Any ideas (dog losing weight)

On how an apparently outwardly healthy 14 month old dog can rapidly lose weight. My Freinds boy started being sick about 6 weeks ago, antibiotics seemed to do the trick, he is very energetic, eating well, no runny stools and yet is losing weight before our eyes, he has had 20 different blood tests done, his heart and liver are fine, xrays have been done and there are no tumours or blockages and the vet is completely stumped, he has suggested malabsorpstion but needs to do more advanced tests which the dog is booked in for on the 26th. The boy is still sick at least once or twice a week, he is on 2 meals a day, Barf and Hills science. The vet has also suggested upping his meals to 3 times daily and of a high fatty content until the other tests but understandably, my friend is very anxious and Im stumped too. She fosters rescues dogs on occasion and has just taken in a boxer cross of 4 months old, she started fostering about 7-8 weeks ago, just before her boy got sick. Any ideas folks?

Sorry I can't offer any advice but I wish the poor dog well xx

A long shot maybe but is her current foster dog the first one your friend has had since she got her own dog? If no physical reason can be found and if he is a sensitive dog I'm wondering if it could be psychological and this is the reason why he keeps being sick. Whatever the reason, I hope your friend gets to the bottom of it.xx

i'd wait till he has further tests done to see if it is malabsorption.

Hector has this and its easy to maintain. he used to be sick from time to time but he also had many soft yellowy/greasy stools. his appetite was poor tho', almost to the point i knew he had belly ache. eating poo is also another sign, windy, both ends, no coat and rapid weight loss, lethagy then mad behaviour.

a blood test was all we needed as his levels were so low.

what tests are your friends dog having for this?

Could it be diabetes - we have a cat who lost a lot of weight and he still ate like a horse and drank fine - he is now stable and putting weight back on

No, they ruled out diabetes, the first blood test was found to be higher than normal in glucose, so the vet asked them to starve him for 24 hours and then he did the test again the next day, and his glucose level was normal. Im not sure on what he has been tested for, i will find out and let you know.

Hi there,

Out of interest what breed is your dog ? As I know that certain breeds are renowned for going through skinny phases.

My weimaraner (now 12) went through a stage about that age when she became skin and bone. She was also fed on Burns at the time and I found that it didn't work for her.

Also, just in case its not been sone recently worming the dog may be a good idea even if nothing appears to there.

I know how distressing it is to have a dog thats losing weight - people thought she was a greyhound !! she lost so much weight....

Good luck to your friend I hope she gets to the bottom of it.

Something my vet suggested when our old Jack Russell had a month or so of vomiting for no reason. We were told to give him Farley's Rusks soaked in warm water after each episode of vomiting. That way it put something gentle back into his tummy and it was warm so his stomach was less likely to spasm like it would with cold water. Just a thought that might help.

I hope it's sorted out soon.