I have a 3 yr old, female GSD that is overweight and has kidney damage. I've been able to keep her BUN and Creatinine levels within normal range by controlling her protein intake. I watch it like a hawk! Her kidneys are functioning normally. Her thyroid was tested in May and it's normal.

She's been on Wellness weight management, but still gained weight, so I switched her to Science Diet Adult Light. I know, it sucks even more, but she's lost 6 lbs already. I don't feel good about feeding her this.

We walk 2-3 miles a day before work and in the evenings, I blow bubbles for her. She's never really been interested in a ball, but loves to chase and catch bubbles. With a nice breeze, she can wear her butt out!

My question is if she were on a good high quality kibble, can she still lose the weight? And which would you recommend? Should it be a "weight management" food? I'm currently adding green beans to her food, sometimes broccoli and cauliflower. She also gets Vitamin E and Salmon Oil, a little bit of Metamucil and ground Flaxseed in her food for extra fiber. She eats 2-1/2 to 3 cups a day, split into 2 feedings.

My dad keeps my dogs a couple days a week and I found out that he was overfeeding her. So now, I pre-measure the food for him instead of giving him a container of the stuff. My other dog is a very lean, 90 lb female GSD. She's 2 yrs old and you can't get her to gain weight - not that I want her to!! She's on Timberwolf.

Any insight you can give is greatly appreciated.

Thanks!

I wouldn't bother with anything LESS than a high quality kibble. Toss the science diet out.

As for the weight -- how much are you feeding?? I have no problem borderline starving a dog to get them to drop weight. I know, i'm mean. But if the dog is too heavy then the dog is getting too much food.

Maybe there is some other reason that I am unaware of... just my take on it.

Edit: I don't know the ingredients list for the Science Diet weight loss food, but I'll bet that "weight loss diet" = "less actual digestible food and more filler." I would assume that you might as well feed a good quality kibble in much smaller amounts, vs. a weight loss diet in regular quantities.

The guy at the pet store here told me to use puffed rice as a filler if a dog seems too hungry after eating. I don't know if that's good or bad for a dog, perhaps someone else will know.

 Quote: francie hallings

We walk 2-3 miles a day before work and in the evenings, I blow bubbles for her. She's never really been interested in a ball, but loves to chase and catch bubbles. With a nice breeze, she can wear her butt out!

Don't know how much I can suggest here, but this is just the sweetest image! I love it.

Is there any way you could switch to a high-quality kibble and just feed less of it than you are now? I know 3 cups a day isn't much, but I tend to think that quality overrides quantity, so even if she only ate 1 cup a day, if all the ingredients were completely useful and beneficial to her system (rather than all the filler in Science Diet), she'd stay healthy without being able to pack any unwanted calories away. You could further "bulk" up the meals with the veggies you mentioned, which have next to no calories but would help her feel fuller.

Have you considered feeding raw? I personally think weight management is easier with the raw diet (from my experience), and it would allow you to really tinker with all the parts of the meal until your girl started to shed those pounds.

May I ask what caused her kidney damage, and whether that is influencing her weight?

Edited to add: I'm with Mike! Unless more serious medical issues are at play here...

~Natalya

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3 cups a day isn't much

Cujo is 63lbs and has HD, so I keep him ultra lean, he gets 2-2.3 cups a day.

My pups are 80lbs and I was feeding 2.75 cups/day, and stepped it up to just over 3 cups when I found they were a tad on the skinny side.

3 cups a day is too much IMO for a dog that is overweight.

You can definitely feed a regular or high quality kibble and still have a dog loose weight.

Just feed the dog less. I never go by the directions on the back of the bag as there are too many variables not addressed.

You have 2 reasons not to feed the recommended amount on the bag: dog needs to lose weight and dog has low-moderate activity level

How much does she weigh?

I adjust food for dogs that need to lose weight, based on results in 10 days to 2 weeks time. Start feeding less food than normal, if in the 10-14 days time the dog is at same condition reduce food again. If the dog has lost a reasonable amount of weight maintain that amount of food. If the dog has lost too much weight for such a short time, increase food a little to make the weight loss a healthier process. This also depends on how much weight the dog needs to lose, the size of the dog, etc.

Yes, I am with everyone that you feed good-quality food, fluff it up for her with almost-zero-cal green low-cellulose vegetables, and feed for the weight she SHOULD be, not the weight she is. And even then you keep checking, because the differences in metabolism are as wide in dogs as in people.

Yes, she certainly can lose weight on quality food.

Can we have more details on the kidney problems?

P.S. So far, every commercial reducing-diet dog food I have seen has had terrible ingredients.

Yes, I can switch to a high quality kibble and feed less. That's a good idea about the rice. May have to try that. Even with the veggies, she still acts like she's starving. Of course, it's probably just an act.


I'm of feeding raw because of the protein levels. She can have a little bit of chicken or hamburger, but not a lot.

When she was 9 mos old, she escaped her crate while I was at work and got into a bottle of ibuprofen. By the time I got home, she had already digested it. She spent 5 days at the emergency hospital getting her system flushed. The vet we were going to when it happened told me to put her down because she had substantial kidney damage. One of the vets at the emergency hospital told me not to, that because she was so young, she had a good chance of pulling out of it. I'm glad I listened to the E-vet.

I have to get her blood checked 3 to 4 times a year to make sure her BUN and Creatinine is normal. The vets told me she can have a fairly long, normal life as long as I watch her protein intake, but that she would probably start showing signs of renal failure sooner than most dogs. So, she can have a little bit of meat now and then, but not a lot.

But thanks guys for responding. I take her to get her weighed tomorrow. We go every 2 weeks to get weighed. I'll start tonight with the Timberwolf and see how she does.

She currently weighs 90 lbs - and she's already lost 6. I would like to get her down to around 75-80 lbs. And bless her heart, it's like she gains weight if she just smells the food! It's like her metobolism has stopped!

I asked the vet if there was anything I could give her to boost her metabolism. The only thing she recommended was a good multivitamin. Currently, she's on Nu-Vet Plus. Is this a good vitamin, does anybody know? It was part of the puppy contract from the breeder for the first 2 years and I've just continued it.

I agree with above about ditching the Science Diet. In my opinion, poor quality food is never the answer to anything. Have you considered a raw diet? Feeding raw makes it very easy to control exactly what your dog is eating.

Here is an informative article on canine obesity

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Dogs, like cats, have no dietary requirement for carbohydrates, and this is an obvious place to cut calories. Unfortunately, most dog kibble is high in carbohydrate, and most “diet” dog foods rely on reducing levels of fat and increasing carbohydrates and fiber. Although less strictly so than cats, dogs are scientifically classified as carnivores, not omnivores, and the only function served by carbohydrates in their diet is to provide a source of energy in other words, calories. (click the link for the full article)
http://www.b-naturals.com/newsletter/category/overweight/

I don't have any experience with kidney damage, but this article was posted by someone else on this forum a few months back. I found the difference between acute kidney problems and chronic kidney problems very interesting.
http://www.b-naturals.com/newsletter/category/kidney/

And just one more link with some good information on protein and kidneys.

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Protein is processed in the liver and any waste materials are filtered and excreted by the kidneys. High quality protein does not generate large amounts of waste that needs to be removed from the body, but poor quality protein which is difficult to digest does and thus puts stress on the kidneys. http://www.dogfoodproject.com/index.php?page=protein_myth

Hope some of this information is helpful,
Shannon