How Low Can Ya Go?

Right now,yes.Less than a week ago[when at 2 cups per day ]it was 900 kcals.She had recieved that over the course of oh...five or six weeks and has gained back more than half of the weight lost while on the Nutro Natural food[267 kcals per cup].I am sure being a spayed senior lab[10]accounts for her slow metabolism.I certainly can't consume even half the calories I did 20 years ago even though I walk/run 4 miles a day.So back to the original question......Which is better for her,a grain free food in small quantities or a food with grains in a heartier portion?

Tena

Both grain frees and foods with grain offer products where the portion size will be more or less.  So it's just what works for your budget and your dog's needs  You indicated that grain free seemed to work better for her, so if I were in your shoes I'd go for that.  Core and Natural Balance both offer grain frees that are lower in calories.  Look at the kcals/kg to get the best idea of which foods you'll be feeding more or less of.  As Karen mentioned, you can also add foods that are low in calories and add volume to the food, like green beans (usually chosen because dogs like the canned ones and they are cheap and convenient).  Steamed squash is another good one - markets are overrun with zucchini right now and you might even know someone giving zukes away.  Squash is high in antioxidants and other nutrients good for arthritis, too. 

VanMorrison

In the last 6 months he has gone from 104 lbs to 92 lbs.

Congrats to Monroe and to you that is awesome!

I have a friend with a show lab and it is way too bulky - however he does well in the ring and they have been told to keep his weight up. Bleck

have you considering feeding her say Nature's variety pre-made raw or canned foods? she'd get a much larger quantity of food than if fed dry kibble. Since she eats little it's afforadable.

I never considered canned before [having to recycle all those cans] but maybe it's time to do that.Right now my son and husband do feedings when I work and they both get a little grossed out by the smell of cannedbut if that ends up being the best solution they'll get over it.Thanks everyone for the input.

Tena

I like the squash idea.Is it steamed to increase palatability or to make it more bioavailable? I ask because I know she will eat it raw [she'll eat almost anything in fact!] .

Tena

Steamed and pureed if needed is best.  Some squash you can bake it and it gets all mooshy (like butternut) so that's all you need - just cut in half, take out the seeds, and put it in the microwave for about ten minutes in a dish with some water.  Then cool and scoop out the mooshy insides.  Typically you bake the winter squashes and steam/puree the summer squashes.

rwbeagles

WOW! My beagles get 1 1/2 c per day...Cleo weighs 85lbs and gets 6c per day...but she's a growing pup...

Cherokee is 65 pounds (and slightly chubby at the mo';) and eats less than 2 cups of Core a day. Jaz is 75 and eats 2 cups. I don't think it's terribly abnormal for bigger dogs to eat only a little more than medium sized dogs.

I also don't think that people need to jump on the thyroid bandwagon.  Luke is an incredibly active dog (agility, running at the barn daily, swimming, ball, etc.) and he's been on 2 cups of Evo for quite a while now.  He used to get 3 cups and started to gain weight (he got up to 93.5 lbs).  I cut him back to the 2 cups and he's down to 85 lbs now.  He's slim, but he needs to be for the type of activities we do.

Some dogs are just more "efficient" than others.  Their metabolism also slows down as they age -- Luke ate like a horse until he hit four and then the weight started to come on and his food had to get cut.  Same thing happens to a lot of people, so it shouldn't be a surprise when it happens to our dogs! 

 Emma also slowed WAY down at about 3 1/2. She's now eating only slightly more than what a dog her size should eat, instead of eating the same amount as her Doberbuddies.

Doberbuddies - rofl!  I remember when she and BEN weren't eating that much apart in volume!  Now Ben's gone down quite a bit too - a combination of a reduction in activity, getting his thyroid under control, and getting his GI straightened out. 

KarissaKS

I also don't think that people need to jump on the thyroid bandwagon.

What the heck @ "thyroid bandwagon"? How can you possibly think it's a bad idea to check a dog's thyroid if there's something weird going on? Plus, you know, LOTS of dogs really do have thyroid problems..so it's a pretty good guess...IMO.