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Is my yorkie SKINNY?? 4 Attachment(s) My Milo is 9 months and I free feed him NATURAL CHOICE Lamb Meal & Rice Formula. He only eats a few kibbles maybe 2-3 times a day.I also fill his bowl up and that would last maybe 2 1/2 days max! I've been thinking his weight is normal because of course I free feed him. Now my handsome lil boy got a haircut this past Friday (I love it!) and now you can really see how small he is! My Breeder/Friend groomer made a comment "He is TOO skinny!" But I'm confused why? Its not like I don't feed my baby and he ALWAYS get a little piece of anything I eat! My breeder/friend suggested that I mix his dry food with wet food. Which I haven't been doing much b/c of all the stories I read about tooth decay. While my Milo spend the night to visit, my breeder Dewormed him just in case. So a brief discription: When I rub him I feel his spine a little but can definitely feel his hip bone. But I dont know if thats normal! Please give me your honest opinion and advice! Thank You -Denisha |
Without having him in front of me it would be hard to tell... However my question is what does your vet say? |
I think he is beautiful. I am new at this Yorkie thing so I can't be of any help. I know Penny is 6 months and looks skinny, but we just had her at vet and he did't say anything. I'm sure others on YT will help. |
Owen used to have a hard time with eating as well when we first got him...he would make us wait there with him while he ate... and I did that for a while. I would suggest getting on a schedule so that he gets excited when he sees you filling up his food bowl. That tends to work with Owen now, and I don't have to watch him eat.. he does it on his own! The wet food isn't bad once in a while, and might get him a little more excited to eat as well. It's a good treat. That or try crumbling his favorite treat into his food bowl along with his other food. Good luck! I am sure you will get it all figured out :) |
He is a very handsome boy!!!!! I have a skinny boy too! Harley will eat and he just wont gain any weight. I took him in for some testing and vet said he was just fine. They took blood and urine and told me to knock it off!! LOL!! I was really worried he was not getting enough to eat. Since we have more than one dog I would even seperate them to see how much he would eat. I thought if the bag of food said he needed 1/2 cup then he should eat that much food. So as long as he is eating and drinking ok I don't think it's a problem. I can feel Harley's hips and spine too. You can also take him in for some testing just to make sure everything is ok. :) |
I think I would ask my vet to be sure, but he doesn't look too skinny, and I think it's probably better to be a little on the thin side than overweight. Milo has long legs and that probably make his look thinner, but I wouldn't try to put on weight without vets approval. I'm a little confused why your breeder dewormed him just in case, I'm not sure if this is healthy. |
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Wow such fast response! But I havent taken him to the vet yet to get checked out! Thats definitely my NEXT step! |
I did notice Pixie ate better after I stopped free feeding her. She gets fed twice a day and eats about 1/2 cup of food. Before she would just nibble here and there. Pixie is 7 months and I started feeding her twice a day at 6 months. I also give her string greens beans and carrots The frozen kind and I heat them up a lil in her food at night, and she looks forward to it. Of course some days she eats better than others but usually she eats pretty well. He is a cutie!!! |
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Milo looks healthy and adorable in your pictures! He will likely continue to fill out as he approaches 1 - 2 years of age. As long as he is active and not losing weight, I don't think you need to be concerned. I monitor my boys' weight using a baby scale. What do you mean by the breeder "dewormed" him just in case? With medication? If Milo's appetite changed after this, you may want to post in the health section to ask if this could affect his eating/weight. |
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Milo is definitely ACTIVE and isn't losing weight. The breeder as well has a scale and he weighed about 4.5 lbs. Yes she dewormed him with medication. His eating habits are still the same. Only thing is he had a accident on the carpet lastnight like he couldn't make it to his potty pad and it was pretty lose and not site of worms. Sorry if thats TMI. I just want to make sure everything sounds normal with my little boy! I love him soo much!! |
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He doesn't look too skinny, but has he had all his vaccinations? I would be concerned about taking him to a groomer if he hasn't had them. |
