# Satin ball questions, or, how to put weight on a dog



## outwest (May 1, 2011)

I need to put about 5 pounds on Jazz. He is muscular and healthy, but he is too ribby and his hip bones poke out a bit. He is a good eater, but increasing his main food has backfired on me as he barfs it up (too much in his belly?). He is 25 inches tall and 54 pounds and still growing a tad (8 months old). 

This is what he eats right now:
1.5 cups grain free blue buffalo wilderness twice a day (tried increasing to 2 cups and he barfs)
1/2 can quality dog meat a day
1/4 cup full fat yoghurt a day
1 fish oil capsule a day

I have read two different recipes for satin balls on here. One includes lard and one doesn't. Lard is pure fat and I'd like to try it, but too much fat can cause pancreatitis, right?

Here are the two recipes:

Satin Balls
•5 lbs raw hamburger (the cheapest kind)
•1/2 lg box Total Cereal
•1/2 lg box Oatmeal
•1/2 Jar wheat germ
•3/4 cup veg oil
•3/4 cup unsulfured molasses
•5 raw eggs AND shells
•5 envelopes unflavored gelatin
•pinch of salt
Mix all ingredients together like you would a meatloaf. Divided into 5 quart freezer bags (roll into balls approximately the size of a tennis ball) and freeze. Thaw as needed and feed raw.

recipe 2:
10 lb hamburger
dozen eggs - crush in the shells, too
1 jar unsulfered molasses
box shredded wheat
small box oats
vitamins
1 c lard or meat fat
fish oil
gelatin packet
1 pint heavy whipping cream
jar wheat germ
mix it in a 5 gallon bucket - and roll it into balls and put them in the freezer. Once they are frozen enough to hold their shape put them in ziplock freezer bags. Introduce them slowly, so you don't get upset stomach. Microwave for 30 sec or set a couple out each morning for them. 


Which recipe would you use?
Is there ANYthing else I can do?
I was thinking maybe switching him to a kibble with grain (carbohydrates) might work better than the grain free. What do you think?


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## mom24doggies (Mar 28, 2011)

Can't comment on the satin balls, (other than to say I would think lard would give him diarrhea!) but I wanted to say that switching to a food without potato may help him gain weight. Trev had weight trouble too, he was always a little on the thin side. He wouldn't eat anymore, and I was already feeding him a whole cup anyways. I switched him to Innova Prime (no potatoes, I think it has peas/lentils) and he put on an extra pound or two within a couple weeks, and doesn't have to eat as much. Now he is perfect. It might be worth a try.


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## outwest (May 1, 2011)

Yes, all the grain free's use potato as a binder. That's why I was thinking maybe one with brown rice or oats. It's worth a try!


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## Fluffyspoos (Aug 11, 2009)

The one I made was a little mixture of both, and I'm sure it would've worked if he continued eating them. He's a picky little snot, and STILL skin and bones. No digestive issues, he ate some, turned his nose up at others. Just know, when you're mixing this in a bucket (5 gallon) it's going to smell AMAZING! I thought it smelled like some heavenly BBQ something. Really caught me off guard!

I used lard, total cereal, veg oil, the gelatin, I can't remember if I added vitamins or oats

I did NOT use fish oil, whipping cream, or shredded wheat.


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## mom24doggies (Mar 28, 2011)

outwest said:


> Yes, all the grain free's use potato as a binder. That's why I was thinking maybe one with brown rice or oats. It's worth a try!


 Innova Prime does not have potato..I was so excited to find it! Some grain might help him too though, Sam does better with a smitch of grain in her diet, she has had trouble keeping weight on too.


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## outwest (May 1, 2011)

I bought a bag of lamb and brown rice. I'll mix it in with his other food for a few days. I wonder if I need to go as far as the satin balls? I'll give it a couple weeks and see.


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## 2719 (Feb 8, 2011)

You could try grinding his regular kibble and adding natural peanut butter to make small balls. Put them in the fridge and offer as treats.


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## outwest (May 1, 2011)

Oooo...that's a nice idea.


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## Mom-n-Reiki (Jan 6, 2013)

What are satin balls? I've never heard of them before.

Ash, my Dane, seems to be perpetually underweight...to the point where you can see his spine. We rescued him last May and started trying to pack lbs on him, and instead grew another 8.5 in! We've run all the tests we could think of to see if there was anything wrong with him, but the vet says he's perfectly healthy. So, to gain weight, the vet had us double his food. He gets three cups of Earthborn Primitive Natural (Turkey, Chicken, Whitefish, Potato), Three cups of Blue Buffalo Lrg Breed Puppy (Chicken and rice), and two raw eggs, with shells, twice a day.so far he's gained 25lbs, but seems to have leveled off again. We are thinking of adding a cup of whole oats to each meal as well.

Good luck!


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## outwest (May 1, 2011)

Holy smokes, Mom n reiki! I was thinking Jazz was eating a lot of food. LOL Satin balls are supposed to put weight on. You could try them. I may still make them, but think I'll give his new food regimen a try for two weeks. I think the yoghurt is doing something, but it's only been a week. He is about 5 pounds thinner than I would like. His poops are healthy, so I don't think he has any digestive issues. He is still growing and plays hard. 

