# Am I feeding enough? (Pics inside)



## KG K9 (Dec 8, 2009)

I give Deebo 2 cups of Innova LB twice a day.

He will be 9 months on July 21st.
Last time I weighed him, he was about 75, so I bet now he is at least 80+.


He is lean, but I am wondering if he is too skinny. Haven't had any comments, other than my father, but just want to make sure.






































He has a wide back end...hips and stuff. I look at other GSDs and they sometimes have a slant back, that stays narrow.


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## GSDBESTK9 (Mar 26, 2002)

4 cups a day sounds fine. He is just young and full of energy. GSDs don't fill out until about 2 years old.


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## Relayer (Apr 29, 2010)

He's very cute and probably getting enough food. If you're concerned, maybe supplement his 4 cups a day with a half lb or so ground beef, raw or cooked to give some extra protein and calories. He looks lean, but not too skinny for his age. Let's worry more about getting those floppy (and really cute!) ears up soon.


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## KG K9 (Dec 8, 2009)

At over 8 months...those ears are done. I spend months 5.5-7 trying and nothing. 

He will be unique.


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## Relayer (Apr 29, 2010)

KG K9 said:


> At over 8 months...those ears are done. I spend months 5.5-7 trying and nothing.
> 
> He will be unique.


Hey, I had lots of people telling me how cute and unique Max was when his left ear seemed really lazy. You're right, he is unique and the same wonderful. special companion with or without perked ears.


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## GSDSunshine (Sep 7, 2009)

I think he looks normal as well. You want to keep him lean like that. He has a nice waist and you said he still has a butt. He is just still in that awkward preteen phase where he doesn't really have an adult body, but he not a puppy anymore (not his body anyways, his mind is another story). I bet when he is around 18 m/o you will start to see him get more of the characteristics of a big boy. If you are worried about his muscle mass, you can add in a raw egg daily and a small amount (4 oz) or raw meat occasionally, but the most important thing is exercise. Just like in humans.... if you eat a 2 lb steak daily.... you won't get muscular... just fat. So if you add in the extra Calories, make sure you up his exercise appropriately. You you add in an extra game of tug, add in a weekly off leash hike in the woods, go swimming somewhere.


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## roxy84 (Jun 23, 2007)

KG K9 said:


> At over 8 months...those ears are done. I spend months 5.5-7 trying and nothing.
> 
> He will be unique.


 
yep. count me as one who absolutely loves the floppy eared gsd. i would not have cared one iota if Kimbas ears never made it up.

he is a good looking boy.


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## chicagojosh (Jun 22, 2010)

I don't think he's too skinny. Good looking dawg


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## gagsd (Apr 24, 2003)

I think he does look thin, particularly picture 2. Could be that he does not have a lot of muscle back there?
Maybe take the suggestion of a little extra ground meat, or even a leg quarter.


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## Cluemanti (Jun 25, 2010)

Pic #2 does make him look pretty skinny. But that weight at his age and size doesn't raise any major red flags to me. If he is eating well and poops are regular I would just add a few calories here and there.


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## Lucy Dog (Aug 10, 2008)

He's 8 months old, this is how he should look.

Can you see his ribs when he breathes? If no, he's perfectly fine. It takes time to fill out and you want it to be a slow process. 

Keep him lean his whole life, it's better for their joints and overall health.


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## shilorio (Mar 21, 2010)

shilos the same way  and shes almost two


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## shilorio (Mar 21, 2010)

people always comment on how thin she is, they think we are starving her! :/


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## Stosh (Jun 26, 2010)

Count me in...he looks good.


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## Elaine (Sep 10, 2006)

His hip bones are really sticking out. This could be either from lack of exercise or he's too thin.


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## roxy84 (Jun 23, 2007)

Elaine said:


> His hip bones are really sticking out. This could be either from lack of exercise or he's too thin.


 
not an unusual look for a 9 month old gsd. if his ribs arent showing. id say hes fine.


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## MaggieRoseLee (Aug 17, 2001)

To me he does look a bit thin with the hip bones sticking out. There isn't a great side shot but I'm betting you can see all his ribs.

The weird part about our GSD's is they grow in spurts. For months can eat the same amount and then suddenly look either too thin or too fat...

I'd up his food for a bit, give 1/2 cup more for am and for pm and see if that makes him fill out a bit. Considering he's still growing, it will NOT hurt cause he's certainly not overweight....


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## KG K9 (Dec 8, 2009)

Sounds good. I've actually been giving him 1/2-3/4 cup more per meal.
And he gets the occasional RMB, chicken qtr, egg etc.

He gets a pretty good amount of exercise. He is ALWAYS wanting to fetch a ball, so we do that everyday.

What's the rib rule? You should only see the last rib? 

Not sure how not enough exercise could make his hips look wide. 

I think he could stand to fill out a bit more, but he is young. I want to keep him real lean. You all know how it is when you see other dogs. Lots of overweight and unhealthy doggies. 99.9% of the time I never see an overweight GSD though. People usually take pride in a shepherd.


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## GSDSunshine (Sep 7, 2009)

KG K9 said:


> 99.9% of the time I never see an overweight GSD though. People usually take pride in a shepherd.


Sadly I see way too many.  Last one I saw was within a few months of dakota, but because he was 30 lbs over weight, he wouldn't run more than a few feet before stopping. When I spoke to the owners I discovered he ate a normal amount of kibble, what was doing him in was the extras. The guys would give him a little of whatever they ate that night. If they had mashed potatoes and gravy, the dog had mashed potatoes and gravy, if they had spaghetti, so did he. 

Never like seeing those table tops. 

Your guy looks great, and yes you want to see the last rib...maybe two. But you don't want to see the rest. You do want to be able to feel them easily though. Gorgeous boy btw!


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## FuryanGoddess (Dec 26, 2009)

I had a soft eared GSD. She was cute, though did have a lot of ear infections so watch for that. 

He looks kinda thin, but so does my Zeva but you can't see her hip bones. You can on Murphy, but he's 3 mos old and growing like mad. He's solid, heavy and just using all that food yet for growing. 

I think your pup will fill out just fine on his own. Five lbs on these dogs, which can be gained in a very short time, is a lot of weight and could make them just right, too heavy or too skinny. Gvine him time, he's still a baby for the most part. How much does he weigh?


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## danbeaulieu (Jul 14, 2010)

He looks good for his age, my sisters dog Lavina is a little thinner and I consider her to be a healthy dog. She actually eats more than her sister Zoebal, but is still thinner.

Outside playing, I notice that Lavina is much faster and more athletic than Zoebal so this could be the reason for her size difference, we'll that and her general metabolism.


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## Grissom (Jan 7, 2010)

Speaking of giving "extras," if you are giving treats, how many calories should you aim for?


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