Maybe you should check out some information on racing sled dogs. They are usually feed an extremely high protein high fat diet. If you've ever seen Alaskan huskies they usually look very very thin. They burn a tremendous amount of energy and don't look like they have any fat on them at all. Perhaps you could get some feeding tips from them. Or even from a hunting dog association. They usually feed a high performance food. Why don't you try adding some extra high fat protein? Like sardines in oil? Hope some of this helps?!

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Well IMHO nothing you can do to add the weight. My dog who is 4 now is 25 and 67 pounds. Tops. I have tried everything. Adding those satin balls, molasses, honey, enzymes, etc. etc. He will not gain weight. I think dogs like humans have varied metabolisms and where some only need a little food to gain weight others burn it off due to a very high metabolism. My dog is a couch potato, he is on barf and I have resigned myself to the fact he will always be this thin. It definitely seems to bother me more than him <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

I agree with VanCamp. This is a young dog, still in growing and maturity phase. Healthwise; if there are absolutely no parasites detected nor any other health problems; I wouldn't be in a hurry to try and add weight while in growth pattern. I have found that large breed dogs mature and fill out much later than the smaller breeds. However; if the dog is in "perpetual motion 24/7" (I didn't catch the activity level mentioned), then you may want to add a large breed growth formula puppy food which may add some pounds. My older female lab was experiencing a shift of body mass and became "boney looking". To combat this, I've added the puppy formula food to her adult formula food which has resulted in a nice acceptable weight gain.

German Shepherd dogs are very prone to Pancreatic Insufficency.. I would surely have the vet check for that.. the other thing you could try is some Peak 2 Products.. that put good muscle weight on my young male when everything else failed. I would also can the Eukanuba and feed a better food. Good luck with your dog.

Jody

Looks like you've already received some very helpful replies. It is always better to have your puppy/dog be a little on the slender side rather than overweight. I would suggest switching him from the Eukanuba to a better quality food - I feed Nutro Natural Chicken and Rice myself b/c I feel it's of excellent quality for the money, made with human-grade ingredients. There are many other foods out there to compare, as well. Different foods work for different dogs. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

Carbs could help add weight, and I would also suggest getting your GSD checked out by a vet - just in case. Let us know what transpires. Good luck. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

Hi Robert,
From everyone elses posts I'm assuming that you will take your dog to a vet for a thorough exam. From the amount of calories that it appears your dogs was consuming on either the raw or kibble diets, it should have gained weight. Since it didn't, there are several possibilities:
1) Hormonal imbalance(s)
2) Difficulty in absorption or utilization of nutrients
3) Increased basal metabolic rate due to extreme activity level
Your vet should check for 1 and for some symptoms of 2, but there are many factors relating to the digestibility of the food you feed that your vet cannot check for (a university vet could if you wanted to conduct a Digestible Engergy study with your dog - but that would be extremely expensive and finding someone willing to do that would be rare). If the transit time of the food through your dogs system is too rapid for your dog to utilize it, it would be extremely difficult to put weight on your dog. Feeding a diet that is exceptionally dense in calories can help overcome this, however they often increase transit time causing a circular problem, and can cause other types of problems (gut distress and the runs).
After determining that there are no health problems causing the difficulty in weight gain, an easy and quick way to see if a high calorie density diet would help is to feed a normal amount of kibble in two separate meals (from a previous post I thought you said that 4 cups was the recommended level, so feed 2 cups per meal), to this add 2 cooked eggs and a 1/4 cup of oil.

Really cannot add to these excellent posts, but I would remind everyone that the majority of monthly dewormers do not address tapeworms. With tapes, if the dog does not have a pretty obvious case, he will pass most of the segments (evidence!) with his first stool of the day.

Not at all unusual for a fecal sample to not show evidence of tapes when, in fact, they are there.

I know we should keep our dogs on the thin side for healthy hips i agree, but i am starting to worry, recently my female gsd is turning her nose up at her food, but she loves her treats and our leftovers, so i may have created this myself, i am concerned about her weight, when will she start to really fill out? another year maybe i am thinking? she is 1 year old, 62 pounds, and eats 3 cups total of california natural dog food.

by the way she is long hair, so she looks good and healthy but i am feel her ribs and her vertibra. so i am little concerned.

Tammy, 62 lbs may be right on target for your female. Feeling her ribs is a good thing, and feeling the vertebrae is not necessarly bad dependin on how your dog is built. If her back has somewhat of a roach to it, you will be much more likely to feel the spine. If her hip bones are easily palpable then I would be a little more concerned.

About her not wanting to eat. That is her choice, and most dogs will not starve themselves. Too many people give in and feed the dog what it wants instead of what it needs.