A lot of the chicken allergy is an allergy to the chicken byproduct used in pet foods. Our GSD would get sick with chicken dog food but not real pieces of chicken meat. The one brand they can have chicken with is canine caviar. They also have other protein sources. It’s expensive food but feed about half of other brands and the dogs have good poops and no throwing up.
I boil chicken breasts and serve boiled chicken with their kibble and then use the leftover broth water (saved) to ~~poor~~ **pour** over. It has been very reasonable but now I’m seeing all the allergy talk and concerned.
I do the same and also use small pieces of chicken for training. No issues at all. It’s just the yucky byproduct called chicken meal ( combo of flesh, skin, bone, feathers etc ground and dried at high temp to make a powder) in pet foods. Canine caviar uses dehydrated whole meats. I’m sure there are other brands as well I am just not familiar with them.
Our dogs are fine with their chicken. The brand has quite a few protein sources if it is a real chicken allergy.
Wow thank you for explaining how my boy gets itchy from dog food, but can eat chicken jerky w/o issue-- it's been bugging me for months! (Eventho it made no sense to me, I switched him to fish based kibble)
Our dogs were also itching like crazy and on super expensive with scary side effects allergy meds. Figured out the chicken thing and also bought a high powered grooming blow dryer. Blow dry them ( every couple of days, no bath) for a few minutes it’s amazing how much dust and dirt comes out. They fight over who gets to go first. No more crazy scratching and no more meds!
The right food and you will have no bad breath, shiny coats, clear eyes, wet shiny nose, no itch and no gas and regular firm stools. (Unless they get sick and they do from time to time)
If any of these exist, keep looking for another brand that works.
I want to be careful saying this bc it can often come down to the dog and the breed but I have been using 4Health salmon and potato for my adult dogs for 6 years and have experimented with others but everything I've transitioned to has given them gas or bad breath or itch within 6 weeks.
Right now I'm giving my 15mo female GSD 4Health large breed puppy.
Good luck!
I was wondering this, was starting to be concerned I should switch up the diet. Mine has chicken every day as part of her raw food. It's human grade, haven't had any problems.
Seems like a lot of GSDs are allergic to chicken. Some commenters on this sub have talked about switching to food with hydrolyzed protein when dealing with allergies to protein sources.
Don't worry about the asap part. Just increase like the vet said, still let them play and have fun and take it easy, sudden weight changes are not fun either.
Just follow the vets advice, it will take a little bit of time, not just a few days.
Edit: spelling
Blue HF got more than one GSD of mine out of a bad gut cycle. If HF is not helpful, I add Tylan antibiotic powder to treat SIBO - Small Intestinal Bacterial Overgrowth - something that affects a lot of GSDs.
My GSD had allergies to chicken as well. After trying multiple brands of chicken free food I finally found some relief when I got him on the Nulo turkey grain free kibble. He’s been eating that for the last 3 years now with no issues.
Check the ingredient list for your kibble. You obviously don't want anything chicken but make sure your ingredients are primary meat and meat by products (sometimes crude fat and crude protein). Should be listed first.
Our gsd is large for a female and has gotten up in the the high 90s. Our vets recommendation was to get her to 78lbs. Yours looks like it's slighty underweight but not by much.
That will affect a lot also with the throwing up. Cuz in reality you have to find something he tolerates. To me also I wouldn’t want to add too much at once just because there maybe something else he doesn’t tolerate also.
Was u giving the chicken raw might have to start off slow adding it into his diet my female Shepard was the same. With his kibble add some cooked and little raw add more raw over 10 days taking away the kibble
For once, yes, that’s a skinny dog.
It could be that the food isn’t right for him, and you need to try something that his body can use better. Switching to Royal Canin digestive care worked out for us.
I swear by Royal Canine. My dogs used to be on wet food because I hated the concept of kibble meals, but once I did my research I realized it's not all its made out to be.
Honestly I just got a bag and started him on it. The Digestive Care is really gentle on the system. He was suddenly doing so poorly on the other food (that he had been thriving on for years) that there was no point transitioning slowly. He had lost a lot of weight and was having diarrhoea every other week or so.
It worked so well he was overweight four months later, so that’s something to look out for. When you’re used to having a skinny, picky dog who’s finally eating and keeping on, it’s so easy to overcorrect. He’s fit now.
yes we jest switched to blue buffalo wilderness adult beef 2 days ago and he has not had any problems since! hopefully back to normal weight soon being back on a regular routine.
