[zcRiley]

My 2 yr old pit mix was 80 lbs a month ago, now he’s 73 lbs and dropping. We’ve started our summertime daily routine of walks, running, jumping, fetching, swimming (he’s extremely active with his brother) and lots of a/c & resting in between. His annual exam, blood tests, stools, skin/hair/teeth are all healthy. The only thing I noticed was that he drinks water much more than he used to (so his urinating is like gallon) and plows thru his 3-times-per-day meals like a vaccuum cleaner. We’ve upped the amount & he still begs between meals. However, although firm & healthy, his defecations are these HUGE piles! He’s definitely more powerful now than he was when chunky fat, all lean muscle, but why is he always starving?

Basically, is it normal to be eating a lot and defecating a lot? Wouldn’t he be dead now if he wasn’t “absorbing” his food? I’m completely baffled.

[Pitlove]

zcRiley- I have a pitbull as well. He is currently weighing in at 68lbs and he’s almost a year and 2 months old. I check his weigh constantly and feel his ribs to make sure he’s not gaining or losing too much. How does your boy look? Are his ribs sticking out and very visable? Was he a tad overweight at 80lbs maybe? Does he tend to drop more weight every summer when he gets more active? What food is he eating? How much were you feeding before compared to now? Was he always given 3 meals a day or was he free fed before and that was what caused his weight gain?

Also when do you notice him drinking more water? Is it after activity or just constantly?

I do 2 meals a day 12 hours apart for my dog and he is at his ideal weight and always has been. He will still lick his bowl after he’s done and eat the cats food but I attribute that to him now finally enjoying food as he did not before and would barely eat. Dogs sometimes gorge themselves and can eat past the point of them being full. Thats why I asked if he was free fed before since he might be used to being able to eat whenever he wants.

[zcRiley]

No free feeding since they were born. No ribs are sticking out but you can see his spine a little. I was combing his back and kept kept hitting it. I feed Zignature Zssentials, ZiwiPeak dehydrated and Weruva canned.

[Pitlove]

Have you brought him to see a vet? If so did they comment that he seemed underweight?

[zcRiley]

They weighed him as usual and commented that a lot of dogs lose weight because of the increase of summer exercise & activities. But no one seemed alarmed at the way he looked or anything. We were there for annual shots.

[bigthree]

It is true that animals will usually loose a few pound in the summer months. I have a St Bernard that will loose about five pounds, but if you have upped the amount of food your dog should stay the same. The amount of water will increase if you play with them outside for a long period of time, don’t forget dogs sweat too. If your dog is looking too thin and keeps loosing too much weight then yes there is something wrong and you need to take him/her back to the vet and get a complete blood work-up.

[Pitlove]

zcRiley- Most vet’s will alert you if they feel your dog is underweight. I think you might just be in shock from his pervious form to this. He probably is at or approaching his ideal weight but since he was overweight before he looks too thin to you. I really wouldn’t be concerned. From the sound of it he’s probably at his ideal weight now 🙂

[Author]

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