# Puppy losing weight on Wellness



## Caroline162 (Jan 6, 2009)

I recently switched my ~13 week old puppy to Wellness puppy food, and he has started losing weight. He was eating less, but I had heard that they will eat less of the better food (prior to this he was on Nutro Naturals and doing great). He is acting fine - has plenty of energy, looks healthy otherwise although he coat isn't super shiny or anything... but he's not acting sick or anything. He is eating about 2-3 cups a day. Unfortunately the Wellness food doesn't have directions on how much to feed on it. He's growing in height, but his belly is getting thinner - not just maturing and thinning out, he's really looking SKINNY now.

Should I switch him back to Nutro (he's actually getting about 3/4 Wellness and 1/4 Nutro still, while I finish off the bag)? Any other suggestions?

If he keeps losing weight I'll take him to the vet, because he's not due for a puppy visit until April.


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## babydmnc (Dec 8, 2008)

The feeding guidelines are right on the bag if you are feeding Wellness puppy in the yellow bag. I just threw away our bag (and put it into a bin) or I could read it off there. I got this info from the Petco site as the Wellness site does not have feeding guidelines that I could tell. 










"Directions: Based on an 8 oz. measuring cup- for puppies weighing 3 lbs. 6-11 weeks 1 cup, 3-4 months 1 1/4 cups, 5-7 months 1 cup, 8-12 months 1/2 cup.

For puppies weighing 5 lbs. 6-11 weeks 1 1/4 cup, 3-4 months 1 1/2 cups, 5-7 months 1 1/4 cup, 8-12 months 3/4 cup.

For puppies weighing 10 lbs. 6-11 weeks 1 3/4 cup, 3-4 months 2 cups, 5-7 months 1 1/2 cup, 8-12 months 1 cup.

For puppies weighing 15 lbs. 6-11 weeks 2 1/4 cups, 3-4 months 2 1/2 cups, 5-7 months 2 cups, 8-12 months 1 1/2 cups.

For puppies weighing 20 lbs. 6-11 weeks 2 3/4 cups, 3-4 months 3 cups, 5-7 months 2 1/2 cups, 8-12 months 1 3/4 cups.

For puppies weighing 30 lbs. 6-11 weeks 3 1/4 cups, 3-4 months 3 1/2 cups, 5-7 months 3 cups, 8-12 months 2 1/4 cups.

For puppies weighing 40 lbs. 6-11 weeks 3 3/4 cups, 3-4 months 4 cups, 5-7 months 3 1/2 cups, 8-12 months 3 cups.

For puppies weighing 50 lbs. 6-11 weeks 4 1/4 cups, 3-4 months 5 cups, 5-7 months 4 cups, 8-12 months 3 1/2 cups.

When changing your dog's diet gradually mix food over a 5-7 day period, increasing the daily amount of Wellness added, so that you are feeding 100% Wellness by day 7."

http://www.petco.com/product/106438/Wellness-Super5Mix-Just-for-Puppy-Food.aspx

Good luck with your pup, my two are doing great on Wellness


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## skelaki (Nov 9, 2006)

Feeding guidelines are just that -- guidelines. Your pup may need more or less. Generally an adolescent pup will eat about twice as much food as it will need as an adult. If he looks too thin (and don't forget US dogs tend to be overweight) just increase the amount you're feeding.


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## Caroline162 (Jan 6, 2009)

Thanks - your puppies sure are gorgeous!! I asked my husband to write down the amounts off the bag before dumping it in our food storage container and throwing the bag away, and he told me there were no amounts written on the bag... guess I'll look myself next bag we get 

It sounds like Porter is eating enough though, based on what you posted. And I should add that I feed him as much as he will eat - so it's not like I'm restricting how much I give him and he's losing weight (I just wanted the amounts off the bag, so I would know whether what's he's eating is within the range of normal, which it looks like it is). I feed him three times a day, but there's always food left in the bowl before I put it up. 

I guess I'll wait another week or two to see if he fills in (maybe he just had an up growth spurt) and then take him to the vet if he's still skinny. Or I may try going back to Nutro first to see what happens. I know there are a lot of people on here who have strong feelings about dog foods, but my cousin who is a vet always says if they're thriving on it, don't change it. He was doing fine on it and I haven't seen any improvement on the Wellness, just weightloss.


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## Spicy1_VV (Jun 1, 2007)

You can use the feeding guidelines on their website. Here is "Just For Puppy" then you can click feeding guidelines. 

Do you have pics of what your pup looked like now and before? If he is just lean but not really too skinny I wouldn't worry, they can go through spurts but will usually pick up their intake and start putting on a little puppy weight. Even a pup though you don't want to be too heavy. Anyway this could have coincided with the food change. 

As well there could be an underlying medical issue that also coincided with the switch. Even something simple like having picked up worms (not all dogs show other symptoms but have trouble keeping on weight). Or it could be something a little more complicated. 

I feel strongly against Nutro only because it made a couple of my dogs very sick, one extreme. Otherwise I'd been feeding it for years without problems prior to that. However if Wellness doesn't agree with your dog in time then I would try another switch depending on what you can get in your area.


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## misshobo (Jan 25, 2009)

Hi , wellness is a great food and I agree with previous posts regarding nutro. I read whole dog journal and several times a year they give food product ratings. Chicken Soup is another food that has good ingredients
Misshobo


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## Caroline162 (Jan 6, 2009)

I just wanted to update that I think he's actually okay... I think an UP growth-spurt coincided with the food switch. He just went from roly poly fat puppy to lean dog within a couple of weeks, right when I switched the food. Here's how he looks now:










We have no idea what breed he is, so it's also hard to tell what his body is "supposed to" look like.


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## Sammiesmom (Jan 1, 2009)

My Sammie is doing great on Wellness also.. I researched forever to decide what food to give him. I chose Wellness because its fit for human consumption and has no corn product in it. I am a true believer in Wellness !!!! He is in wonderful shape ... lean and active ... stay with it ..you will be very happy that you have.


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## tuesday (Feb 17, 2009)

He certainly looks like he's at a healthy weight to me. What a cutie!


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## flipgirl (Oct 5, 2007)

He looks fine to me in my unprofessional, but humble opinion. At his age, he shoudl be leaning towards the lean side anyway, as opposed to roly poly! You could also try Innova puppy food. It's higher in calories but a really good kibble. Every dog is different but maybe your puppy just has high energy needs. Maybe he's part border collie, in which case, he has HIGH energy needs!


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## Caroline162 (Jan 6, 2009)

Thanks! We switched to Innova a few weeks ago and he is doing FABULOUS!!! He loves the food (he was kinda finicky with the Wellness), his coat is shinier, and we're really happy with it. He is SO big - around 40lbs now, at 14 weeks. He keeps having growth spurts and getting lanky, but I think the Innova is doing a good job.

I know a lot of people like Wellness, it just wan't the food for us.


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