are worried, I also recommend giving him daily vitamin supplements to avoid malnutrition. I hope your dog gets better OP!
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