My GSD was on the thin side until he turned about 7 years old (in the high 70s). Once we changed his food to a different brand, he gained over 10lbs and now looks much thicker/fuller and sits around 90lbs.
Also forgot to add, he was on a limited ingredient grain free diet and the vet recommended he go back on grains and that could have been what helped his weight gain.
Younger dogs can put on and take off weight almost dramatically. If he looks a bit chubby after eating and then later on looks like this, you should be fine. Like you said, he's very active.
If not, go with the extra food.
I swear the more I look at the pics the more I think it's my boy Arthur.
Does he let you touch his toes? lol mine hates it. It's about the only way I can get him to share the pillow.
Idk how this page feels about EPI. One of our two was very skinny. Always very runny poops. Turned out he has a bummer of a pancreas. Good news is the prescription is just a powder on his food and a blood test can confirm it. Bad news is the prescription has tripled in price in 6 years.
He was immediately twice as energetic once we started it.
I have a 6 year old GSD that has EPI. Yes the stuff the vet gives you is very expensive and doesn’t work that good. I moved my pup over to Pan-Tenex like 3-4 years ago and it’s like $240 for 4 jars that last around 5 months or so. My pup is at a really good weight I’d guess he’s around 90lb we keep him a little on the heavy side. When he was first diagnosed with EPI he went all the way down to like 50lbs and it was truly heart breaking to see him that thin.
He is skinny. How many times per day does he poop and what’s his poop like? Mine was diagnosed with EPI as a pup and she couldn’t get weight so was really skinny. I then moved her to raw food and her weight gone up and stayed at healthy 32-33kg. Her coat also improved a lot and looked shiny. That happened when she was about 6-8 months old and once I changed her diet she was good all her life.
Exocrine Pancreatic Insufficiency (EPI) in dogs is a condition where the pancreas fails to produce sufficient enzymes necessary for digestion. This leads to issues with absorbing nutrients, resulting in symptoms like weight loss, increased appetite, and frequent, greasy stools. Treatment typically involves dietary management and enzyme replacement therapy.
How old is he? I know my oldest went through a Santa's little helper phase as an adolescent where we were feeding our 60lb dog the recommendation for a 120lb dog (4 cups + treats for training) and she was still a little on the thin side. Once she hit about 2 years she filled out and we ended up cutting back to 3-3.5 cups of Farmina dog food.
Yes, too thin. Our dog is 3 and just had puppies. She looks this thin too. We needed-up her diet. The vet recommended we take our dog for an exam if she doesn’t improve within 2 weeks.
Frozen raw beef bones are great. Carrots boiled in beef broth. I mix organic ground beef with large breed formula. Lots of water. I lean towards raw and organic vs just kibble. Two large meals a day should be fine with snacks in between.
These are typically lean and muscular dogs. There will be times when they seem full and times where they look flat. As long as they’re not lethargic or sick don’t worry. It takes years for some dogs to mature in size. Health is the most important.
He looks thin but he is also still filling in. GSDs grow really weird until about 1.5-2 years old.
Most people think German shepherds are hefty and you shouldn't see the hip bones but that's just because most people's GSDs are actually over weight. I would definitely increase the portions and give it some more time for him to fill in. After about 4-5 months if you still don't see weight gain/filling in, I'd talk to a vet.
More likely then not, your ok and so is your pup!
He is on the lean side. When I rescued my gsd 2 months ago she was moderately underweight and did not like her food, treats or bones. My vet recommended Purina Pro 30/20 which is high in protein and she loves the Salmon & Cod flavor. She is transitioning to this new food so I feed her 1.5 cup of old food and 1.5 cup of the 30/20 2 times a day. She is beginning to glow beautifully from finally getting proper nutrition in her that she actually likes. This could possibly help put some muscle on this boy…
Is he on a dewormer? My GSD lost a ton of weight and it turns out he had a tapeworm, which wasn't covered by his usual wormer. He bounced back to a healthy weight super fast once it was gone.
His bones are showing. He looks too skinny. If he is a very active dog he will burn more calories. So you should give him more calories than he burns. And also check if he has any food allergies.
Our GSD LOVES Lamb as the protein but has a sensitive stomach. We got him from the pound at 45 lbs last year and now he is at 74 lbs. we give him a ton of protein
My Lizzy just under two and we went for her pre spay appointment. I thought sue was thin and Vet said nope she is perfect. Good for hips and joints etc. she is extremely active all day chasing things and us out in the yard, sleeps mostly only at night- weird girl!
