Need help fattening up my old guy

[MaxBooBooBear]

That sure must have been a treat to see him do a B-500.

[Craigh]

Got the labwork back from the vet today. Everything was normal.

[jaclempner]

I think that, like people (as Anne in Tampa mentioned) that food becomes less interesting, but I also feel that it's very likely that even when they eat well, and older dog's body just doesn't metabolize the food as well as it used to.

I have a five year old B-boy who has trouble keeping weight on him - he just came back from about 5 days in the kennel while we were away - the longest I've ever left him- and he's pretty skinny. I'm going to try the Satin Balls for him - and I have tried sweet potatoes - both my basenjis loved them! (although my female has the opposite problem - I have to be careful she doesn't become a little butterball!).

[jaclempner]

Glad to hear about the lab work and the B500!

[Craigh]

It seems like it's just a series of ups and downs with Alex lately. For the past two nights, he's thrown up his dinner shortly after eating. Looks like he might have lost a little more weight as well. He seems to hold breakfast down OK, but not dinner. He's sleeping more than usual too. Other than about an hour or so worth of pacing broken up into a few sessions, he sleeps most of the day/night. Even when he's awake, his usually tightly curled tail is drooping down and hanging between his back legs - not a happy camper.

Just had him checked at the vet last week (and bloodwork run) and nothing showed abnormal.

[Craigh]

Looked like the throwing up was food related. I cut out the cottage/ricotta cheese and the problem went away. It appears that Alex doesn't tolerate those foods well. He loves them, but never put on any weight (probably because he was throwing up all the time).

For about the last week I've been giving him a raw egg with on top of his morning meal. He seems to like that and has put on a couple pounds. Anyone else give their B's raw eggs on a regular basis?

[JazzysMom]

@Craigh:

Looked like the throwing up was food related. I cut out the cottage/ricotta cheese and the problem went away. It appears that Alex doesn't tolerate those foods well. He loves them, but never put on any weight (probably because he was throwing up all the time).

For about the last week I've been giving him a raw egg with on top of his morning meal. He seems to like that and has put on a couple pounds. Anyone else give their B's raw eggs on a regular basis?

I give mine a raw egg about once a week. They love it.

[elena86]

I scramble an egg and zap it in the microwave for about 30 seconds, then stir it up. So it's still sort of runny. Then I put it over a little bit of his dry dog food. He likes the egg a few times a week, especially at night.

[laskiblue]

Mine are all definitely raw egg fans, too.

[basenji3]

We had a 15 1/2 yr old basenji who was hard to keep any kind of weight on because of renal failure. We felt great when we could even get a few ounces on him. Sadly he was claimed due to his disease. We also have a 13 yr old elkhound in the same boat. He's not in renal distress yet but has become skin and bones especially in the rear end. With all his hair its hard to notice till you put hands on him beneath all that hair On his trip to the vet for a good check last week she suggested any kind of protein added to his food. She said added protein will help keep and make muscle mass So perhaps this is something that just happens to old dogs regardless of breed. My elkie is a good eater so no problems feeding him the extra protein