# Very skinny girl



## Wiganrugby

Hi. We a have a 2 year old bitch called Ruby who , I feel, is very skinny. She is quite small in height but very skinny. The vet says she is in perfect health and a really good weight but, compared to other ginger nutters, she looks far too skinny. 

She has never been obsessed with food and can't be bribed or trained into doing things with food as a reward. We feed her on Beta Superia Adult food but she never eats the recommended daily amount. She is very active and otherwise in great condition. 

Any advice regarding alternative food, additional supplements etc would be very great fully received. 

Thanks


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## organicthoughts

You could try a raw diet. Sometimes dogs have problems processing kibble and absorbing it properly.

How are her poos?


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## Bob Engelhardt

You ask about how to add weight, but you might first benefit from an assessment here of her weight. Maybe she is at a fine weight. Can we see a picture?

Bob


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## Wiganrugby

Her poos are fine. We took a sample to the vets and he seemed happy.


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## R E McCraith

I go with the Vet on this - looks fine in the pic - little bit of ribs showing - happy & healthy - no one can ask 4 more than this - would not do well in the show ring !!!!!!! who cares ? you did the RIGHT THING - when in DOUBT !!! go 2 a great VET !!!!!!!! there is no such thing as a happy FAT V !!!!!!!


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## texasred

Her coat is nice and shiny, which is a good indicator of her health.


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## Wiganrugby

She is very healthy but her ribs, spine and hips are quite visible. It's just that people comment how thin she is and compared to others she is. She is 18 kg and just doesn't seem bothered by food.


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## texasred

One of my females is fine boned as yours appears to be. She weighed just under 40 lbs. until she matured at around 3 years old. Her weight now varies between 43-46 lbs. depending on the time of the year and she's 5.
She was never real food motivated, if it was dog food or dog treats. But if I cooked for her, or added prepared foods to meal, that was a different story.
Cottage cheese, plain yogurt, homemade liver treats, boiled chicken with bones removed, baked sweet potatoes, boiled eggs, steamed salmon is one of her favorites, make sure all bones are removed.
But I will warn you, they do not want to go back to just plain dog food if you feed homemade food on a regular basis.

You can look up satin balls, its puts weight on a dog.
Just be sure you watch her weight, or you can windup with a overweight V.
Its hard to see her hip bones or spine from the picture. Unless they are showing, she's not underweight.


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## texasred

I put blue squares on the ones that best represents the vizslas ideal weight, as they should be thinner than some of the other breeds of dogs.


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## Zoton

She looks good,they are athletes of the dog world at the end of the day,mine burns of everything she can shovel in her mouth.
Go with the vet.


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## Bob Engelhardt

She does seem a bit thin, but not too much. Except you say that her "...spine and hips are quite visible." That's too thin for me. What I would suggest is to enhance her kibble with some of the human foods that TexasRed suggested. As T-Red also said, be careful about spoiling her so that human food is all she'll eat. Just enough added to pick up her interest.

Of course, how she looks is a very subjective, even emotional, judgement for us to make. The bottom line is that she is probably perfectly fine at her natural weight and that you shouldn't worry about her. Dogs that have food withheld become undernourished. I don't think that a dog will let itself be undernourished by choosing not to eat.

If she were mine, I would try to add some weight, because I think that she would look better. But I wouldn't worry about it if she didn't add any.

Bob


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## R E McCraith

Bob - I go with !!!!!!!! eat a MOUSE - STARVE a CAT - LOL - PIKE is a MOUSER !!!!!! LOL


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## Wiganrugby

Thanks all. Will look into these satin balls. I guess she is healthy so can't be too bad. 

Thanks


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## CatK

Morris has too much rib on show for my liking too. I don't like that I can see a bit of spine. We've been free feeding and he still isn't putting on weight, but he's got loads of energy and good shiny coat. We're going to switch to raw food asap and see if we can get a tiny bit more on him. 

Ruby has such a sweet face 😊


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## dextersmom

We struggle with keeping Dexter's weight up too. Even when we did free feed it didn't help. He looks great for the most part, but I don't like that I can see 5 vertebrae at any given time. And if he doesn't feel good and skips dinner for a day or something, he looks awful. 