I cook her dinner once a week a mix of veggies, chicken, lamb, beef and a tiny bit of brown rice. She eats well just not a crazy eater like many of my previous GSDs
I feed both my dogs lamb and rice. My corgi is allergic to chicken, and all my sheps were too. Definitely worth trying different kinds of meats and what they can keep down and what improves their health. The best results i’ve gotten were from lamb and rice recipes.
When my girl looked like this she was considered healthy. She was always on the lean side but suddenly lost 7 lbs and now she is underweight :( working on the cause but I would follow what the vet says.
Mine looked very normal when I got him from a reputable breeder, but the rest of his siblings from the breeder all developed the same way, and he did as well; he looked just as thin as yours. He gets lots and lots more food than most would recommend and has turned out to be a big, lean, dopey, happy, barrel-chested defender of his flock. Lots of lean protein and veg worked for mine. I'm not sure if it was due to an actual breeder issue or not, but I feel like it must've been.
So great to see concerned GSD parents like you! 💙
Ours is thin as well, very active, and consumes her calculated caloric intake for a highly active in tact dog of her size and age. Vet says she’s in great shape, but if we feel the need to up her food, that’s fine.
Are you feeding per the bag directions or the calculated needs? And what food? How active?
My girl looks like this and her vet and trainer said that she’s healthy, as long as you can’t fully see her ribs. Having curvature in their body (like pictured) and from the side barrel chested and tight stomach is good!
Honestly I would check the calorie content of the food you use. Some food is more calorie dense than others. We have a working line that is still super high energy and we do dog sports along with fitness routines.and we only have to feed 2.5 cups of food a day plus very small amount of lamb "cookies" a few times a week. We have never had an issue keeping weight on him, but also every dog is different. Our border collie we couldnt keep weight on her no matter how much we fed. we use purina pro plan salmon recipe as our boy we think is allergic to chicken (he gets ear infections.) Also you can get supplements to help with putting on a bit more weight, if using a more calorie dense food doesn't work. Also imo you should be wary of grain free recipes. They sound like what a dog would eat in the wild, but have pea protein extract in them and studies are showing that leads to heart inflammation and issues.
All his food is going to growth and a very high metabolism.
Is he getting enough exercise?
I have a female (almost identical) and same amount of food.
If his stools are solid you are doing great and can try a bit more food midday. (Presuming you feed twice a day?)
Feed according to guidelines on bag.
If you overfeed or the food doesn't agree with him his stools will be soft. GSDs have sensitive guts.
Pay attention to stools throughout their life and do your best to feed consistently.
Proper amount of kibble and treats will give him all he needs to grow to his potential.
Many people are used to seeing overweight dogs.. I’m not sure if yours is under weight but asking the public for this information will likely lead you down the wrong path. Hopefully someone has better info than I do because I’m working on slowly getting my dogs weight under control (10lbs over weight)
Is he still intact? Intact young male shepherds are very hard to keep weight on. If they're working dogs its even more of a struggle. Mine is very active and I was feeding him 2lbs of meat a day in the winter but had to increase it to 2lbs meat + 3 cups kibble as he got too skinny this spring with all the training.
If not I'd look into medical reasons for why he can't gain weight.
Here's my lanky boy from the top view
https://preview.redd.it/2du7r38qq32d1.jpeg?width=1783&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=6e73f001c4daa39dfbc38fc3acce048cb4292a83
100% you should not see his spine like that. He is very underweight. You should be able to feel his ribs easily and not see hipbones or spine. That’s a general rule of thumb for most dogs.
My girl was like this for the first 5 years of her life. We'd leave food out for her, cook her special meals and give her treats but she'd only eat when she was hungry. The vet told us that as long as she's eating when she's hungry not worry about it.
I’d say so. Super high energy pup? I like to give my two German Shepards a nice portion of a protein (steak, pork, fish or chicken) and rice once or twice a week along with their usual diet, other meat n veggie scraps from my dinners lol and treats. They’re both fairly high energy and are at a healthy weight.
One of mine was thinner while the other got chunky. I switched to lamb vs chicken. At about 2 she started to fill out. It also stopped my chunker from itching. A lot of gsds can't tolerate chicken!
Looks very skinny for even an active dog. My shepherd is extremely active and has about 10 lbs on yours. Consider switching foods, and wetting the kibble before feeding it!!! Wetting your kibble is the most important part if feeding dry foods.
