How To Fatten Up A Dog On Raw Diet

When dogs lose weight, dog parents often make a diet plan that helps their pets to gain weight. Choosing a healthy diet plan is essential if you fatten your dog on a raw or kibble diet.

Before trying to fatten a dog on a raw diet, it is imperative to ascertain the cause of being underweight in your pet. Malnourished dogs should be fed properly to return to a healthy state.

Are you trying to make your dog gain some weight using a raw diet? If your answer is yes, highlighted below are 7 effective ways to fatten a dog on a raw diet and notice rewarding results.

7 Ways To Fatten Up A Dog On Raw Diet

1. Make A Meal Plan

The first step is to make a meal timetable, including a list of healthy food to feed your dog.

Some good choices of raw food to feed them are; turkey, chicken, pork liver, bones, vegetables and fruits, beef, etc. Making a food timetable makes every meal hour accounted for.

Also, it becomes easier to fatten your dog on a raw diet when you know what meal to feed it and at what hour of the day.

Moreover, choosing raw food with fat and protein over grainy meals, e.g., fatty meats, bones, and full-fat cottage cheese, will help fatten your dog.

Also, food rich in vitamin B, such as liver, is an excellent addition to helping your pet add weight.

2. Increase The Food Intake

The key to helping dogs gain weight is to increase their calorie intake. The increase in food portion and calories depends on the following:

• The dog breed
• The metabolism and physical activity

Smaller dog breeds have smaller stomachs and need just a moderate amount of food.

On the other hand, larger species can eat more significant amounts of food. Additionally, dogs with higher body metabolism burn more calories.

Bigger dogs need to add more calories than they burn to add weight. Home pets are usually not as active as police dogs and guard dogs. Hence, the latter will need to consume more calories than the former.

If you want to fatten a dog on a raw diet, feed it raw food with high calories, like Pork, bones, beef, turkey, and chicken.

There are 54 calories in one ounce of turkey, 71 calories in one ounce of beef, 68 calories in one ounce of chicken, and 90 calories in one ounce of Pork.

3. Feed The Dog In Bits

While trying to fatten your dog on a raw diet, it may be tempting to overfeed it with large portions of food at a time. Instead of serving all the meals at once, serve its food in bits at different times of the day.

For example, make it eat four small meals a day instead of two large meals.

Besides, feeding your canine pet in bits helps it to adjust to the new feeding pattern.

Also, it helps prevent gastrointestinal problems that may arise from overfeeding the dog.

4. Feed The Dog With Its Favorite Meal

Some dogs, like their best friends’ cats, can be picky eaters. Feeding your dog food it dislikes could be why your canine pet lost some significant amount of weight.

Feed it its favourite meal to fatten your dog on a raw diet. It is common knowledge that dogs love to eat bones. Hence, provide turkey and meat with bones for it to eat.

Also, reward your dog with some yogurt as dessert anytime it finishes its meal. Rewarding your dog to eat will encourage it to drop its picky eating habits.

5. Consult A Veterinary

Make your dog see a veterinarian because it could be sick. The Vet can help you plan the best raw diet based on your dog’s health, wellness, and lifestyle.

Ask the doctor to examine your canine and calculate its current and ideal body condition score; that will help determine the quantity of food to feed your dog and the nutritional requirements.

See Also: Vet Can’t Figure Out What’s Wrong With My Dog

6. Add Vegetables And Fruits To Its Diet

When raw feeders try to fatten their dogs on a raw diet, they often leave out fruits and vegetables from the meal plan.

Meat and animal produce are not the only types of raw food beneficial to your pets.

Dogs need some fruit and vegetables because of their nutritional benefits.

As much as the dogs are trying to add weight, they need all the nutrients that make them look healthy. Vegetables and fruits can provide supplemental nutrients, such as protein, fats, fiber, and carbohydrates, for dog weight gain.

Also, fruits and vegetables are a treat for dogs, which are incredibly picky eaters. Some fruits to include are:

• Berries (frozen)
• Carrots (grated)
• Spinach (shredded)
• Kale (shredded)
• Apple (sliced without the seeds)

Add fruits and vegetables as toppings over dog food to increase their nutritional levels.

7. Make Your Dog Do Some Exercises

As much as the goal is to make your dog add some weight, it would help if you made it partake in some exercises to burn up excess fat and stay healthy.

Take your canine for walks outside, play catch with it or put it on a treadmill to burn the excess fat.

Are Raw Eggs Good For A Dog On A Raw Diet?

Cooked eggs are high in fats and proteins, which boosts your dog’s weight. Boiled eggs also supply amino acids to dogs that are good for body building and developing healthy dog immunity.

Raw eggs, on the other hand, are dangerous to dogs on a raw diet. Raw eggs expose dogs to harmful salmonella, which can compromise dogs’ health, especially for raw dieting dogs. Additionally, raw eggs cause biotin deficiency in dogs.

Be careful when administering raw eggs to dogs, especially those bought on a large scale.

If your dog consumes raw eggs, monitor its reaction for a few days after the consumption. Contact your Vet immediately if you notice your dog exhibiting severe symptoms like digestive distress.

These may be a sign that your dog has contracted a salmonella infection.

Exercise Patience To Fatten Up Your Dog On Raw Diet

As early explained, don’t rush your dog to add weight because doing so can lead to more health problems.

The problem could be mild such as stomach upset or refeeding syndrome. For instance, overfeeding could lead to refeeding syndrome, which causes loss of beneficial electrolytes.

As a result, your canine pet may exhibit weakness, confusion, fatigue, difficulty breathing, high blood pressure, heart failure, etc.

Furthermore, excessive weight loss could signify other health conditions in your dog. Weight loss can also be caused by worm infestation, gloomy mood, lack of proper care and attention, etc.

Hence, it is crucial to consult your veterinarian, especially when your dog shows no improvement.