Underweight, seemingly starving GSD

I have no idea, but I know that it has got to be heartbreaking for you.

A lot of members on this forum feed homemade food and/or raw food. Have you tryed that? I don't think it could help with the issue of his stool - but it might help on weight.

Hopefully Callie will chime in soon - she knows so much about dogs its amazing.

::runs off to PM Callie about poor Bear::

 Thanks for the response.

I was looking into a raw food diet but I'm not sure how to go about it.  

Could I just go with something like:

http://www.onlynaturalpet.com/products/Northwest-Naturals-Raw-Dog-Food/167001.aspx

The same way your doing things now. RESEARCH! And talking to people about - mostly a compitent Vet.

Have you gone to another Vet for a second opinion? Or third? It helps sometimes. Maybe a different Vet could show you something the first one missed?

As for the food, most people on this forum tell me that EVO is one of the best

www.evopet.com

And here are a few others striving for the slot as #1 pet food - I have not trid any of these with my animals, but they are highly recomended...

www.championpetfoods.com

www.nutroproducts.com

www.diamondpet.com

www.bluebuff.com

I can't say on results of those foods - but I've 'heard' thats what a lot of people use here on the forum.

Has he been tested for allergies? That could be it too....

Oh, by the way....no pictures?! He maybe underweight, but he's still a fur-baby, and we(everyone that leaves a reply) will need to see his adorable face! =] I forgot to say early - welcome to i-Dog!

 I might go with Evo.  The true raw diets are PROHIBITIVELY expensive.  I mean, like $750 a month.

 He hasn't been tested for allergies, but it seems so unlikley given that all of his problems go away when he's on the flagyl.  Plus he's been on Solid Gold, which gets rid of a lot of typical ingredients dogs are allergic too, like wheat.

For now I'm going to sleep.  I appreciate the help a ton and I look forward to more responses!

 Here's some pictures per request!

Here's me and Bear when he was about 5 months old

And here's him giving me the, "Sorry I just pooped on the floor" look, because right before I took the picture, he did just that!

8 mos old and 55 lbs doesn't sound too small to me, but then again i don't know how tall he is. He's a cute guy!

Has your vet mentioned anything about EPI? I think it's pretty common in GSDs, and will cause them to be underweight.

here's a link.

But i will also tell you it takes a while for a lot of GSDs to fill out. My guy is turning 4 next week and he's just recently started filling out in the past year... Good luck and keep us updated!

What a handsome boy!!

I'll second the recommendation for Evo. It's higher calorie count packed into smaller servings should help put weight on him if theres no other underlying issue.

How much food is he eating a day? Are you adding anything to his food?

How are his stools? The quantity and formation are important in figuring out whats going on also.

You say his energy level is good. Give us an example of his daily routine and activites.

and definitely post more pictures!! He is cute.

One more consideration.....If the treatments Bear recieved were antibiotics it would be a good idea to give probiotics.These are the helpful bacteria in the intestinal tract that are destroyed by antibiotics.They can be found in health food or vitamin stores.This may help you get rid of the loose stools.Evo is calorie dense and very high quality.You can also top his food with high calorie human foods like canned salmon,full fat cottage cheese and eggs.Peanut butter is very high in calories.You can put some in a Kong for Bear to lick out.Kudos to you for seeking information beyond what your vet tells you.Many of us worry about our dogs being underweight when infact they are much healthier than thier tubby counterparts.The loose stools though should be delt with.Good luck.

Tena

What everyone has said is very helpful.  I'm racing out the door to work ... sorry Misstrouble but I didn't get your pm til this morning =-( ..But if you are looking for a different vet this might help

 http://www.tcvm.com -- there is a locator on the left and I've had superb luck in helping folks find a good holistic vet that way.  The Chi Institute is a vet qualifying group for traditional Chinese veterinary medicine -- so you get diet counselling among a far far better exam.  But they won't be a stranger to premium diets, homecooked and raw.

Oh what a cutie!

The other have posted some great information. And I applaud you for looking out for your furbaby.

Like Ridgeback, I too have a GSD, mine is a 2 year old male, his name is Kord and he also runs very lean. At 2 he tops in between 75 and 80lbs. Just this week I noticed his neck starting to get thicker.

While I would be concerned about the weight I would make it secondary to the diarrhea, GSD's should be kept lean, heavy weight can cause problems with hips and elbows.

I agree, I would be more concerned with the chronic diarrhea.  I wonder if a holistic vet might be a good choice? I know food-wise, my vet knows nothing, he thinks Purina and Science Diet are the best and has never heard of any of the foods I feed.  Annoying, but common.  Holistic vets seem to know a lot more about how foods affect the dog.    My puppies were both quite skinny until they hit a year, than they slowly started filling out, at the same time they were never skinny enough to count all their ribs.  If you switch around with foods, of course make sure to do it super slowly and include probiotics while you make the switch.  I hope you find answers soon, you are doing a great job researching all the possibilities.  Bear is absolutely adorable!!!

Evo is a great food, but very rich -- so it likely will not help your dog's chronic diarrhea problems.  I would go with a food that has more fiber/bulking agents in it for a while, at least until you get the pooping issues cleared up.  I've become a big fan of the sweet potato based foods.  Currently I have my dogs on Natural Balance sweet potato & fish formula -- I switch protein sources every time I pick up a bag, as they have venison, duck, etc.  I've noticed a big change in the stool of both of my dogs since switching to the sweet potato formula -- I used to feed pumpkin regularly because they would occasionally get the runs, but not anymore.

The pumpkin would be an additional idea for you to try, though.  Just buy a can of plain old pumpkin, not the spiced pie filling, and feed your boy a few tablespoons a day.  I'd also pick up some plain yogurt and add that to his diet, as the constant diarrhea is wrecking havoc on his digestive system and the yogurt will help balance things out.

He is one adorable puppy!!  I would bet that the weight issue will resolve itself once you get his digestive track in a better place.

 Thanks a ton for all the responses guys!

After this morning, Bear has gone about two days without having diarrhea, which is a new record for him if he's not on the Flagyl.  He's been having large hard stools instead.  Hopefully this is a good sign.

I'm going to switch him to Evo after he's done with his prescription food and look into getting him probiotics.  Also, would supplements help?  A breeder on another website had suggested supplements that contain enzymes and antioxidents and vitamins, to help with digestion and malnutrition.  I also might do some of the suggestions by the above poster, as far as giving him some pumpkin or yogurt.

I looked at the Chi Istitute, but the closest vet is quite a drive away!

Also, my vet did mention EPI, so I looked into it further and a lot of the information worried me.  It appears expensive to diagnose and expensive and hard to treat, unless the information I got was sensationalized.  The website linked above didn't make it seem to hard to treat though--just put powder on the dogs food that contains the enzyme.  I should probably ask my vet about it.

EDIT:  I forgot to mention that I am feeding him about 5 cups a day now and he is no longer on puppy food because the vet gave me the prescription stuff.