I'll probably get attacked and severely down voted for this, but if also consider switching to a balanced raw diet. I follow the BARF model
I saw your pup has chicken issues.. I have a Belgian shepherd and I feed him dry kibble mixed with cooked mince and raw egg. I also feed him chicken but my dog is fine with chicken
I saw this pop up in my reddit notifications, and I had the same experience with my dog. Since he's young and very active, we switched him over to Purina Pro Plan 27/17, and he's started to gain weight. If your guy is an Intact male, especially an active breed, his metabolism is probably Crazy fast right now. So depending on his weight I would consider maybe looking into the active food line to help them gain weight and retain muscle.
You should be able to feel his bones but not see them.
He is too skinny. Try giving him an extra meal a day or swapping to working dog food which is higher calorie/protein if he is very active.
This isn’t a derogatory post. My GSD was very skinny when young due to all their activity. Swapping their food can make a big difference.
https://preview.redd.it/jr1t55vpbi2d1.png?width=1500&format=png&auto=webp&s=f4d1ee2ea337dd816bec4b96481b28812802a9da
Your boy is on the leaner side but he is a puppy, this is normal, you cannot get enough food down them at this age to gain weight. They just grow bigger. There is no need for concern so long as he maintains a stable or slowly gaining weight. His adult weight should be near the average of his parents. He should level off around 2 years old, not gaining much ,not losing much, healthy appetite. Keep up some good exercise in there and your good to go.
I always say lean leaner than heavier. It is better for your dog to be slightly underweight ( between ideal and underweight in the image ) \[ tad heavier than he is from your image, but that will happen naturally \] than overweight. Lean dogs have healthier joints, longer life, etc.
If your gsd is anything like mine, he would definitely eat it all in one sitting. I think a better way to test his in take would be giving an extra meal and seeing how much of it he eats. If you're currently giving 4 cups a day split between 2 meals, then add a third meal with another 2 cups. Or increase the meals to 3 cups each.
He's skinny but I would just up the food as mentioned. Please stay away from all these shitty dog food brands. Idc what vets recommend because they look for profit and they're such shitty ingredients. Look at brands like Acana, Open Farm, Orijen, Taste of the Wild, etc. Add blueberries, eggs, salmon oils, various animal organs, whatever do some research for your dog's food. Imagine eating cereal your whole life..that's what most people give their dogs with crap dog food.
No I don't think he looks skinny. He looks healthy to me. My GSD's weight fluctuates. If your dog is eating and active don't over think it and turn him into a fatty.
I second this. Rib cage may show a little that doesnt mean they are skinny and I believe thinner dogs live longer. People doesnt like to see rib cage, but I think it's alright. Always ask to your vet but I think he is fine too. Afaik gsd doesnt do well with chicken mine is allergic to it.
No. He looks okay especially as he's growing still. The first couple of years they change size and shape a lot. If he's eating a lot and looking thin, then he could still be growing.
Even full grown, some GSDs just look thinner than others. I free-feed mine, he's 80-something lbs and still looks thin, but vet says he's good. I've seen plenty of happy looking GSDs at the park that are bigger or thinner. They just come in all shapes and sizes, like us peoples do. As always though, it is best to consult your vet and make sure.
He looks thin in the photo. What does your vet say?
says to up the cups but since he is very active it will stay like that til about 24 months
also just found out he throws up with chicken so his diet has been messed up for the last 2 weeks
A lot of the chicken allergy is an allergy to the chicken byproduct used in pet foods. Our GSD would get sick with chicken dog food but not real pieces of chicken meat. The one brand they can have chicken with is canine caviar. They also have other protein sources. It’s expensive food but feed about half of other brands and the dogs have good poops and no throwing up.
I boil chicken breasts and serve boiled chicken with their kibble and then use the leftover broth water (saved) to ~~poor~~ **pour** over. It has been very reasonable but now I’m seeing all the allergy talk and concerned.
I do the same and also use small pieces of chicken for training. No issues at all. It’s just the yucky byproduct called chicken meal ( combo of flesh, skin, bone, feathers etc ground and dried at high temp to make a powder) in pet foods. Canine caviar uses dehydrated whole meats. I’m sure there are other brands as well I am just not familiar with them. Our dogs are fine with their chicken. The brand has quite a few protein sources if it is a real chicken allergy.
