Skip to content

Fat Dog

Basenji Feeding
  • Jack, my 7 yr. old Basenji seems to keep putting on weight. We currently have him on Royal Canin, skin something prescription food, it's main ingredient is fish meal. Our vet suggested it, because he is a very allergic dog. First we had him on skin formula and I noticed in six weeks his weight went from 25lbs. to 30lbs. We reduced the amount, he didn't lose weight and then we reduced the amount again. Currently he is on 1/2 Cup and he still isn't losing weight. I walk him most mornings for an hour and try and limit any other treat he gets. Occasionally he gets pizzles. My vet is at a loss and I am at a loss. His thyroid seems good no problems there. Does anyone have any ideas? Also he is on a medication called Cyclosporin for his allergies….

  • Weight gain is one of the side effects of cyclosporin. Have his kidney's and liver levels checked. That is a very low amount of food to be feeding and it may have more to do with an immune suppression which is what cyclosporin does.

  • Weight gain is also an effect of low thyroid. I know that you said that his thyroid "seems" fine… but has the full panel been done? or just the T3 that is done with normal bloodwork... and even at that, what was the level, low normal for a Basenji is TOO low....

Suggested Topics

  • Warning about grain free dog food

    Basenji Feeding
    12
    1 Votes
    12 Posts
    12k Views
    DebraDownSouthD
    Logical, not "chicken little the sky is falling" thinking. Thanks DonC. I hate companies being gutted without evidence. And I agree, if I had dogs - especially prone to the disorder -- on just grain-free, I might switch for added protection.
  • Dog Food

    Basenji Feeding
    10
    0 Votes
    10 Posts
    6k Views
    pennypenP
    @Ellusionz: I've just swapped my dog to Wellness Core. It's high in protein which I was told is really good for the basenji breed with how active they are. Also grain-free. But they say it shouldn't be fed to dogs younger than a year. They sell it at Petco. There's also the regular Wellness that Petsmart carries thats been rated just below the Core. I researched the ingredients in the brands on dogfoodchat.com I thought about going with a high protien …. i'll deff look into that for next time after this huge bag is done :)
  • Pumpkin for Dogs

    Basenji Feeding
    12
    0 Votes
    12 Posts
    5k Views
    P
    Basenjimamma - I'll look at the varieties of Heinz baby food. Thank you for the tip. I notice that most say cook the sweet potatoes. Does anyone feed them raw?
  • Cooking For Dogs

    Basenji Feeding
    11
    0 Votes
    11 Posts
    5k Views
    lvossL
    I will just add to what Petra said about finding the steel cut oats. You can find them in the Oatmeal section but also if you grocery store has a bulk section check there. It was significantly cheaper for me to buy from the bulk bins then to get the prepackaged section.
  • Christmas Cookie recipes for dogs

    Basenji Feeding
    3
    0 Votes
    3 Posts
    9k Views
    S
    I don’t make up any recipes myself. I usually take other people’s recipes and modify them to fit what I think is best for my dogs.
  • Dog food ratings

    Basenji Feeding
    13
    0 Votes
    13 Posts
    8k Views
    C
    We just switched to Canidae over Nutro Max. We've fed our others Nutro for years and haven't seemed to have a problem, but I'm curious how the dogs would feel if they ate a better mix. Canidae has a very good ingredient list and got a A+ rating on this list! It actually isn't noticeably more expensive per pound than the Nutro we've been getting. A 40# bag was $40. So far they gobble it up, so they must like the taste at least.