My schnauzer is overweight & always hungry...why?

by Natalie
(Melbourne Australia)

Does anybody have a solution for why my mini is always hungry. He is on a restricted diet because he is overweight - inherited problem - and I cannot get his weight down.
He gets a 1/4 cup of Beniful for breakfast and then a cupish for dinner with steamed veggies - but he always is looking for food. He has a marrow bone once a week.
The amount of food more than satisfies my other dog, who is a schnoodle and much bigger.

Gus is a rescue dog - returned to breeder because of behaviour probs (I think the humans had the probs not Gus!!) They locked him outside all the time and just filled his bowl with kibble to stop him barking.
I don't want to feed him anymore as he is overweight now.
Can you help?

Comments for My schnauzer is overweight & always hungry...why?

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Jul 12, 2011
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starstarstarstarstar 		thank you
by: Anonymous

Thank you lovely people for your suggestions. I will take Gus to the vet and get him checked out. I have also been feeding him some carrots and they seem to be helping.
Natalie
Jul 12, 2011
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starstarstarstarstar 		Hungry schnauzer?
by: Delana

I have had schnauzers for 15 years. My precious little angel died January 5, 2010. When she was 3 she got pancreatitis. Vet didn't think she would live thru another bout of it but she lived to be 12 and had many painful bouts thru her life. She also developed Cushings disease which made her hungry all the time. It's the main symptom of this disease. She had tot be on a low fat diet due to the pancreatitis wand was on hills prescription diet w/d. She ate ravenously all the time. No matter how much you put in front of her she would gobble it up like she was starving. She also was overweight. Schnauzers are prone to panreatitis. If Gus had previous owner that fed him too much or a high fat content it is possible he is starting to develop Cushings or pancreatitis. This is a painful disease. You mite have your vet check for that. If he has the chronic form it will eventually lead to diabetes. My little angel had pancreatitis for 9 of her 12 years. She got diabetes and had to have insulin shots twice a day. Then she went blind..then she got glaucoma and her eyes began bleeding and the vet had to remove her little eyes. This was the saddest day of my life up until that point. She lived her last year with no little eyes. I would carry her places. The day she died was the sadder day of my life. She was a special angel. She came to me during a bad time in my life and was my angel. I spent thousands of dollars on her thru the years with her disease. She would have flare ups every now and then then she would be fine for al long time. I now have two more little girls (schnauzers) and so far they are doing great. But the Cushings disease is a big possibility
For him always being hungry. Why don't you have your vet check for Cushings and pancreatitis. Hope it's neither but are sounds typical of the disease.. Best of luck to you. Schnauzers are the best dogs. I would not ever want a different kind of dog, and trust me I have had many kinds of dogs. Schnauzers have their own special unique personality that no other dog has. I wish you and Gus the best and many happy years together
Jul 09, 2011
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starstarstarstarstar 		try feeding something during the day
by: Anonymous

When we adopted our Spiffy, she had just the opposite problem. She was not fed enough and not on a regular basis.If we did not feed her immediately when we awoke, or at 5pm, she would throw up because she was so upset that food would not be forthcoming. Now, she knows that would never happen, and does not have the problem of throwing up, but the worry over not enough food still persists somewhat.(I would firstly read the bag and make sure that the amount of dry food/per day is appropriated for the desired weight.) Then here's what we do. Hold our about a tablespoon of the amount you normally give at each feeding and keep those pcs. as treats to hand out during the day. Also, I would do the same with the vegetables (we don't steam them) Each morning I cut up about 1/4 cup of various veggies These we give during the day as a treats as well. Spiffy learned quickly that meals would be on schedule and food always available during the day..

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