# Balance between being too skinny and over feeding



## frankgrimes (Nov 28, 2011)

I feed Ralph a 50/50 split of Orijen Large Puppy and Acana 6 fish. We were in the process of changing over to the Acana and got stalled at the 50/50 split, which gives him great poops (were squishy on 100% Orijen). Anyways, I feed just slightly more than the bag says to feed because he is super active and quite skinny. I've noticed that now that he's a little older he seems to be getting a little skinnier, so I decided I would try to up his food quantity. He got the runs from this. I kept the ratio the same 50/50-, and just added about 2/3 of a cup extra to his meal. He ate it, and then had runny poop for the next two poops. I've heard over feeding can cause runny poop. Any advice? HOw skinny is too skinny? You can;t see his ribs, but they are very close to the surface, like there is a layer of skin and poodle fur on them but not much more. Maybe I should just leave well enough alone and stop being such a worry wort.


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## tortoise (Feb 5, 2012)

I think you are worrying too much. He sounds good.

Here's a link to the Purina Body Condition Scale chart. It has pictures. 

Dog Body Condition Score Chart

I keep my dogs about 3.5. Thin dogs live longer than overweight ones and I want them to be with me as long as possible.


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## tokipoke (Sep 3, 2011)

Have you taken him to the vet recently? I ask the vet if my dog looks/feels okay bodyfat-wise to confirm what I think a good weight is. As long as you have the hour-glass shape you are fine. I've seen very lean dogs who act fine, but I personally don't like that look. When Leroy was 9 months old, he weighed 47lb. I saw him all wet at the dog park and I almost cried cause he was so skinny! I fed him more and he's now around 65lb. You can feel his ribs, but he has some cushion there, and a waist. Same for Louis, he came to me so skinny. I could feel every rib, hips, spine. I like the feel of a sturdy dog that doesn't feel like they can get knocked over by the wind. Both my dogs aren't lean but they are muscular. No way would I let them get overweight though. I hate grooming the overweight dogs cause they have health problems and behavioral issues due to being so fat. 

Have you tried just transiting him to one brand - but same amount he would usually eat - before upping his food intake? I know you mentioned his poops are good with the 50/50, but what if you transitioned to one brand REALLY slowly. I put weight on Leroy with pre-made raw so not sure about adding weight on kibble.


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## JE-UK (Mar 10, 2010)

Poodles are lean dogs; he's probably ok. There was a great tip posted by fjm a while back as a quick judge of body fat. 

Make a fist. Run the index finger of the other hand over the back of the fisted hand. If the ribs feel like that, the dog is too fat. Now run your finger over the top of the knuckles of the fisted hand. If the ribs feel like that, the dog is too thin. Now run your finger over the surface made by the top joint of the fingers. That is just right. 

When mine was a pup, he always felt too skinny to me, but as an adult, I have to monitor carefully to prevent him being too fat.


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## Indiana (Sep 11, 2011)

I have been having these same concerns, frankgrimes. Indy is soooo thin, you can feel every rib and vertebrae. She's very active and a total food-hound, so I'm thinking maybe it's a phase like Ralph is in. Her sister Maddy always seems to enter every phase first, and she's muscular and solid, so maybe Indy will soon put on more weight too. Also, Indy is 25" while Maddy is 24" and they both weigh the same, but one inch taller sure makes a big difference in weight distribution.


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## liljaker (Aug 6, 2011)

I read somewhere that the "feel rib test" should mirror if you make a fist with your one hand, you should be able to feel the ribs similar to the bones on your fist -- if that makes sense. So make a fist and keep it tight. Gently set the fist on a flat surface palm area down. If you rub your fingers over the top of the fist, that's what the ribs should feel like.


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## frankgrimes (Nov 28, 2011)

tokipoke said:


> Have you tried just transiting him to one brand - but same amount he would usually eat - before upping his food intake? I know you mentioned his poops are good with the 50/50, but what if you transitioned to one brand REALLY slowly. I put weight on Leroy with pre-made raw so not sure about adding weight on kibble.


Hi Tokipoke, thanks for you reply. Yes, I am currently in the process of transitioning him fully on to the Acana (it is a very slow process, taking us about 2 months or more just to get to the 50/50 split) It will probably take another 2 months to get him fully on the Acana. 

Thanks everyone for the info about how his ribs should feel. The vet says he's a healthy weight, and so do the tests you guys have provided me. I guess I just need to get used to his new adolescent look.


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## mom24doggies (Mar 28, 2011)

It sounds like he's at a good weight to me....most poodles are naturally more slender as long as they aren't grossly over fed. Trev is pretty lean...hardly any fat, but plenty of muscle. If I touch his ribs, I can feel skin and a very slight layer of fat. I too would prefer him to have a little heavier...after all, what if he got sick and couldn't eat as much or something? He'd be rack of bones. However, I feed him a cup of food a day, plus some snacks throughout the day. I feel that's his limit, if I fed him more he'd get runny poop. If you are still convinced that your boy needs to gain some weight, try upping his food intake slowly, instead of adding more all at once. An extra 2/3 of a cup is a lot...maybe if you slowly increased it he wouldn't get runny again.


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## frankgrimes (Nov 28, 2011)

mom24doggies said:


> try upping his food intake slowly, instead of adding more all at once. An extra 2/3 of a cup is a lot...maybe if you slowly increased it he wouldn't get runny again.


Whoops, I thought that because it was food he was used to it would be OK to add more like that. I didn't realize I had to introduce it slowly as if it were a new food.... shame on me... poor Ralph... stuck with a first time mom.... lol. :confused2:


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## tortoise (Feb 5, 2012)

frankgrimes said:


> Whoops, I thought that because it was food he was used to it would be OK to add more like that. I didn't realize I had to introduce it slowly as if it were a new food.... shame on me... poor Ralph... stuck with a first time mom.... lol. :confused2:


Some dogs are sensitive and it sounds like you have one. Don't beat yourself up.


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## mom24doggies (Mar 28, 2011)

frankgrimes said:


> Whoops, I thought that because it was food he was used to it would be OK to add more like that. I didn't realize I had to introduce it slowly as if it were a new food.... shame on me... poor Ralph... stuck with a first time mom.... lol. :confused2:


 Lol, don't worry, it happens. I've given mine the runs a few times, and I'm not a first timer. It's easy to do. I suggested going slowly because ime, giving too much extra food all at o ce, even food they are used to, can have side effects.  It also allows you to fine tune Ralph's threshold for food. I've found that if you feed just under their threshold, they will actually gain weight because they arent just pooping it all right out, KWIM? For the longest time, Sammie was underweight, yet she was eating 3 cups of food a day! (she's 40 lbs, and this was grainless food...when I had her on blue buffalo it was more like 4 or 5.) While her poops werent soft, they were gigantic...I felt like everything I put in her was coming right back out. I reduced her food by 1/2 a cup, and suddenly she gained weight and quit pooping so much. It's almost like her body goes into "dump everything" mode when I overfeed her, so she actually gets less nutrition even though I'm feeding her more. Weird, huh?! Anyways, hope you get Mr. Ralph all figured out.


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## frankgrimes (Nov 28, 2011)

Thanks guys. Who knew, Poodle feeding was such a delicate art form. LOL. I will keep trying to find a good balance for my poodlepants.:act-up:


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