If your pet is too skinny you may want to know how to make your dog gain weight. There are a few special diets available for underweight dogs, but you may follow a simple principle: supplement your dog’s food intake and give him more treats and vitamins, which should stimulate appetite. However, you have to make sure your dog is healthy, as an underweight dog may have a medical condition.
Prescription Diet for Underweight Dogs
The normal weight of a dog will depend on his breed, age and sex. However, typically, if you are able to see the dog’s backbone, he may qualify as underweight.
Your vet may recommend a special prescription diet for underweight dogs.
This diet contains an increased amount of calories and may also supplement the proteins, which can help the dog gain some weight.
Increase the Amount of Food
If you don’t get prescription food for weight gain, you can increase the amount of food that your dog gets. When your dog needs to gain weight, he basically needs to have a higher calorie intake. The calorie intake has to be more than the dog consumes in a day, so that he can gain some fat.
Dry food is more recommended when the dog needs to gain weight, as it contains several fillers that are mostly carbohydrates that stimulate weight gain. However, to avoid digestive problems, you can alternate wet food with dry food, especially if your dog is used to a liquid diet.
Make sure your dog gets sufficient exercise, as otherwise, the weight he gains will be distributed disproportionately and may also cause some health problems. Exercising will make sure the dog uses his muscles and that his muscles will also gain in volume due to the increased calorie intake.
Supplements for Weight Gain
Almost all vitamins and minerals that are present in the commercial supplements will increase the dog’s appetite and make him eat more. Get some blood tests and establish if your dog has a deficit of any substances. You may go for a vitamin complex, which will cover all the basic vitamin needs for your pet.
Extra Treats
Dogs always like to get treats, so even if your dog is not particularly attracted to his normal food, he will like the treats. So, give your dog more treats. Make sure the treats are made up of fibers and proteins, so that they also have nutritional benefits. Choose treats that will have dental benefits also, so you keep your dog’s mouth healthy.
Get a Veterinary Checkup
The dog may lose weight due to a medical condition, so you need to get some tests and see if your dog needs medication treatment.
Dogs may lose weight due to a wide range of conditions (i.e. dental problems). Typically, these conditions are treatable and once the dog feels better, he will gain back his appetite and get to a normal weight.