# Sydney is not eating enough



## kristinab (Jun 20, 2011)

I have a female Vizsla named Sydney and she is a little over a year old. Currently she weighs around 38 lbs, which seems normal, but she seems very skinny. She sometimes doesn't seem to eat nearly enough. Sometimes she goes over a day without even touching her food. We feed her Nature's Recipe (Farmstand Selects) just because she likes the "goodies" in it, referring to carrots, peas, etc. She doesn't get table scraps, except for the occasional peanut butter sandwich to try and put some weight on her. 
I know around 40lbs is the lower end of typical weight for the breed, but we figured she should be closer to 50lbs as both her "parents" were in the higher side of weight for the breed.
When we let her outside to do her "business," half to alot of the time, it's not very solid, so I don't know if this has anything to do with her food maybe.
Any suggestions on what to do or if this is normal for her age, let me know, that would be great.


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## redbirddog (Apr 23, 2010)

http://redbirddog.blogspot.com/search?q=satin+balls

This might help with Sydney.

Let me know. Worked for Bailey during field trial season. He normally is about 62 pounds and looks darn right skinny at 55 pounds. Satin Balls adds the weight quickly.

Once the hips are covered and only an outline of the ribs show, stop.

Good Luck.

Rod


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## kellygh (Oct 25, 2010)

We recently made a batch of satin balls for Pumpkin (10m). She has always been a picky eater. She too will skip a meal or just eat some of the 1.5-2 cups we put down for each of her 2 meals. Even as a little pup, we could never get her to eat the recommended 3x per day. We have experimented with food brands & different high quality canned foods or ingredients to mix with her kibble to entice her to eat. Right now we are mixing 1 1/2 balls in with her kibble. Fortunately, P likes the satin balls  It seems Vs can be very picky eaters. We do what works while sticking with very high quality kibble. It's an ongoing experiment, but she is doing well. Look over some of the other threads re: weight. Good Luck!


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## JillandDan (Sep 8, 2010)

They are definitely picky eaters. We have been through numerous brands of quality food as well. The loose stool may be because she isn't eating enough but it may be linked to her food. Some dogs react differently. We have to add fiber to Holley's food because she has fiber-responsive colitis. But we did notice looser stools with Blue Buffalo and Wellness. We have just switched to Merrick and Holley seems to like it better than Nutro Natural. We were going to go Grain-Free but our vet felt we shouldn't right now due to her tummy issues. The grain-free can make stool worse in some cases. There are many times that Holley doesn't eat much during the day but we just let her go as she is healthy and will eat when she is hungry. We were getting scared before at this but the vet had said that she won't let herself starve and to stop adding treats in to get her to eat because then she is training us to give her treats to eat her food. Good luck to you.


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## datacan (May 15, 2011)

When our dog refused to eat regularly, we Vet checked for GDV, - to add an opinion. 
GDV should be suspected in dogs with intermittent vomiting, weight loss, mild bloating, rumbling sounds in the bowel and/or belching.
Some veterinarians advocate the feeding of large pieces of fresh/raw fruits and vegetables (e.g. apples, oranges, carrots) 3 to 4 times a week. The reason is that commercial dog food lacks the appropriate amount of roughage that a dog needs in order for the stomach to function properly.

Vet recommended:
No exercise 45 min prior eating and after eating 1hour+ for Viszla (2 hours for other large dogs).
Please try and not[/color] feed one large meal/day! 
Please feed at least 2 smaller meals.
If feeding kibble please consider soaking them in water 10 min prior to feeding.
Try not to buy kibble that expands too much when wet.

It worked for us (GS dog, though). If this happens to us I will try do same for our Viszla.

Have not tried Ron's recipe - satin balls look delicious. 
I am afraid if we try our V. will have hard time eating kibble again.


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## redbirddog (Apr 23, 2010)

Just a point of clarification. 

For me Satin Balls are not added to kibble. 

They are feed separately and I use them as a treat for doing something, like retrieving a stuffed toy bird.

Diet is a complicated subject and satin balls are really energy food that I use when Bailey gets thin from hard exercising and training.


Rod


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## kristinab (Jun 20, 2011)

Thanks guys! I will try all of your suggestions. I really hope these few things help, she is a very energetic dog, which doesn't surprise me with Vizslas.


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## kellygh (Oct 25, 2010)

I typically use satin balls as a treat also. I have mixed them with Pumpkin's kibble though, because she will eat it. Don't know if that's right or wrong, but it has worked for us. It hasen't made P any less likely to eat kibble if it is not in the food (which it is most often not).


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