[Marcus]

I am a little concerened about my boxer. I recently went to the local petsmart and was talking with a worker. He said that my 1 year old boxer is to thin for her age. He recommended large breed puppy by naturo. Its been about a month and just seems like she is not gaining weight. Her ribs and chest bones are very easy to see. Can anyone offer advice?

 

[HannaBanana]

Boxers are lean dogs and if you think she looks thin, then increase her food intake.  You dont need to switch foods, but just curious on what you are currently feeding and how much?

Things like cottage cheese, chicken and adding a third meal can add weight to your boxer.   Its better to be under than over so tweaking the diet according to your dog is the best bet IMO.

 

[sully]

What does your vet say?  If you're concerned, bring him to the vet.

 

[southerngirls]

My first thought would be has she been checked for worms or intestinal parasites? If she is clean from those then i would agree and state that an increase in food is needed. i had to add pounds to one of my girls after i took her in, i used 2 meals a day. in the evening meal i added cottage cheese or plain yogurt, and then in the afternoon for a snack she would get a pb sandwhich. It took afew months but she gained the weight and she looks wonderful now!

 

[samsonsmom]

No offense to the person at Petsmart, but the majority of them really don't know what they are talking about...If you have concerns, the best person to ask is your vet..But Boxers are supposed to be thin, much better on their joints as they age believe me....You said your Boxer is 1 yr? That worker is way off if he's recomending a puppy food to a 1 yr old...A good All Stages food will be fine....You want to see the last few ribs, the time to get concerned is if you are seeing spine...Like was stated, try upping the food amount a bit and give like a protein snack, my favorite is a Kong stuffed with plain yogurt & Peanut butter

 

[48Dodge]

Yeah, taking pet advice from someone at Petsmart is about like taking building advice from someone at Lowes.  Sure, you may run into someone that actually knows what they're talking about, but 9 times out of 10 you'll probably get bad or wrong advice.  Someone that is recommending large breed puppy food to a dog that's 1 year old sounds like you've run into someone that fits into the "9 times out of 10" category.

 

[Marcus]

Thanks for all the good advice. I guess I was listening to the Petsmart associate because he had his very thick boxer there on site and the naturo food is what he said he would feed his boxer. As for the food intake for paris she eats morning and night meals. I have recently been mixing her dry food with the naturo wet food. Thinking it would give it a little better flavor. She really doesnt eat much. Probly cause it taste like nothing. Lets say I  gave it a whirl.LOL. But she is very active and I would like to see her a little more plump. How does the cottage cheese thing work and is there anything that i shouldnt give a boxer?

 

[Marcus]

HERE IS MY LITTLE DIVA PARIS!!!

 

[samsonsmom]

You can add small amounts of cottage cheese, plain low fat yogurt, raw eggs, sardines..There are a ton of things to add, just in moderation..I feed mine a raw egg once a week, sardines once a week, they also get green beans, carrots as well....Oh yea appples & bananas are good too.....In the health section, there is a topic about toxic items, the things I can think of right off the top is grapes, raisins, macadamia nuts, chocolate.....check the topic for a complete list

Here ya go, I found it
http://www.boxerforums.com/modules.php? ... pic&t=2039