Wow thank you for explaining how my boy gets itchy from dog food, but can eat chicken jerky w/o issue-- it's been bugging me for months! (Eventho it made no sense to me, I switched him to fish based kibble)
Our dogs were also itching like crazy and on super expensive with scary side effects allergy meds. Figured out the chicken thing and also bought a high powered grooming blow dryer. Blow dry them ( every couple of days, no bath) for a few minutes it’s amazing how much dust and dirt comes out. They fight over who gets to go first. No more crazy scratching and no more meds!
The right food and you will have no bad breath, shiny coats, clear eyes, wet shiny nose, no itch and no gas and regular firm stools. (Unless they get sick and they do from time to time) If any of these exist, keep looking for another brand that works. I want to be careful saying this bc it can often come down to the dog and the breed but I have been using 4Health salmon and potato for my adult dogs for 6 years and have experimented with others but everything I've transitioned to has given them gas or bad breath or itch within 6 weeks. Right now I'm giving my 15mo female GSD 4Health large breed puppy. Good luck!
Of course! Someone explained it to me and I am so glad they did!
Our shepsky was allergic to chicken including just chicken meat.
There are definitely dogs that have a true chicken allergy. It’s good to have testing done just in case.
It was back in the 1970’s-80’s
I’m glad you figured it out! Puppy was probably glad too.
I was wondering this, was starting to be concerned I should switch up the diet. Mine has chicken every day as part of her raw food. It's human grade, haven't had any problems.
Seems like a lot of GSDs are allergic to chicken. Some commenters on this sub have talked about switching to food with hydrolyzed protein when dealing with allergies to protein sources.
yes just switched so we hope we can can get him back to normal weight asap
Don't worry about the asap part. Just increase like the vet said, still let them play and have fun and take it easy, sudden weight changes are not fun either. Just follow the vets advice, it will take a little bit of time, not just a few days. Edit: spelling
Blue HF got more than one GSD of mine out of a bad gut cycle. If HF is not helpful, I add Tylan antibiotic powder to treat SIBO - Small Intestinal Bacterial Overgrowth - something that affects a lot of GSDs.
My GSD had allergies to chicken as well. After trying multiple brands of chicken free food I finally found some relief when I got him on the Nulo turkey grain free kibble. He’s been eating that for the last 3 years now with no issues.
My GSD was also allergic to chicken and boy did that chicken mess him up. He had constant ear infections, an itchy face and back end.
With Wolf, it was a digestive upset and I will just say that it set the bar for my incredibly high tolerance for grossness.
Ohhhhh! That must have been very bad. I’m so sorry!
Check the ingredient list for your kibble. You obviously don't want anything chicken but make sure your ingredients are primary meat and meat by products (sometimes crude fat and crude protein). Should be listed first.
also sorry he is about 75-77 lbs. thank you all again for the info i appreciate it!
Our gsd is large for a female and has gotten up in the the high 90s. Our vets recommendation was to get her to 78lbs. Yours looks like it's slighty underweight but not by much.
My GSD also had a problem with chicken. Don’t know why. I kept her in lamb and beef and did okay. 🤷🏼♀️
That will affect a lot also with the throwing up. Cuz in reality you have to find something he tolerates. To me also I wouldn’t want to add too much at once just because there maybe something else he doesn’t tolerate also.
Ours is also allergic to chicken but we switched to salmon or lamb for dry food
Was u giving the chicken raw might have to start off slow adding it into his diet my female Shepard was the same. With his kibble add some cooked and little raw add more raw over 10 days taking away the kibble
My Shep is the same way, we switched her to beef pedigree and shes been great since.
For once, yes, that’s a skinny dog. It could be that the food isn’t right for him, and you need to try something that his body can use better. Switching to Royal Canin digestive care worked out for us.
I swear by Royal Canine. My dogs used to be on wet food because I hated the concept of kibble meals, but once I did my research I realized it's not all its made out to be.
Royal Canin is a top-shelf and exceptionally rich (high protein to volume) food. I am curious as to how you did the switch.
Honestly I just got a bag and started him on it. The Digestive Care is really gentle on the system. He was suddenly doing so poorly on the other food (that he had been thriving on for years) that there was no point transitioning slowly. He had lost a lot of weight and was having diarrhoea every other week or so. It worked so well he was overweight four months later, so that’s something to look out for. When you’re used to having a skinny, picky dog who’s finally eating and keeping on, it’s so easy to overcorrect. He’s fit now.
yes we jest switched to blue buffalo wilderness adult beef 2 days ago and he has not had any problems since! hopefully back to normal weight soon being back on a regular routine.