Lately we've been giving him scrambled eggs and some canned food in his kongs or mixed in with his meals. It usually gets him to eat breakfast (he prefers to only eat dinner) so that's a plus. I think I read somewhere that adding canned food to their diet is also suspected to help prevent bloat, so it's a win win. I can also switch up the can flavors without making him sick (he only gets a couple spoonfuls a day) so that keeps him more interested. We also give him a squirt of Nutrical on his food if he really doesn't have an appetite. He's 56 lbs. most of the time, but if he's getting all that extra stuff consistently, he's more like 58 lbs. Whereas before he would get close to 52 lbs. if he was running a lot and being picky about his food.


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## R E McCraith

I free feed PIKE kibble - once a week mix in 1/2 a can of either pumpkin or squash (no additives) this always causes a empty bowl - most pups can not resist the natural sugars -


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## MCD

Our breeder was too concerned that Dharma looked anorexic the second last time we took her to be boarded. We have since had her spayed, which helped. But we cook liver, chicken, rice, pasta or hamburger or hotdogs. She sometimes gets cheese. We have had to mix 2 different kinds of kibble to get optimum results in coat, weight and stool consistency. Dharma is almost 2 years old and is really just starting to look amazing but it was a science to figure out what worked for her as she had a lot of stomach upset as a puppy.


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## Spy Car

To me it looks like the posted photo was taken with a wide-angle lens, which is causing fore-shorting (making the head look large and the rear-end tiny). So the "skinniness" is exacerbated by camera optics.

Still on the skinny side, but I'd take a slightly lean V over a fat one any time.

I feed mine a raw diet: meat, bones, organs, fish, connective tissue, etc.. I'm convinced this is the way to go. My V eats lustfully at meal-time, but I think it may just be his nature. He's never had kibble.

Those satin balls contain cereal (which I don't believe are part a natural canine diet) and are not balanced nutritionally, the calcium and phosphorus ratio is off, they have no bone, or vitamins from organs. If I wanted to improve my dog's nutrition, feeding satin balls is not the way I'd go. As a rare treat, not a big deal, but there are better options IMO.

Bill


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## Wiganrugby

Hi Bill. 

The photo was taken using my iPhone and it's a pretty spot on depiction of Ruby. I too am not sure about the cereal content but at a loss do I will give the satin balls a go.


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## Spy Car

Wiganrugby said:


> Hi Bill.
> 
> The photo was taken using my iPhone and it's a pretty spot on depiction of Ruby. I too am not sure about the cereal content but at a loss do I will give the satin balls a go.


I don't know if you are open to trying a raw diet for your dog (or not). I do know that I, like most dog owners, fed my previous dogs kibble, believing at the time that was best. 

I lost one of those dogs, an Irish Setter, to bloat that was directly related to the kibble diet. Another, vigorously athletic Weimaraner, I now believe suffered in his later years (passing at only 9.5) from what I think was poor diet (but what I then trusted was sound) despite his great genetic advantages.

I've started to post a few times and erased the messages. I'm afraid raw feeders can sound like faddists, internet crazies, or cultists. And I don't want to be obnoxious, or make others who make different choices defensive. But with this V, who is going to turn 1 year old on Saturday (and has been raw fed from arrival at 8 weeks), I'm witnessing a beast who is in spectacular condition. His teeth are gleaming white, there is no fat or belly paunch, the muscles are hard and lean, and the coat glossy.

I have come to believe that while dogs may be somewhat better at assimilating starches than their wolf ancestors, that grains and starches are not an optimal part of a canine diet. Most commercial kibbles are about 50% starch in the form of grains or other starches.

If, for sake of argument, the underlying diet (of kibble) is not optimal, then adding a sub-optimal treat (satin balls) to put on weight is somewhat analogous to feeding milkshakes to a child who picks at a diet of junk food to fatten her up. I realize this sounds a little harsh, and some might object to kibble being compared to junk food, but (hate to say it) a heavily grain (or starch) based diet is unnatural one for canines.

If you have a dog that assimilated starch well, or relished her meals, I might say mum. But she does not appear to want to eat kibble, and you asked for perspectives.

I would think about a more natural diet. You could do an experiment with a small amount of meat and see how she reacts to that (not too much, so as to not cause upset).

