Is my Setter too skinny?

[Frost]

Hello, I just had a little reunion of Frost's family. I noticed that all of his brothers and sisters
are way heavyer. Frost is a really active dog and eats more that twice the recommended food a day. He weighs 18,5 kilo's and was born on the 10th of august. Í'm curious what others think. Should I give him more food?

[Laura Kolbach]

on the photos he never looked skinny, in my opinion.
another aspect: the quality of the food. with a not-so-good one it can happen that you have to give 2-3 more times to reach the same result as with a "premium" one. i don't know what you feed, but if Frost is an active one, maybe you could change to a "stronger" one if you want to put on weight (if he really is "underweight"). or if you do BARF or cook, then maybe just give more. what did the breeder say?
i prefer puppies not to be fat. might look better, but less weight is better for joints, bones, etc which are still in development. (also my personal opinion :-)) )

[Jennifer Budgell]

Hello,
Within reason a lean dog is probably going to be healthier in the long run than a dog that is overweight.
Setters can have voracious appetites and when ours was that age we added cooked pureed yams, along with some cut up apple and green beens to her food to fill her up with something healthy without adding a lot more protein.
The recommendations on the dog food bags are guidelines at best. I think it is common for active, growing setters to eat more than many breeds. Just make sure that Frost is not getting too much protein which could result in problems down the road for large breed pups that grow too quickly. Your vet can help you with the decision about how much to feed and what brand of food. We fed ours adult food from about 4 months of age on. Not sure where you are from but our dogs are on Hill's (American company) duck and potato formula and Medical (Canadian company) hypo allergenic wet/canned food formula. One of my setters has atopy so that is why they are on a hypoallergenic diet. My current Setter is 2 and gets 2 to 3 hours of off-leash running time a day so she is pretty active (and so are we!). She eats about 5 to 6 cups dry food a day and about a 1/2 cup of canned. She weighs about 75 Lbs. now.
If you are concerned about Frost's weight it is probably best to check with your vet who will likely want to do a fecal test to check for internal parasites even if previous fecal tests have been negative. Puppies pick them up easily when they are sniffing around or frequenting areas where there are coyotes, dogs etc.
Sounds like Frost has lots of energy and if is coat is shiny and healthy and his eyes are bright and his poops are normal then it is likely that you have been blessed with a leaner setter which will probably be best for his health in the long run. Setters vary in size quite a bit. Was he one of the smaller pups from the get go?
Cheers.
Jennifer from Ontario, Canada

[Frost]

We feed Frost FarmFood in the Morning. In the evening he gets Farmfood mixed with NatureDiet or Nature's Harvest.I will make a appointment with the vet to check his health. He was one of the smaller pups indeed. The others are about the same height but a lot heavyer. His coat is very shinny and a bit darker then the rest of the puppy's. We think he's the most beautiful, but don't we all? He still misses one of his balls.

[Laura Kolbach]

maybe all the others are too heavy :-)))
if he has energy and his coat is shiny, etc, i don't think that you should worry!!!

[Jennifer Budgell]

I'm not familiar with the brands you are feeding but any good quality food is best.
If you think of posting how Frost is doing periodically and what the vet had to say then I will look forward to hearing your updates.
Happy trails!
Jennifer

[Kristina Brannlund Westin]

Hi!

There is another aspect in this and that is sister and brothers in a litter are individs and not always the same type of dogs. You wrote here earlier that he was the smallest puppy and maybe he is not boned in the same way as his brothers. In my litters I have had thinner ones and heavier ones and that don´t mean that the thinner ones are sick or skinny in some way. Seeing the photos you added here it don´t looks like Frost is to skinny.

Good Luck, Kristina

[ursula wilby]

I have checked out the photos and I certainly dont think that he is too skinny...on the other hand I keep my dogs quite slim. I want to FEEL the ribs but not be able to SEE them at a glance.
But there are lots of people (my personal opinion) that do keep their dogs too fat.

As for following guidelines on foodbags...forget it.
Normally following those your dog will end up overweight (a good way to sell more dogfood). But then, just as people, dogs need different amount of food to stay just "right".
I often have one dog eating at least 50% more that the other, yet they are both just about the same.

I think Frost both looks and sounds perfectly healthy and "just right"!

[Henk ten Klooster]

Feed with your eyes, most dogs especially setters are much too fat these days. I like to see two last ribs not immediately, but with some light on it. So nearly the same as Ursula. And don't forget to check the sh**, it tells in a glance much about health. That we forget the toilet is especially made to do so for our own, does not mean we should do the same for our dogs:-)

[Carmel Murphy]

I think Frost looks just right! If you feel the ribs but not see them too easily and he is full of energy and has a glossy coat then he is normal!! As Ursula says each dog needs their own amount of food to suit their needs! I have one dog (Milo) on at least 3 times more food than the girls and he is still the slender one(he just uses up a lot more calories as he is always on the go) The girls are a bit lazy at times(especially when in heat!!) Rua just has to look at food and she gets fat(just like her owner!!)

[Thomas&Merete-Kennel Alvertoppen]

Hello,

I think Frost looks just fine. But if you think he eats well but don't "absorb" the food, be sure to check for worms (several times).

In my opinion some dogs get fat easily, while others can eat a ton and gain no weight. Just like humans ;)

Like others have mentioned, if the shit smells like hell and/or has a lose consistency/light color, there are to much undigested proteins going throuh the system, and you should do something about the diet.

Personally I like to keep my dogs rather slim, since they are hunting dogs and don't need any extra weight. During the hunting season I add extra fat to their diet to maintain the energy level for a longer period. While hunting the dog needs 3-4 times as much energy compared to passive periods.

[Kristina]

I have the same problem with my irish. Flora is nearly three years old, has 64 cm and weights 28 kilos. Everyone is telling me she in to skinny. My personal opinion is that she is not to skinny, but everyone else doesn't agree with me. I can feel her ribbings but not see them. I think setters must be skinnier than golden retrivers for example, but 28 kilos for a irish setter girl and still to skinny. I don't know... Wht do you think?

Kristina

[Laura Kolbach]

Kristina, do you get these comments from dog people or just "normal" people. just wonder as I get the same comments sometimes from both kind (also setter people!!!). and believe me, mine are NOT skinny (not fat either, just right for my -and it seems also judges - taste).
but: 1. non-doggie people have no clue about the setter being an athletic dog :-) 2. doggie people: i noticed the tendency nowadays at shows in many breeds: the fatter - the better...??? me personally find a gundog being fat with a rolling back NOT nice.
(btw: the 28 kg might not say that much. muscles are heavier than fat.)