Franklin why must you worry me so!?
Well Franklin is at it again with his health stuff. Lately I've been noticing he's been looking mighty skinny so I decided to take him to the vet for a weigh in to see if he truly was losing weight or if my eyes were playing tricks on me. He was down 4 pounds in less than three months! Normally for a corgi this would have owners jumping for joy, but since Franklin was already at weight, this has me quite worried. He has actually be getting about 1/4 cup a day MORE food than normal, no increase in exercise or activity so I really can't account for this huge weight loss. Appetite is normal, poops are normal, energy is normal, so now I'm trying to wrack my brain as to why this sudden drop in weight. Pre-Kirby we would regularly go on 3-4 mile rollerblades everyday in addition to in house fetch/tug time, and now we are just going on much shorter walks so I don't think the addition of a second dog has much to do with it. They dont' play all that much anyway, mostly its Kirby chasing Franklin who is playing with me, not the two of them running laps. Anybody ever deal with trying to keep weight on a corgi and/or dramatic weight loss for no good reason? I'm going to increase his food more and re-weigh him in 2-3 weeks and cross my fingers for some weight gain, otherwise I guess it will be time for some bloodwork to figure out what's going on. Working at a vet my mind always jumps to the bad/scary so I'd love it if others have dealt with this either with adding a 2nd dog or ?
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Rachael & Waffle on
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I struggled with keeping Waffle at a healthy weight for the first year I had him--but that was mostly because he wouldn't eat his food. Is there any chance Kirby is eating Frank's food?
... Is it getting hot where you live? I know animals need to eat more to maintain their body condition when the temperatures are extreme.
Besides straight-up medical problems, those are the only two things I can think of. :\
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Permalink Reply by Melissa and Franklin! on
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Rachael- nope, no chance Kirby is getting his food. I supervise meals and know exactly how much each dog is eating. Also, its been pretty mild all year, about 60-70 since last summer! Hoping maybe the doggies are sneaking in a lot of play when I'm gone and an increase in food may help. :-/
Although on the flip side Kirby has gained two pounds (which we are wanting weight gain for him), so I'd think if both dogs were super active he wouldn't be gaining as Franklin is losing....
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Permalink Reply by Miranda~ Moses | Maya | Maverick on
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I know for us when we added a new dog to the mix, their activity level was majorly increased. Even just the amount of movement inside the house... when they tug together and chase and groom each other, vs just laying alone. It is strange that he lost so much, considering the increased food and the fact they don't seem to be as active together as my dogs seemed to be. I hope it's an easy solution. Sending good and fattening thoughts your way! ;-)
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Permalink Reply by Ellen Andersen on
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Between Franklin and Kirby, Melissa....cripes, hon! I'm hoping there's nothing wrong with Franklin and sending fattening wishes your way, too!
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Permalink Reply by Natalie, Lance &Tucker on
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Sending positive vibes your way, hoping that there aren't any health issues going on with Franklin!!
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Thanks guys, who would have thought a corgi owner would want fattening wishes! Today I increased his food by another 1/8 of a cup per meal (which will be a total of 1/2 cup a day increase over the last month). Hoping that does the trick. My pet health benefits at work don't kick in for another 5 months so it'd be super awesome if I didn't have to pay for more bloodwork lol. I have to work as a vet tech in order to afford these critters! Sheesh!
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Permalink Reply by Karen Dadisman on
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When people drop weight like that one of the first things they check is diabetes. Not sure about dogs but could be something to think about. Has the formulation of the dog food they eat changed? Might be worth a shot to check on that.
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Permalink Reply by Jane Christensen on
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I have 3 that their weigh will go up and down 2-3 pounds and it's probably do to more/less food and their activity. So I could see this happening. Wynn gains weight when we have pups as he gets fed a few more times if I forget that he doesn't need the extra food. Good luck!
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Permalink Reply by Chris, Kadi & Brodie on
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I wonder if it couldn't just be a result of some stress from adding Kirby. I know that Franklin has seemed to take it in stride, but they are such sensitive dogs, that he is bound to have picked up on the stress levels. Also, probably wouldn't hurt to treat him for giardia since Kirby had such a load of it.
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Yeah I talked to my vet about the giardia thing. He said he shouldn't be losing weight from giardia if he shows no symptoms. In my area giardia is starting to be viewed as a part of the dog's common intestinal flora since it has become so common and many cases, if they have no symptoms, the vets are starting to consider not treating. They are having a VERY hard time getting rid of it when they do treat and in many cases now dogs with it have zero symptoms, that is why they are thinking it has become part of their "normal" flora, not that a parasite can ever really be considered normal. I'm going to bring a fecal in for both him and Kirby to make sure Frank didn't get it though and that Kirby doesn't still have it.
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