If you want help in this regard there are a number of us on the forum who feed our dogs raw. If it is not a realistic option, I'll quiet down. 

All the best to you,

Bill


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## texasred

I tried looking up the food you have her on *Beta Superia Adult food *
I couldn't find one that had Superia in the name. I did notice the brands main ingredient is cereal, not a meat protein, and that the protein and fat listed in there foods is lower than what most of us feed. I wouldn't drastically change her to a very high protein and fat food. But think you could up it slowly to see how she fills out. 
Just go by what fits you, and your dog. 
You can try the satin ball, or mixing cooked food, or a higher protein/fat dog food in with hers, or raw as some of the members do on the forum.

I don't feed raw, so I'm no help in that area.


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## texasred

Spy car
Satin balls are only meant to be a weight gaining supplement, not the dogs main meal.
I'm not getting into the debate of raw vs kibble. 
That's the dog owners personal decision.


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## Spy Car

TexasRed said:


> Spy car
> Satin balls are only meant to be a weight gaining supplement, not the dogs main meal.
> I'm not getting into the debate of raw vs kibble.
> That's the dog owners personal decision.


I'm aware they are intended as a "supplement." But they are not a nutritionally balanced supplement, are ones that contain grains and sugars, and are supplementing a diet that is nutritionally suspect in the first place. 

I'm suggesting that there is a more optimal alternative. There is a chance that Ruby might not take to a raw diet any more than kibble. That is possible. But were I in this spot, I'd consider alternatives beyond adding treats with dubious ingredients to a kibble based diet that does not appear to be working to the owner's satisfaction.

I know dog feeding issues are prone to being contentious. I'm not trying to make anyone feel badly about their choices. I'm just seeing results in my own dog, and similar results in the dogs of friends who raw feed, and the differences vs kibble fed dogs are clear. That is a perspective that I'm attempting to share in a respectful fashion. 

Bill


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## lyra

Wiganrugby, a few standing shots would be more useful to assess her weight. Ideally standing straight looking ahead.

We have two Vs - Lyra who is a perfect weight and Ruta who is a few pounds short of what I would like her to be. That said, we don't obsess about it. I've probably met at least a couple of hundred Vizslas over the years and Ruta is the most active Vizsla I've encountered. She has the biggest thighs I've seen on a bitch and could tow our car out of a ditch if you put a lead on her so she doesn't seem to be suffering! I've attached a photo of the girls - my first on the forum! Ruta is on the left, Lyra on the right.

With regards to kibble v raw, I don't have strong feelings. I think you will find Spy Car that the vast majority of people on the forum are very open to differing views to their own. We feed kibble but that said, the quality of kibbles does vary a lot. Our girls get Orijen Adult Dog Food which is 90% fresh poultry, eggs and fish and 10% fruit and veg. No cereals. It's expensive, twice the price of most kibbles but it seems to suit them well and is meant to be a more 'natural' diet.


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## Spy Car

Lyra said:


> Wiganrugby, a few standing shots would be more useful to assess her weight. Ideally standing straight looking ahead.
> 
> We have two Vs - Lyra who is a perfect weight and Ruta who is a few pounds short of what I would like her to be. That said, we don't obsess about it. I've probably met at least a couple of hundred Vizslas over the years and Ruta is the most active Vizsla I've encountered. She has the biggest thighs I've seen on a bitch and could tow our car out of a ditch if you put a lead on her so she doesn't seem to be suffering! I've attached a photo of the girls - my first on the forum! Ruta is on the left, Lyra on the right.
> 
> With regards to kibble v raw, I don't have strong feelings. I think you will find Spy Car that the vast majority of people on the forum are very open to differing views to their own. We feed kibble but that said, the quality of kibbles does vary a lot. Our girls get Orijen Adult Dog Food which is 90% fresh poultry, eggs and fish and 10% fruit and veg. No cereals. It's expensive, twice the price of most kibbles but it seems to suit them well and is meant to be a more 'natural' diet.


The Orijen Adult Dog Food you're feeding is a freeze-dried raw food the company is making as a convenient alternative to a traditional raw diet. They promote it was such saying, it "offers all the benefits of a raw diet, nourishing your dogs as nature intended." 