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as far as weight, 4.5lbs at how old?? Sadie is about 9 months old and just now tipped the 5lb weight. you should be able to feel the ribs but not SEE them. everyone has ALWAYS commented on her being too skinny and now that she's pushed over 5lbs people are always saying she looks chubby....the vet however says that she even still could stand to gain a few. so don't listen to what PEOPLE say...just trust the vet and your own instinct. you can tell if the ribs are very lacking of meat that he needs to eat more. and free feeding him will almost guarantee that he's not too skinny. i'd be more worried about him eating too much than not enough if he's able to eat when hungry!! good luck and let us know what the vet thinks. |
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When you go to the vet for your wellness check, the vet will likely do a fecal and/or blood test for worms & parasites. Vets can detect more with the microscope than the naked eye can see. This is necessary to start a monthly heartworm/parasite preventative medication. As for the loose stool, it could be a number of things. Monitor your pup and discuss it with your vet. |
worms that is what I first thought too, he does look a little skinny I don't know how he is my boy is 6 months and just 5 lbs, give or take an ounce, which i know an ounce in these guys is alot...my son's dog went thru a bout with being skinny and I kept saying does he have worms? and my son said no i have been checking and I said you sure...so i made him go to the vet and sure enough he had worms...so go get a blood and fecal test just to be sure....I actually think my guy is a little chubby, we have been making him walk an extra block this week, does him good and me and dh! |
My little Tank is pretty skinny, too. Is your little guy fixed yet? Neither of mine are, but they have an appointment in 3 weeks for it. Anywho...I've heard that getting them fixed will help them put on a little weight, cause of the lack of testosterone or something...not sure exactly how that works. I've been putting about a tablespoon of wet food in with Tanks dry food every day (for one of his meals), and he's been able to gain about 6 ounces in the past 3 weeks or so. I didn't know that wet food could cause tooth decay, though. Hmm. I'll have to maybe reconsider doing that. For yours, does it seem like his appetite just isn't really there? That's how it is for Tank. I just don't know if he's hungry often, you know? It could be that he's scared of Joey or something, I'm not sure. I've also heard of putting a little bit of cottage cheese or plain yogurt on their food, have you tried that? I haven't, and I don't know if that would pose the same tooth decay issues as wet food. I've also heard of using boiled chicken and brown rice, but Joey gets diarrhea every time I try it, so we don't do that any more. I think it just depends on how much you give them and how sensitive their tummies are. Sorry, I sorta rambled, but this topic is one I've been thinking about a lot lately. Have a good one! oh, and ps - Joey is 22 months and 5 lbs and doesn't feel underweight or overweight to me. Tank is 16 months and 4 lbs 3 oz, and he's the one I think is underweight by a bit. |
compare 2 Attachment(s) I know you can't compair but I actually thought mine was looking chubby he is 6 months 5 lbs eat freely but what amounts to 1/2 cup, what do y think? |
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My sweet boy first came home at 12wks. I've had him for 6 months now and OF COURSE he had all of his vaccinations. He's MY BABY! I'm a little confused. Is that a concern I should have because his weight? |
Linus didn't want to eat at first, but then I discovered Iams Savory Sauce. I only use a couple of drops, but it has really made a world of difference. He went from only eating a couple of kibbles each mealtime, to now eating his entire bowl. It's probably not a good idea to give them too much, but he really wasn't eating enough and this has made a big difference. Each day I use a little less and a little less, and this evening I didn't give him any and he ate up his whole dinner! What a difference! |
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He looks great in the pictures, and as Nancy posted above, don't go out of your way to put weight on him. He will fill out naturally with age. My 9 month old Teddy is a waif, sort of skin and bones compared to my older and more muscular boy. |
I free feed mine so there's always hard kibbles and water down. I had notice when I got my female candy shes a Yorkie / shih tzu mix that i could feel her back bone, she seemed skinny to me. and Mickey also needed a lb put on. so I started adding a little water to their food making it soft and they both started eating more. I still always leave out the dry kibbles and they eat that here and there too. so both of mine have gained weight which Im happy about. I new pup has also started eating more now with the added water to make it soft so hopefully she will gain a little too. |
