# Skinny Puppy



## bigpoodleperson (Jul 14, 2009)

I personally would not worry. Vets are used to seeing chunkier puppies, and poodles are different. They are a thin breed, and its Very common for them to be "rail thin" as puppies. As long as she is eating well, and gaining weight each week then dont worry about it. Your vet was probably compairing her in his mind to say a lab puppy. If a poodle puppy had as much weight on it as a lab puppy then they would be fat. 

How easily can you feal her spine, ribs and hip bones? If you can see her spine, or when you rub your hand over it you can feel every spiny process then she is too thin. Can you see her ribs?


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## fjm (Jun 4, 2010)

Someone on here posted a very useful test based on clenching your fist. If you run your fingers alon the back of your hand, you can feel very little bone. If your dog's ribs feel like this, she is probably overweight. Run your fingers over the base of the fingers in the fist - the difference you can feel is how your dog's ribs should feel. Run them over your knuckles - this is how a dog's ribs feel when the dog is underweight. As BPP says, poodles tend to be lean, especially as active puppies. If she is healthy, and gaining weight at a steady rate for her size, I would not worry. She will probably put on weight very rapidly when her metablism slows down when she reaches adulthood.


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## cbrand (Aug 9, 2009)

Many Poodles seem to have a grain intolerance. If you are feeding a food that has rice, corn, wheat or barley in it, it could be that she is unable to process the calories from this food. Consider switching to a food that has potato or sweet potato in it as a carb.


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## Liz (Oct 2, 2010)

Thanks for the feedback, everyone. It sounds like this is probably a non-issue, and I'll make sure she's not eating too much grains (I know she isn't getting wheat or corn).

As an aside, I'm really glad this forum is here. Since getting Mia, I've learned how unique poodles are (as are many breeds, I'm sure), and that general dog and puppy knowledge doesn't apply to this breed.

OK - Mia is giving me the signal that I need to pay her some attention  Time for a walk!


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## CelticKitti (Jul 1, 2010)

Remember also puppies go through stages of growing like children do. Sometimes they grow out then up. My Mia who is a year now went through this. She'd fill out then grow again and appear skinny! A few weeks later she'd fill out again. As long as she's eating and gaining weight don't worry to much!! 

I love comparing the ribs to the fist. I do it all the time with my guys.


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## Penjilum-Poodles (Apr 17, 2010)

I had the same issue with Rayah. (Rayah will be turning 4 months next week)
I felt she needed some building up to do. 
Each spoo will vary because Rayah's sister (my mom's spoo) is a CHUNKY monkey. She is a robust little girl, whereas Rayah was a skinny minny.

I started doing satin balls, and home cooked meals, and raw patties and she has filled out perfectly over the last two weeks. She is still alot lighter than her sister, but where i could feel her bones is now covered by a nice layer of fat there, she is light, but well filled.

Hope this helps!
Best wishes!


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## Purley (May 21, 2010)

Yes, Lucy, my Mini is a skinny mini!!

When I first got her around the middle of August, the vet said she needed to gain a few pounds. She eats anything put before her. I am feeding her good quality kibble and I have just started feeding Urban Carnivore a couple of days a week. I also made satin balls. If I feed her more -- she just poops more - so it seems pointless. I think she might have gained half a pound in the last month. I think she is just naturally skinny. She is obviously healthy and I am not worrying about it. 

I just wish I could eat lots and not gain weight!!


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## JE-UK (Mar 10, 2010)

Ditto ... Vasco went through some really skinny phases as a pup. Even now, he's got easily felt ribs & spine.

I add a couple of spoonfuls of olive oil to his dinner; it adds some calories without bulk (and he loves it).


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## Liz (Oct 2, 2010)

Thanks to everyone for their responses. The fist test is very helpful - I think she feels just about right, despite what the Vet said.

I found the Satin Ball recipe - she will be a very happy puppy! She's definitely having lots of small growth spurts - even when she does start to bulk up, within a few days she's an inch taller and skinny again.


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## LuvPoo (May 8, 2010)

In my experience, poodles are a slender, lanky breed. I have a 13 week old standard pup who has slimmed down since we got him at 8 weeks but he's eating well & growing. My vet said he was fine and that dogs staying on the lighter, athletic side is best.
The advice on grain is probably a good one. Our last poodle couldn't tolerate corn.


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## Ann Mc Keon (Feb 9, 2011)

*weight*

My girl is on the light side, hates satin balls, but loves Italian, she is20kg and 13 months old, full of life, but what I would consider underweight, have tried just about everything, but seems what she really would like is for us to set a 7th place at the table, Any suggestions welcome. She does not like dried food at all, will only eat about 10 peices and then finished.


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## fjm (Jun 4, 2010)

Take a look at the Picky poodles/home cooking threads, Ann. Many people have seen an amazing change in their dogs' enthusiasm for meals when they switched from kibble to raw or home cooked!


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## LuvPoo (May 8, 2010)

I think 20 Kg is around 44 lbs, right? Depending on her height, I don't think that's really light for a female standard. I had one boy who weighed in at 72lb (very tall & lanky) and another who weighed in at 42 (small for a boy, but he had liver disease & passed at 3.5 years.) Our current boy is 8 months. I'm not sure of his weight as we haven't weighed him in a long time. Maybe between 42 - 48lb? But he's a boy.
I sympathize on the picky food thing. Our boy who had liver disease was a very picky eater, but - as we found out way late, he was ill. You might want to get your girl checked for liver, Addison's, etc. She is probably okay though. Our current boy was eating well, but having a lot of loose stools & gas. After trying numerous foods, we discovered that he just can't tolerate most grains. We now have him on "Taste of the Wild" - (A small US brand) a grain free kibble and he is fine. If you have any grain free dog foods in Ireland, you might want to try that. They might be tastier. Then there is home cooked meals. Lots of work though. Best of luck.
P.S. - They all think they should have a setting at the table.


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## Ann Mc Keon (Feb 9, 2011)

*skinny puppy*

its 44 lbs, she has been to the vet and on a scale of 1-5 she is at 2, very skinny, you can feel her ribs easily and her spine, am trying home cooked, also vet suggested whelping food to build her up, if you hand feed her she might eat some, but still really fussy, likes pasta too


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## Liz (Oct 2, 2010)

Adding whole egg, salmon oil, yoghurt, or cottage cheese to dry foods may encourage her to eat more.


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## georgiapeach (Oct 9, 2009)

My vet likes dogs thin, esp. breeds with potential joint issues like poodles, labs, etc.


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## jazzi480 (Sep 19, 2010)

Jazzi was skinny her whole puppyhood, then she she started filling out. We worried and fretted because her shoulder and hip bones showed. Once she hit 1 1/2 yrs she sudddenly started putting on weight and now at 3yrs looks great! at one year she was about 45LBS and now she is at 57 LBS. We feed grain free, and that di seem to make a big difference. Hope all these replies help!


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## bluespoomommy (Feb 25, 2010)

i would definitely try mixing wet food with dry in addition to frequent home-cooked meals with real beef. i haven't tried raw, but seems like lots of poodle lovers here have had great success with it! mochi was very skinny during puppyhood. her hips and ribs stuck out too, but as soon as she passed the 1 year mark, she started putting on some muscle. She was hovering at around 30 something pounds for a while and gradually, she's filled out to a good 45lbs (at 23" tall).


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## Ann Mc Keon (Feb 9, 2011)

*skinny puppy*

~Thank you all so much for your imput, will have to stop worrying and just enjoy her, she is full of energy and in great form, off to Crufts next month, should be fun


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