This is not "kibble" by the standard definition of being a rendered, extruded, and baked mix of cereals and meat meals.

Personally I think it is great that people who might not want to deal with traditional raw food have alternatives that maximize convenience while not sacrificing good nutrition. Orijen touts they are providing "biologically appropriate dog food" (pointedly unlike kibble) and that they follow the "prey model" used by raw feeders when formulating the food.

This is a good trend IMO.

Bill


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## MCD

In defense of kibble- It depends on what brand and what is in the kibble. The 2 that we mix have no grains and gluten or byproducts. It depends on how the kibble is cooked. That being said- our breeder feeds kibble as well as always cooking something for her dogs. Also we feed something totally different than what the breeder feeds. As I have said before- we have a v who seemed to have a lot of digestive upset in the past and nothing worked to resolve it but time and experimenting with what works. IMO we all just want what is best for our pets and what works for ease of feeding.


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## lyra

I suppose I was using the term 'kibble' to describe the 'packaging' rather than the content or how it is processed. And that is the problem with kibble, you need to check what is in it. 

I have an open mind about the cereal debate. Yes, dogs don't naturally go out and eat cereals but it is taken in naturally from the guts of animals they eat. There is no scientific evidence that it does them harm. There may be individual dogs that it doesn't agree with in the same way you have some humans who are gluten intolerant. I think it is an interesting fact that a dog can survive on a meat free diet (unlike cats for instance). Even the term 'cereal' can cover a wide range of sources and quality from proper quality whole grain to the 'sweepings off the floor' rubbish that is left over when all the good stuff is extracted. 

That said, I have erred on the 'safe side' and gone with a product that tries to imitate a 'natural' diet but has the benefit of being more convenient than a raw diet. If I couldn't find a kibble that I was happy with and the dogs didn't do well on and liked I would probably be raw feeding.

Getting back to the original post, I think there are four points:
1. Is your dog really underweight? - need some better pics to tell.
2. Consider the *quality* of what you are feeding whether kibble or raw. With kibbles I personally think the quality of the raw ingredients is as important as what the ingredients are. The manufacturer's websites should give information and there are plenty of internet sources you can search for.
3. Does your dog *like* what you are feeding her? Vizslas can tend to be a bit fussy and however good the food its little help if the dog doesn't like it enough to eat sufficient to keep her weight on. Some people mix 'extras' in with the kibble to encourage them to eat it. We had to do this with our previous kibble but don't with the Orijen.
4. Don't get hung up on it. If she's fit and healthy that's the important thing.


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## einspänner

Well we've already strayed from the OP's question, so I might as well add my own thoughts.

The raw/kibble debate is actually really similar to the paleo diet/standard diet in humans, if anyone is familiar with that. Basically the question they try to answer is what does our biology indicate we should be eating. Sounds reasonable enough, but humans attach a whole lot of emotions and financial interests to it and suddenly it's not about what we are optimized to eat in order to best fuel our bodies, but a mess of guilt, entitlement, half-truths and anger. 

I don't disagree with Bill's comparison to junk food, but it has it's faults and of course immediately alienates those of you feed kibble. No, it's not like you're all only feeding your dogs cheetos or something devoid of nutritional value, it's more like you're taking some meat, some veggies, a whole bunch of synthetic vitamins, then sticking it in a blender with the cheetos, then dehydrating it, extruding it into bite-sized pieces and thinking it's somehow better. We do that with our own food when we buy the latest high fiber, ancient grain, low-fat, no-sugar, baked-not-fried, donut thins, so of course we'll do the same for our dogs especially when the knowledgeable vet is selling us the latest scientifically formulated kibble, (don't worry they make a canned version too!) for the exact health issue our dog has. It's not that complicated though. Sure when I tell someone starting out on raw, make sure you feed 80/10/10 percent of meat, organ, and bones it seems complicated, but that's only because we're not used it, and compared to scooping out a cup of kibble... well it is complicated. Now I eyeball everything and pay attention to how she digests it. 

We don't want to make anyone feel bad for choosing to feed kibble, but if you come to us with a problem, well we're going to blame the kibble. Like any evangelist, we've seen the light and we're not good about shutting up about it.