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I am the breeder/friend I dewormed him with a liquid dewormer 2 ml because he has not been dewormed since he left my home at 12 weeks he is now 10 months old and the pictures dont really show it but he does look VERY skinny. But then again I did tell Denisha my Teddy (Milos older brother) went through the same thing. He has gained weight now and looks very healthy. Milo stayed the night and in 24 hours with food avalible the entire time he ate maybe three bites. Dewormer has never given any of my dogs runny poo. And I have 6 but then again I am a hobby breeder I am no expert. I actually suggested her to ask on here for maybe some professional advice. I also advised her to take him to the vet. I suggested to added canned (which is what I did for my Teddy) and it plumped him right up he is now back on dry kibble and doing wonderful. When my Teddy was thin I called my vet and they suggested maybe he needed a deworming so I dewormed him and increased his food intake along with a small portion of canned. Not a permanent thing just to help him gain some weight. She said she even took him to the dog park and a man asked "do you even feed that dog" If im wrong please correct me. I am only looking out for my boy! |
I copied this from another thread on skinny dogs... hope this helps... Quote:
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Too Skinny? I thought my little guy was too skinny also, so I kept trying to stuff food into him, he is 10 months old. On March 19th, he went to the vet, he weighed in at 5.2 lbs. Vet said he wanted him back down to about 4.8 and that would be a good weight to keep him at. I liked him a little rounder though. He is about 8" to 81/2" tall. I don't know how they determine what weight a dog should be, probably height & bone structure just like people. |
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For practice in developing a sensitive touch, find an (willing) older person and look at their hands. If you can see mostly all the bones from the knuckles to the wrist, this is what skin on bone (no fat layer underneath) will feel like. Close your eyes and let your fingertips glide over the back of the hand. This will increase your sensitivity when you check your Yorkie as you will not be able to see through the coat (or you shouldn't be able to). Then go find a younger willing person and do the same thing to their hand. As long as the person is not nutritionally challenged, you will be able to feel a layer of fat just under the skin, and still be able to feel the bones through it in their hands. It won't hurt to practice on other dogs either. And, again, this is best done with your eyes closed or looking away from the animal, because the way things appear is not always true and will influence what you are feeling. If your dog feels a bit thin, give him a little bit extra food and/or treats during the day. This applies to any dog at any age. If your young dog feels good now but in two weeks begins to feel thin, he may be having a growth spurt or just being more active and requires more food to maintain an optimal weight. Whenever I pet any of my dogs or cats, I always do a weight check with my hand, and should I not be able to correct the problem with diet, we go talk to the vet about it. |
very good info Quote:
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I don't believe in giving meds without a reason and you seem to be asking if worming medicine can be given without causing a problem. Just because your vet suggested the medicine with another dog, it doesn't mean its right for this dog. You may have told the vet other symptoms besides being thin that made you vet think it was worms. You could also do a separate thread here, and perhaps someone will have more knowledgeable advice about worming meds. |
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I strongly agree with your advice to take Milo to the vet. He needs a hands-on evaluation by a doctor. |
I think Buster is skinny. On a good day he is 4 lbs. but most of the time he is 3.6 - 3.8 lbs. He is just over two years old. I can feel his spine, his butt bone, all of his bones. The vet thinks he is fine. He doesn't want him to gain weight. Every time I mention that I think he's too skinny, the vet will show me the poster in his office of what a dog should look like. The overweight dog, the too skinny dog and the dog that is just right. I free feed as well hoping he will eat more but it looks like I'm doing the wrong thing. |
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