Is my staffy too thin... Feeding has changed

Hi all,

I have a four year old English Staffy who I rescued at 18 months old. When he came to me he had all sorts of problems both behavioural and physical. He has an incredibly sensitive stomach and as such I slowly transitioned him to only dry food. He has been doing great on that his skin troubles have cleared up and his stomach has settled completely.

My question is to do with his recent loss of weight. I used to feed him 1.5 cups in the morning and evening however I have just moved into an apartment and so have transitioned him to just over 3 cups only in the evening... I take him for a long run in the morning (approx 5 kilometres) and often the same or similar in the evenings. He didn't have that much exercise when he had a big backyard to play in.

My common sense tells me that his weight loss is probably due to increased exercise and stress of moving into a new home? But it's been a fortnight and I'm worried I'm starving him...

I'll try and attach some photos but he looks a bit fatter in them than he does really... The top two are before the move the bottom two are now.

He looks ok to me, but what does he weigh ? My boy looks a bit on the skinny side when he's standing but seems far chunkier sitting. He's 2yrs 3 mths old & just under 20kg.

Hi ya, welcome to the Forum

Weight is the key really. You may be under feeding if he's getting more exercise than he was. I would give him a small breakfast an hour before you take him for a run so that he has fuel to burn otherwise he will burn whatever is stored from the feed the night before.

It won't do any harm to see how he goes with a second feed. If you notice him getting too heavy simply cut it back a little until you find the correct amount for him.

Thanks guys! It'll be difficult to feed him an hour before his morning run as we go just before six am. I am also trying to get him on a bathroom schedule as I start work again in 2.5 weeks. I took time off to settle him into our new situation. He's around 18.5 kilos perhaps just under but I have been told he's quite small for a male. ThanK's for your input I might have to add a bit more to his meal.

18.5kg isn't a bad weight at all. My Flo is quiet small and weighs 18kg but isn't "Fat" at all. You could always feed after the run I guess, it's all about replacing the used fuel really

He looks alright to me, from the pictures it doesn't look like you can see his ribs. Most dogs these days are over weight so sometimes dogs who are a good weight look too thin as you're used to seeing fatter dogs.

If you're worried up the amount of food a little and see if he gains more weight