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## Spy Car

Lyra said:


> I suppose I was using the term 'kibble' to describe the 'packaging' rather than the content or how it is processed. And that is the problem with kibble, you need to check what is in it.
> 
> I have an open mind about the cereal debate. Yes, dogs don't naturally go out and eat cereals but it is taken in naturally from the guts of animals they eat. There is no scientific evidence that it does them harm. There may be individual dogs that it doesn't agree with in the same way you have some humans who are gluten intolerant. I think it is an interesting fact that a dog can survive on a meat free diet (unlike cats for instance). Even the term 'cereal' can cover a wide range of sources and quality from proper quality whole grain to the 'sweepings off the floor' rubbish that is left over when all the good stuff is extracted.
> 
> That said, I have erred on the 'safe side' and gone with a product that tries to imitate a 'natural' diet but has the benefit of being more convenient than a raw diet. If I couldn't find a kibble that I was happy with and the dogs didn't do well on and liked I would probably be raw feeding.
> 
> Getting back to the original post, I think there are four points:
> 1. Is your dog really underweight? - need some better pics to tell.
> 2. Consider the *quality* of what you are feeding whether kibble or raw. With kibbles I personally think the quality of the raw ingredients is as important as what the ingredients are. The manufacturer's websites should give information and there are plenty of internet sources you can search for.
> 3. Does your dog *like* what you are feeding her? Vizslas can tend to be a bit fussy and however good the food its little help if the dog doesn't like it enough to eat sufficient to keep her weight on. Some people mix 'extras' in with the kibble to encourage them to eat it. We had to do this with our previous kibble but don't with the Orijen.
> 4. Don't get hung up on it. If she's fit and healthy that's the important thing.


Not to quibble, but that ain't kibble ;D

I'm actually very pleased to see companies like Orijen striving to make biologically appropriate freeze-dried food. But other than coming in a bag, neither the ingredients or the processing are similar to standard commercial kibble. If I was forced by circumstances not to have the raw option, I'd love to have something like the Orijen free-dried food as an alternative.

I think we'd find we have many points in common. The most salient being, "is Rudy really underweight?" The photos make it hard to tell.

There are many fine points we could discuss, I'll limit myself to one. The producers of commercial kibbles (not you) have attempted to justify the enormous amount of grain in their product by arguing wolves eat the stomach contents of their prey. The reality is observation of wolves in the wild shows they shake out the stomach content of large pry prior to eating the stomach lining (avoiding eating the contents inside). It also neglect the fact that large prey and smaller prey (whose stomach contents may be eaten do the small size) are not typically eating grains and cereals. If wild canines consume some grain it would be a very tiny and insignificant part of their diet, and not cause or justification to feed a massive ration of "starchy filler" to carnivores.

These ingredients are in dog food because they are inexpensive, not because they are species appropriate. Dogs have neither the dentition to grind plant based food (or a jaw that moves side to side, like omnivores and herbivores), nor the digestive enzymes to break down grains in the saliva (unlike omnivores and herbivores), and they have a very short digestive tract that is well suited to digest meat, bones, organs and connective tissues, but is ill suited to breaking down grains.

I don't mean to sound argumentative. I see how well a V can thrive on a natural diet, and want to share that there are alternatives to a kibble based diet (especially for dogs that are not thriving).

Bill


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## Spy Car

einspänner said:


> Well we've already strayed from the OP's question, so I might as well add my own thoughts.
> 
> The raw/kibble debate is actually really similar to the paleo diet/standard diet in humans, if anyone is familiar with that. Basically the question they try to answer is what does our biology indicate we should be eating. Sounds reasonable enough, but humans attach a whole lot of emotions and financial interests to it and suddenly it's not about what we are optimized to eat in order to best fuel our bodies, but a mess of guilt, entitlement, half-truths and anger.
> 
> I don't disagree with Bill's comparison to junk food, but it has it's faults and of course immediately alienates those of you feed kibble. No, it's not like you're all only feeding your dogs cheetos or something devoid of nutritional value, it's more like you're taking some meat, some veggies, a whole bunch of synthetic vitamins, then sticking it in a blender with the cheetos, then dehydrating it, extruding it into bite-sized pieces and thinking it's somehow better. We do that with own food when we buy the latest high fiber, ancient grain, low-fat, no-sugar, baked-not-fried, donut thins, so of course we'll do the same for our dogs especially when the knowledgeable vet is selling us the latest scientifically formulated kibble, (don't worry they make a canned version too!) for the exact health issue our dog has. It's not that complicated though. Sure when I tell someone starting out on raw, make sure you feed 80/10/10 percent of meat, organ, and bones it seems complicated, but that's only because we're not used it, and compared to scooping out a cup of kibble... well it is complicated. Now I eyeball everything and pay attention to how she digests it.
> 
> We don't want to make anyone feel bad for choosing to feed kibble, but if you come to us with a problem, well we're going to blame the kibble. Like any evangelist, we've seen the light and we're not good about shutting up about it.