The dope at the pet shop suggested I keep him crated half the day.:crazy:


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## Mom-n-Reiki (Jan 6, 2013)

Hahaha!
And people consistently accuse me of not feeding my dog. Im tempted to make a sign and bucket saying something to the effect of "Think you can do better? Help me feed my dog". I go through so much food so fast! Maybe I'll try some yoghurt too. 

Eight months tends to be a lean, gangly stage right before he starts to fill out, so don't give up hope! 

I've had a lot of people suggest I keep him crated more, but then you have a very large, grumpy puppy who starts bouncing around in the crate. We've also had people suggest less exercise....but that's darn near impossible too. I don't think people understand higher energy puppies.


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## CharismaticMillie (Jun 16, 2010)

Being a little lean isn't the end of the world. In fact, for a growing pup, being slightly underweight, I've heard, can be better for proper bone development than being slightly overweight. I'd let him eat as much as he wants (within reason). He will fill out as he matures. 

If you are planning to show him, exercise is SO important! Keeping him in a crate will not be conducive to showing well. Show dogs, even puppies, need to be well conditioned with muscle tone.


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## Brenda-A (Jan 7, 2013)

I tried the first recipe. I'm not sure if it helped overall because I feed him that as a treat during a whole week and all I noticed is his belly was bloated. I'm a little worried about leaving something in the fridge for too long and since Teddy is only 4 pounds I ended up with like a months supply. I ended up just giving up the satin balls after a week. 

I was free feeding so people in this forum recommend scheduled feedings. Now I feed him 3 times a day and I see fat covering his ribs now.


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## outwest (May 1, 2011)

CharismaticMillie said:


> Being a little lean isn't the end of the world. In fact, for a growing pup, being slightly underweight, I've heard, can be better for proper bone development than being slightly overweight. I'd let him eat as much as he wants (within reason). He will fill out as he matures.
> 
> If you are planning to show him, exercise is SO important! Keeping him in a crate will not be conducive to showing well. Show dogs, even puppies, need to be well conditioned with muscle tone.


He has good muscle tone, but is slightly underweight. He gets loads of exercise, probably why I can't get the weight where I'd like it. He is given as much as he wants to eat, but that tops out at about 3 cups dry, 1/2 can wet a day. I did stop adding warm water to his food and he is eating it all now. I also discovered he doesn't like the fish oil capsule. Twice i have found a clean bowl with a soggy capsule smushed on the side. I think I will try olive oil instead or snip the capsule and squeeze it in. What a PIA this all is.


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## CharismaticMillie (Jun 16, 2010)

outwest said:


> He has good muscle tone, but is slightly underweight. He gets loads of exercise, probably why I can't get the weight where I'd like it. He is given as much as he wants to eat, but that tops out at about 3 cups dry, 1/2 can wet a day. I did stop adding warm water to his food and he is eating it all now. I also discovered he doesn't like the fish oil capsule. Twice i have found a clean bowl with a soggy capsule smushed on the side. I think I will try olive oil instead or snip the capsule and squeeze it in. What a PIA this all is.


Well I wouldn't think a dog would want to eat a fish oil capsule! Either pierce the capsule and squeeze the oil on the food or buy some fish oil in a container with a pump and squirt it on the food.


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## outwest (May 1, 2011)

I had a bottle of fish oil capsules for myself. Double dipping, you know. The whippet thinks of them like candy, but he is a man of very little brain. I assumed the poodles would, too, but they're a tad too bright to buy it.


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## AngelsMommy (Nov 3, 2012)

As for me, I swear by the satin ball, but I have changed the recipe to one that I like better.  I don't do certain grains so many cereals are no go for me to have in my house.  Not malted or barley of any kind and you would be amazed at what does have that nowadays. 

Anyway here is my recipe: I freeze it in balls or ice trays and then take out at need. SO it is never long term in the refrigerator.  I use silicone ice cube trays and have enough that I put them in to freeze. I bought little heart shaped ones and they make a great snack size. Angel likes them frozen even. They are not terribly hard even frozen due to what they are made from. And the silicone makes them easy release. 

hamburger meat
ground flaxseed 
cream cheese
peanut butter
oats
coconut milk I soaked the oats in the coconut milk
egg yolks
coconut oil
gelatin

I am not sure where my amounts are, but you could use the other recipes as a gauge. I have miss placed the actual recipe.  I have tried other ways of freezing, but for me the ice cube trays are the best I have found. 

I mix with my hands in very long rubber gloves, I have found that works the best as I don't have a mixer that is strong enough to work it. 

Good luck if you do decide to try them. Angel is also on the light side and these keep her just where I prefer her to be. 

I agree that people don't get high energy dogs, unless they are a high energy person or have high energy dogs. It is all a balancing act. And a crated high energy dog is just unhappy and skinny, instead of just skinny.


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