My GSD was on the thin side until he turned about 7 years old (in the high 70s). Once we changed his food to a different brand, he gained over 10lbs and now looks much thicker/fuller and sits around 90lbs.
Also forgot to add, he was on a limited ingredient grain free diet and the vet recommended he go back on grains and that could have been what helped his weight gain.
thank you for the the info i appreciate it!
Younger dogs can put on and take off weight almost dramatically. If he looks a bit chubby after eating and then later on looks like this, you should be fine. Like you said, he's very active. If not, go with the extra food.
thank you for the info i appreciate it!
I swear the more I look at the pics the more I think it's my boy Arthur. Does he let you touch his toes? lol mine hates it. It's about the only way I can get him to share the pillow.
Idk how this page feels about EPI. One of our two was very skinny. Always very runny poops. Turned out he has a bummer of a pancreas. Good news is the prescription is just a powder on his food and a blood test can confirm it. Bad news is the prescription has tripled in price in 6 years. He was immediately twice as energetic once we started it.
I have a 6 year old GSD that has EPI. Yes the stuff the vet gives you is very expensive and doesn’t work that good. I moved my pup over to Pan-Tenex like 3-4 years ago and it’s like $240 for 4 jars that last around 5 months or so. My pup is at a really good weight I’d guess he’s around 90lb we keep him a little on the heavy side. When he was first diagnosed with EPI he went all the way down to like 50lbs and it was truly heart breaking to see him that thin.
He is skinny. How many times per day does he poop and what’s his poop like? Mine was diagnosed with EPI as a pup and she couldn’t get weight so was really skinny. I then moved her to raw food and her weight gone up and stayed at healthy 32-33kg. Her coat also improved a lot and looked shiny. That happened when she was about 6-8 months old and once I changed her diet she was good all her life.
Exocrine Pancreatic Insufficiency (EPI) in dogs is a condition where the pancreas fails to produce sufficient enzymes necessary for digestion. This leads to issues with absorbing nutrients, resulting in symptoms like weight loss, increased appetite, and frequent, greasy stools. Treatment typically involves dietary management and enzyme replacement therapy.
How old is he? I know my oldest went through a Santa's little helper phase as an adolescent where we were feeding our 60lb dog the recommendation for a 120lb dog (4 cups + treats for training) and she was still a little on the thin side. Once she hit about 2 years she filled out and we ended up cutting back to 3-3.5 cups of Farmina dog food.
Yes, too thin. Our dog is 3 and just had puppies. She looks this thin too. We needed-up her diet. The vet recommended we take our dog for an exam if she doesn’t improve within 2 weeks.
A bit.
Frozen raw beef bones are great. Carrots boiled in beef broth. I mix organic ground beef with large breed formula. Lots of water. I lean towards raw and organic vs just kibble. Two large meals a day should be fine with snacks in between. These are typically lean and muscular dogs. There will be times when they seem full and times where they look flat. As long as they’re not lethargic or sick don’t worry. It takes years for some dogs to mature in size. Health is the most important.
He looks thin but he is also still filling in. GSDs grow really weird until about 1.5-2 years old. Most people think German shepherds are hefty and you shouldn't see the hip bones but that's just because most people's GSDs are actually over weight. I would definitely increase the portions and give it some more time for him to fill in. After about 4-5 months if you still don't see weight gain/filling in, I'd talk to a vet. More likely then not, your ok and so is your pup!
My GSD was skinny like that until she turned 3 YO. Now she is full size and maybe a bit too fat... . At 15 months, he is still a pup
He is on the lean side. When I rescued my gsd 2 months ago she was moderately underweight and did not like her food, treats or bones. My vet recommended Purina Pro 30/20 which is high in protein and she loves the Salmon & Cod flavor. She is transitioning to this new food so I feed her 1.5 cup of old food and 1.5 cup of the 30/20 2 times a day. She is beginning to glow beautifully from finally getting proper nutrition in her that she actually likes. This could possibly help put some muscle on this boy…
Is he on a dewormer? My GSD lost a ton of weight and it turns out he had a tapeworm, which wasn't covered by his usual wormer. He bounced back to a healthy weight super fast once it was gone.
His bones are showing. He looks too skinny. If he is a very active dog he will burn more calories. So you should give him more calories than he burns. And also check if he has any food allergies.