Oh dear. I've been kind of, sort of, good about keeping quiet-ish, what went wrong??? 

Bill


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## Wiganrugby

Wow. That's a lot of info to take in. The food that we feed her was advised by the breeder ( who is also a vet with over 30 years experience of Vizsla). I am interested in the raw food option but don't have a clue where to start??? I have attached a few more photos of Ruby.


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## lyra

Always easier when you see a dog in the flesh but from those pics she looks absolutely fine to me 

I'm sure others will share their opinions.


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## lyra

Einspänner and Bill...I understand the evangelism. Just get me started on the subject of neutering of dogs 

The nice thing on this forum (usually) is that all views tend to be expressed as "I do it this way because...." as you have done, rather than "you should do it my way or you are a bad dog owner"


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## organicthoughts

I am also a raw feeder and my pup never did well on kibble when I had him on it. Really has filled out nicely on raw and haven't been to the vet in over a year.

Your boy looks fine in my opinion though. Just looks like a young one. He will fill out in time.

If you want to start on raw.... Try something easy for a couple of weeks. Buy some pre-mix chicken or turkey from a raw pet food company and add in a couple of chicken necks and some blended veg/fruit. Voila! You aim for balance over time, not in every meal.

There is a Facebook group called Vizslas Raw & Natural which has a bevy of info on how to start and dive in head first into the raw feeding world.


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## Spy Car

Lyra said:


> Einspänner and Bill...I understand the evangelism. Just get me started on the subject of neutering of dogs


Right there with you on that one.

I hope I didn't offend anyone. I enjoy the respectful tone of this forum and don't want to be "that guy" no matter how enthusiastically I might fell about the issue.

Bill


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## Spy Car

Wiganrugby,

Ruby looks pretty good to me. She is obviously light boned and on the thinner end of the scale, but I'd take slightly thin over slightly heavy anytime. If she is active and vital I would not worry about her weight. A wee bit of muscle wouldn't detract, but I think she looks good.

Bill


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## einspänner

Wiganruby, looks like possibly a bit too much spine is showing in the top pic, but in the others she looks good. I'd say add two pounds tops. I know with my dog, she didn't look as skinny in pics as she was in person, so we could be wrong. I've got to go, but I'll pull up some resources on the raw diet later since you said you're interested. In the meantime, just do a search on the forum. 


Lyra, I stick by what I said, but certainly don't mean any offense, nor do I think you or any other non-raw feeders are bad owners. I'm so sorry it sounded that way and I'll be more mindful of how I phrase things in the future!


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## lyra

einspänner said:


> Lyra, I stick by what I said, but certainly don't mean any offense, nor do I think you or any other non-raw feeders are bad owners. I'm so sorry it sounded that way and I'll be more mindful of how I phrase things in the future!


You've misunderstood what I said...I didn't think you caused any offence or implied other dog owners weren't doing the best by their dogs if they didn't feed raw.


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## Bob Engelhardt

Our previous 2 V's were fed Iams grain-full kibble and lived to 16 years each; fit and without any chronic metabolic problems. A single anecdote for sure, but I don't think that any of the feeding models have good data behind them.

Our current 2 are fed TOTW grain free, at a cost significantly greater than Iams. Not for any good reason - it just seemed like a good idea.

We would probably feed raw if it wasn't much more expensive and trouble some.

Which to feed and why? I dunno.

Bob


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## texasred

I bet most of our dogs eat healthier than we do.


