Best weigh gain..

[Diana]

Only skimmed through this thread, so I apologize if someone else already said this. 2 words: BEEF FAT. Dogs run on fat. Studies have been done that show that working dogs, including sled dogs, do best on an extremely high fat diet. Fat is high density calories. Go to you local slaughter house/locker and get scraps or use any fat from wild game - but a lot of wild game is too lean-you want solid chunks of fat. A handful of 1" cubes of fat will keep your dogs fat & happy in the cold weather-plus they will need less water than if they are eating a high protein, high carb diet. A word of caution though: add it gradually, so they don't get loose bowels.

[burnin tail]

I feed pure beef fat scraps from butcher along with dry food. Only give fat when hunting,then maybe a hunk the size of your fist a day.

[tod watterson]

On the note of how some dogs are just better keepers than others . I had a dog that died about 6 years ago at the age of 14 years, that was still catching every lion and most bobcats, that weighed 42 lbs when he wasn't being hunted and he dropped to about 38 lbs when he was hunted 4 or 5 days a week . He was a tall long legged dog that could easily have been a 65 lb dog if he had carried any weight . His dad was the same way only worse, he would eat about a mouthful of food then go bury the rest .The dog I had always looked like he was in shape while his dad always looked underfed and malnourished .Now even though I believe a dog needs to be in good flesh in the winter to hunt and hold up , I believe an over weight dog in the long run will have a far shorter hunting career and lifespan . It's no different than me putting a 50 lb backpack and hiking up a hill . I've also had dogs that were way easy keepers that may need a couple cups of dog food in cold weather but if it warmed up and you wasn't paying attention would be so damn fat in a week they couldn't hunt . In the hunting I do for bear , lion and bobcat , I think hot weather and fat dogs are the worst combination .

[Sask_matty]

Do not feed raw eggs to your dogs. The egg whites bind up vitamin D and your dog will become deficient if you do it to often. This is only for uncooked eggs. Cooked eggs are super fine.

I agree with the eggs, if you cook them it is not a big deal. Some mink farmers in my area were feeding raw turkey eggs from a local turkey breeder... mink started to get patches of fur falling out just from the lack of Biotin (vitamin B-7). There is a protein in eggs that binds to B7 and makes it unavailable for digestion, however if you cook the eggs this protein is denatured and there are no harmful effects of feeding eggs. Has nothing to do with Vitamin D.

Add some fat to the diet, that is what the dogs need more than anything. They are likely getting enough protein in their diet, but when its cold out and they need energy, they will actually break down some muscle tissue for energy metabolism. I live in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan and all week it has been -35 without the windchill. Put some fat on top of their food and that will help them out. About a 1/4 cup on top of what I normally feed is all I do and seems to help.

[Unreal_tk]

Water sure is important. I got a water deicer for them setup now. I'll try the eggs. I have cheap means for eggs. I will just scramble some up for him on days I hunt
As for worming I just had wormed him. Just a dog who stays active all the time.

[JTG]

I give my dogs raw eggs just about every day since we have chickens and I also feed my dogs raw meat every chance I get, The leg bones from deer are great and the deer processor is glad to give them to me, you just do not want to feed them the smaller bones that break up. I also buy raw chicken by the bag and they love it. Sometimes the raw chicken is less than dog food and it's great for there teeth among other things. I give my puppies the same after about eight to ten weeks old.
Good dog food does help and makes all the difference. Split the meals, if they have a hard time keeping on weight. In one of the past post they where talking about big kennels, if you hunt the hell out of them and you want to keep on weight, keep them in a smaller kennel, just to eat and sleep and if your hunting them every day for long hours there ready to do just that. I want there brain to think, when I am not sleeping or eating I am ready to go hunting.
I also like to use "Red Cell" that they feed race horses, just a 1/2 of a tea spoon over dry dog food a couple of times a week.
Some dogs keep on weight better than others so just adjust the food to fit the dog. I had one dog live to 17, one to almost 15 and have one now 11 that looks like six.
JTG

[Unreal_tk]

JTG. That dog has a hole wore down where he runs circles on the chain. He's been that way since the first night I got him.

[dwalton]

All has been covered. For me feeding the dogs 2 or 3 times daily is the only way I can them up even with top feed, added meat and fat is feeding them at least twice a day. No it does not hurt them to be fed in the mornings before hunting. Dewey

[mark]

We dont typically have cold weather here compared to other parts of the country, but i went to insulated dog houses and have noticed a big difference in the dogs since. The less energy and calories they use to stay warm the easier it is to keep there weight up.

[JTG]

I know, I have two like that, they often make good hunting dogs as fat boy's seldom win a race. JTG

JTG. That dog has a hole wore down where he runs circles on the chain. He's been that way since the first night I got him.

[JTG]

http://www.valleyvet.com/ct_detail.html ... 7AodqXYAag

[al baldwin]

How much can be fed in the mornings before hunting? How many feed in morning before hunting?

[Diana]

Never could understand feeding horse vitamins to a dog. Totally different animals with different nutritional needs. But, I think they make Canine Red Cell. Still always found it made my dogs run hot. I personally don't like feeding my dogs less than 12 hours before hunting/working them - feel it slows them down a tad. Predators are at their sharpest when they are hungry....same applies for dogs within reason.

[Diana]

If I absolutely must feed a dog right before/during a hunt, I would use something like Nutrical or Dyne, that leaves no gut bolus.

[Tim Pittman]

Diamond Extreme Athlete 32% protein 25% fat, all the meat they catch and a litte beef fat now and then. I mix the extreme athlete and atta boy together.