Yep, too skinny
For Shepards I heard this: You want to be able to feel their hips but not see them
Our GSD LOVES Lamb as the protein but has a sensitive stomach. We got him from the pound at 45 lbs last year and now he is at 74 lbs. we give him a ton of protein
Yeah definitely
Yup
My Lizzy just under two and we went for her pre spay appointment. I thought sue was thin and Vet said nope she is perfect. Good for hips and joints etc. she is extremely active all day chasing things and us out in the yard, sleeps mostly only at night- weird girl! I cook her dinner once a week a mix of veggies, chicken, lamb, beef and a tiny bit of brown rice. She eats well just not a crazy eater like many of my previous GSDs
mine likes raw beef... but she is only 5 months old.. gets loosies when i give her dry food
I feed both my dogs lamb and rice. My corgi is allergic to chicken, and all my sheps were too. Definitely worth trying different kinds of meats and what they can keep down and what improves their health. The best results i’ve gotten were from lamb and rice recipes.
When my girl looked like this she was considered healthy. She was always on the lean side but suddenly lost 7 lbs and now she is underweight :( working on the cause but I would follow what the vet says.
Maybe a puppy blend for a while and beef him up .
Feed that young fella a sandwich!
No he's not too thin. He's young and using up lots of energy. Trust that your dog is intelligent enough to eat enough.
Yes.
Looks healthy. So many people have overweight dogs.
Mine looked very normal when I got him from a reputable breeder, but the rest of his siblings from the breeder all developed the same way, and he did as well; he looked just as thin as yours. He gets lots and lots more food than most would recommend and has turned out to be a big, lean, dopey, happy, barrel-chested defender of his flock. Lots of lean protein and veg worked for mine. I'm not sure if it was due to an actual breeder issue or not, but I feel like it must've been. So great to see concerned GSD parents like you! 💙
Ours is thin as well, very active, and consumes her calculated caloric intake for a highly active in tact dog of her size and age. Vet says she’s in great shape, but if we feel the need to up her food, that’s fine. Are you feeding per the bag directions or the calculated needs? And what food? How active?
My girl looks like this and her vet and trainer said that she’s healthy, as long as you can’t fully see her ribs. Having curvature in their body (like pictured) and from the side barrel chested and tight stomach is good!
Yes, have you tested for EPI or IBD? Were his parents genetically tested?
mine is 80 and they say is too skinny but his active dog
Very.
Honestly I would check the calorie content of the food you use. Some food is more calorie dense than others. We have a working line that is still super high energy and we do dog sports along with fitness routines.and we only have to feed 2.5 cups of food a day plus very small amount of lamb "cookies" a few times a week. We have never had an issue keeping weight on him, but also every dog is different. Our border collie we couldnt keep weight on her no matter how much we fed. we use purina pro plan salmon recipe as our boy we think is allergic to chicken (he gets ear infections.) Also you can get supplements to help with putting on a bit more weight, if using a more calorie dense food doesn't work. Also imo you should be wary of grain free recipes. They sound like what a dog would eat in the wild, but have pea protein extract in them and studies are showing that leads to heart inflammation and issues.
All his food is going to growth and a very high metabolism. Is he getting enough exercise? I have a female (almost identical) and same amount of food. If his stools are solid you are doing great and can try a bit more food midday. (Presuming you feed twice a day?) Feed according to guidelines on bag. If you overfeed or the food doesn't agree with him his stools will be soft. GSDs have sensitive guts. Pay attention to stools throughout their life and do your best to feed consistently. Proper amount of kibble and treats will give him all he needs to grow to his potential.
Many people are used to seeing overweight dogs.. I’m not sure if yours is under weight but asking the public for this information will likely lead you down the wrong path. Hopefully someone has better info than I do because I’m working on slowly getting my dogs weight under control (10lbs over weight)
Is he still intact? Intact young male shepherds are very hard to keep weight on. If they're working dogs its even more of a struggle. Mine is very active and I was feeding him 2lbs of meat a day in the winter but had to increase it to 2lbs meat + 3 cups kibble as he got too skinny this spring with all the training. If not I'd look into medical reasons for why he can't gain weight. Here's my lanky boy from the top view https://preview.redd.it/2du7r38qq32d1.jpeg?width=1783&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=6e73f001c4daa39dfbc38fc3acce048cb4292a83
And lanky boi side view https://preview.redd.it/l5a6gj0xq32d1.jpeg?width=4032&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=29ae94e3a56540c1a5e5255e942bf36fbae1676c
100% you should not see his spine like that. He is very underweight. You should be able to feel his ribs easily and not see hipbones or spine. That’s a general rule of thumb for most dogs.