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## R E McCraith

the ? was - skinny girl - wig did the right thing - Go 2 the Vet - I should of replied - also check with breeder and ask - about her litter mates - sire and dam - this gives you another benchmark about your girl - sometimes it's just genetics - lifestyle enters into it - mine hunt & the year is spent building and maintaining mussel mass - type of diet is & will always V a debate - on this forum U get what works for members pups !!! pick & choose what works 4 your girl - BUT when changing diet - do it slowly !!!!!!!


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## mswhipple

I think that members of this forum are passionate about what and how much to feed our dogs because we love our dogs so much! We want to feel that we are doing it the right way. I've come to believe that maybe there's more than one "right way". In any case, it is a very personal decision, and no amount of "arguing" is likely to change anybody's mind. ;D ;D ;D


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## lyra

mswhipple said:


> I've come to believe that maybe there's more than one "right way". In any case, it is a very personal decision, and no amount of "arguing" is likely to change anybody's mind. ;D ;D ;D


Maybe. But for people following a discussion (remember a lot more people read these posts than post themselves) it shows them the issues they need to think about and what options are available so they can them make their own nformed decision.

We had no previous experience of owning dogs and, although we read widely, this forum in particular has been invaluable for informing our decisions about food, neutering, e-collars, training, breeders, rescues and of course the endless, endless puppy questions! ;D


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## Wiganrugby

R said:


> the ? was - skinny girl - wig did the right thing - Go 2 the Vet - I should of replied - also check with breeder and ask - about her litter mates - sire and dam - this gives you another benchmark about your girl - sometimes it's just genetics - lifestyle enters into it - mine hunt & the year is spent building and maintaining mussel mass - type of diet is & will always V a debate - on this forum U get what works for members pups !!! pick & choose what works 4 your girl - BUT when changing diet - do it slowly !!!!!!!
> 
> 
> Her dad is a show dog and was recently placed second at crufts. Her mom is a very active working dog. That was half of the issue as I was comparing her to her parents.


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## Spy Car

Wiganrugby,

I think you have a beautiful dog. Really! Ruby is a little on the skinny side, but (as I've said repeatedly) I'd take that over a little tubby anytime. Personally, I would not try to "fatten her up" just for the sake of putting on weight.

What got my attention from the first post was her lack of interest in food. In your position I'd try something different (even a small experiment) to see if her relative indifference to food is just her nature, or if her attitude would be different if fed differently.

Bill


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## Wiganrugby

Thanks Bill. That's great to hear a compliment from another owner. She has been better as we have been experimenting with feeding time, routine, adding water to the food and trying alternatives. I am sure we will get there. 

Thanks again

Simon


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## MCD

Dharma looked thinner than that in November....... The breeder was horrified. You can't make them eat if they don't want to. You can only try something different. In our case it was giving her another brand of food and adding different human food to her diet. But she absolutely scarfed the new food and has bulked up.(She was also spayed in December). It was also good to do some research on the parents too.


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## mommaofalot

Our Koda loved her taste of the wild puppy food for months and then one day she just refused to eat it. My husband kept saying she will eat when she's hungry but after two day of only getting her to take a couple nibbles I was ready to take her to the vet. Then I had an idea... I took her food and the beagles food and put them both next her and she ate the other food with no problem (which is purina pro plan). When I called the breeder to chit chat he told me some Vs are picky eaters and some Vs get tired of eating the same stuff and you have to switch it up sometimes. Its all in figuring out what your dog likes best.


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## mswhipple

That is very true! I remember back in the 1990's, I had a Bluetick Coonhound named Elly Mae who did the same thing as Koda. She loved her food for a long time, and ate with enthusiasm. Then, all of a sudden, she got tired of it. I switched her brand, and it was all good again. After a while, she got tired of that, too... and I switched her to something else again! Talked to the Vet about it and he said, "Elly Mae is just going to be a girl who demands a lot of variety." That's how I got into the habit of changing out the food brands regularly, something that I still do to this day. Willie has a regular food rotation and he rarely gets "fussy" about eating. The thing is, there are so many brands of high quality dog food on the market now that it's unlikely you would ever run out of choices. ;D ;D ;D

p.s. I've never had a dog that developed food allergies.


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