Under weight & soft stools. Please help!

[Kairothereddobie]

Hi! I have a 1.5 yr old Red Euro Doberman I got from a supposed reputable breeder. I found them on the AKC website. I’ve had health problems with Kairo since the day I got him. The breeder brought him to me at 9 week weighing only 8lbs!! He was so anorexic looking. I took him because he seemed to be so active still. I had him checked out and bloodwork done and he was ok the vet said. Fast forward to his 1 year mark he was diagnosed with a congenital issue of the penis hypospadias. Lucky it was a mild case and was fixed with surgery.
Since getting Kairo lat December we have been on at least 4 different kibbles and 2 different raw foods and nothing seems to put weight on him or harden his stools. He is only 70lbs and skinny. He had his check up last week and the vet said he’s healthy but he’s too skinny. He has a healthy appetite and currently eats 6 cups a day split into 2 meals. He gets about 2.5-3.5 hours of continuous exercise a day. He’s the sweetest most loving boy. I’m just stressing out about how skinny he is. He always gets asked if he’s an American because of how skinny he looks. He is also allergic to chicken. Please help!

 

[Panama]

Welcome to DCF.
Anyone with AKC registerable pups can advertise on AKC Marketplace as long as they are purebred.
Sounds like he had a slow start to begin with. 8 lbs @ 9 wks is pretty small. The runt from my last litter was a female and she was 12.7 lbs at 8 wks.
Hopefully he's just from very slow growing lines and will catch up and fill out.

What are you feeding your boy?

 

[Kairothereddobie]

This him when he first came home for size reference. He was smaller then my 13lbs senior dog who passed 3 weeks ago. RIP Dollie

 

[Kairothereddobie]

Welcome to DCF.
Anyone with AKC registerable pups can advertise on AKC Marketplace as long as they are purebred.
Sounds like he had a slow start to begin with. 8 lbs @ 9 wks is pretty small. The runt from my last litter was a female and she was 12.7 lbs at 8 wks.
Hopefully he's just from very slow growing lines and will catch up and fill out.

What are you feeding your boy?

I’m currently feeding Fromm whitefish & potatoes. I’m also adding anchovy oil & pumpkin. He’s eating 5-6 cups a day split into 2 meals.

 

[Panama]

Awww he was so tiny.

He sounds pretty active, so he might be burning off the calories he's taking in. He might need something with a little more protein & fat. Maybe check into the Trout & Whitefish formula.

His coat looks nice and shiny.

 

[Kairothereddobie]

Awww he was so tiny.

He sounds pretty active, so he might be burning off the calories he's taking in. He might need something with a little more protein & fat. Maybe check into the Trout & Whitefish formula.

His coat looks nice and shiny.

Yea my baby is so active. He can go for over an hr playing fetch with the chuckit & thank you. I’ll look into it. His stools are also soft. Do you think that brand might help with it as well?

 

[Panama]

When I used Fromm, it seemed to be rich too rich for my dog's stomach. As much as he's eating, soft stools don't really surprise me much. The trout & whitefish is still Fromm, just a different formula that is a little higher in calorie.

 

[Two Dobes]

He's a real pretty boy....have you had current blood panel done? My Clarke is only 75 pounds (American) and he is almost 6 years old. Perhaps your boy is just from smaller lines? Were you able to see parents?

 

[Kairothereddobie]

Hi & thank you. I haven’t done any blood recently. His mom came from Romania pregnant with him and his sister. She was 70lbs I babe saw his dad but he was supposedly 105lbs. His sis passed at 4 months from her heart murmur. Kairo is the only one from the litter alive today. It’s been a very stressful first year of life but he’s happy.

 

[Kaiser2016]

Did the raw food at least help to solidify his stools? If it did, then you could return to that diet. We had a similar situation with Kaiser in that he had loose stools until we switched to a raw diet - instead of producing large cow patties, he was able to absorb more of the food and he produced way less poop, almost like cat turds. At the time, getting his stools regular and reliable was our goal and a raw diet solved that problem almost overnight.

Of course, he was also very lean looking like your boy. We've only had one Dobe, but I don't think yours is overly skinny for his age. Think of him as a lanky human teenage boy. Kaiser filled out more at age 2 and then developed a nice strong build around 3. Many experienced owners have suggested that the males tend to mature slowly and I believe that. He is a Euro and he weighs 80 lbs, 5.5 yrs old - people often think he weighs more, but he is within breed standards for a male.

I agree that he's very active and that's probably why it's hard to keep weight on him. Try to keep him intact for as long as you can as the hormones can make a difference. I would look into health insurance for him.

Also, you should start him on probiotics. We used this: Love Bugs | Pre & Probiotics40g

Re pumpkin, you do have to be careful with that because too much can lead to loose stools. Yes, pumpkin helps stop diarrhea, but too much will also cause it.

 

[Kairothereddobie]

Hi, he was really little and was on primal Turkey & sardines for a few months then out of nowhere he got explosive diarrhea. I do want to try to get him back on raw.
He does currently take a daily probiotic & has had insurance since the day I got him. I get it for all my dogs because these medial bills add up.
I’m thinking of trying primal again but unsure what protein I should give. I would like to keep him. I do plan on keeping him intact indefinitely and have no desire to fix him. I love his personality. I read that males
Don’t fully mature until age 2/3 so I’m hoping he does fill in but he has been at the 70lb mark since he was 11 months.

 

[Two Dobes]

I have used Dr. Dodds test for food intolerance....worth the $ instead of "trying and eliminating foods". Here is the link;

Nutriscan | Hemopet

Give your animals the pet care they deserve. Hemopet's testing gives you data to help you understand your pet's dietary needs to improve your pet's overall health.

hemopet.org

I found our boy had chicken and pork intolerance, and once I switched foods, his acid reflux and loose stools disappeared. Keep us posted