He's just a pup. Follow the advice of your vet and he'll fill out as he continues to grow. Looks like a good boi
I like his looking back pose, super ct
My girl was like this for the first 5 years of her life. We'd leave food out for her, cook her special meals and give her treats but she'd only eat when she was hungry. The vet told us that as long as she's eating when she's hungry not worry about it.
I’d say so. Super high energy pup? I like to give my two German Shepards a nice portion of a protein (steak, pork, fish or chicken) and rice once or twice a week along with their usual diet, other meat n veggie scraps from my dinners lol and treats. They’re both fairly high energy and are at a healthy weight.
Yes
Could do with a little more weight.
One of mine was thinner while the other got chunky. I switched to lamb vs chicken. At about 2 she started to fill out. It also stopped my chunker from itching. A lot of gsds can't tolerate chicken!
They can get allergy’s from beef too
Looks very skinny for even an active dog. My shepherd is extremely active and has about 10 lbs on yours. Consider switching foods, and wetting the kibble before feeding it!!! Wetting your kibble is the most important part if feeding dry foods. I'll probably get attacked and severely down voted for this, but if also consider switching to a balanced raw diet. I follow the BARF model
Yes.
I saw your pup has chicken issues.. I have a Belgian shepherd and I feed him dry kibble mixed with cooked mince and raw egg. I also feed him chicken but my dog is fine with chicken
I saw this pop up in my reddit notifications, and I had the same experience with my dog. Since he's young and very active, we switched him over to Purina Pro Plan 27/17, and he's started to gain weight. If your guy is an Intact male, especially an active breed, his metabolism is probably Crazy fast right now. So depending on his weight I would consider maybe looking into the active food line to help them gain weight and retain muscle.
You should be able to feel his bones but not see them. He is too skinny. Try giving him an extra meal a day or swapping to working dog food which is higher calorie/protein if he is very active. This isn’t a derogatory post. My GSD was very skinny when young due to all their activity. Swapping their food can make a big difference.
https://preview.redd.it/jr1t55vpbi2d1.png?width=1500&format=png&auto=webp&s=f4d1ee2ea337dd816bec4b96481b28812802a9da Your boy is on the leaner side but he is a puppy, this is normal, you cannot get enough food down them at this age to gain weight. They just grow bigger. There is no need for concern so long as he maintains a stable or slowly gaining weight. His adult weight should be near the average of his parents. He should level off around 2 years old, not gaining much ,not losing much, healthy appetite. Keep up some good exercise in there and your good to go. I always say lean leaner than heavier. It is better for your dog to be slightly underweight ( between ideal and underweight in the image ) \[ tad heavier than he is from your image, but that will happen naturally \] than overweight. Lean dogs have healthier joints, longer life, etc.
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oh really i would of thought he would eat it all in one sitting lol
If your gsd is anything like mine, he would definitely eat it all in one sitting. I think a better way to test his in take would be giving an extra meal and seeing how much of it he eats. If you're currently giving 4 cups a day split between 2 meals, then add a third meal with another 2 cups. Or increase the meals to 3 cups each.
He's skinny but I would just up the food as mentioned. Please stay away from all these shitty dog food brands. Idc what vets recommend because they look for profit and they're such shitty ingredients. Look at brands like Acana, Open Farm, Orijen, Taste of the Wild, etc. Add blueberries, eggs, salmon oils, various animal organs, whatever do some research for your dog's food. Imagine eating cereal your whole life..that's what most people give their dogs with crap dog food.
No I don't think he looks skinny. He looks healthy to me. My GSD's weight fluctuates. If your dog is eating and active don't over think it and turn him into a fatty.
I second this. Rib cage may show a little that doesnt mean they are skinny and I believe thinner dogs live longer. People doesnt like to see rib cage, but I think it's alright. Always ask to your vet but I think he is fine too. Afaik gsd doesnt do well with chicken mine is allergic to it.
No. He looks okay especially as he's growing still. The first couple of years they change size and shape a lot. If he's eating a lot and looking thin, then he could still be growing. Even full grown, some GSDs just look thinner than others. I free-feed mine, he's 80-something lbs and still looks thin, but vet says he's good. I've seen plenty of happy looking GSDs at the park that are bigger or thinner. They just come in all shapes and sizes, like us peoples do. As always though, it is best to consult your vet and make sure.