The one thing I would advise, is if you're using a dry food or raw/cooked feeding commercially-raised meat, I'd stop adding omega-6 supplements. Unless the meat you give your dogs has been pasture-raised/grass fed, it will have an excess of omega-6 from the high-corn diet it was fed. I'd supplement with omega-3 instead, since most farmed meats are low in omega-3 for the same reason.

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I use my own livestock for the dogs food. I keep them free range and use homemade feed for the poultry. It's wheats, barley, some corn and others. I don't raise cattle, so that's store bought (wish I could but that much land is hard to come by in Las Vegas!) Would you still advise changing the omega?

I did forget to mention, Penny was born without reproductive organs (I'd guess that's from the neglect of the mother, and I also believe it was a backyard breeder trying to breed "teacup" Chis, I found a Craigslist post that had a pic that looked a lot like Bambi and they were advertising "the smallest chi puppies". And yes, I did report it!
Anyway, my vet has said that her small mid could be in part of the missing organs and well as hormones.
I'm just hoping to plump her up a bit, I know she is "healthy", I pride myself in taking care of my animals, I won't deny there might be a "better" way, but I know that my babies all receive awesome care and love.


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Wow, that's awesome that you raise your own livestock!!

I would still probably swap the omegas, as I've just not heard of any sort of livestock being low in Omega 6.

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I love this post. Going to try a few things myself as Willy is a very skinny boy and I can see his spine. I like the idea of feeding more meals a day instead of just increasing the amount. Willy actually gets full if I try to force him to eat more. He tries to eat cuz i am asking him to but once he was trying and then gagged like he was just too full, so I try not to push it. He eats what he eats and will not eat more. Little monkey lol
Also I will give the duck a try as I have gotten duck treats before and he did like them.
Good luck with sweet little Penny. She looks like a wee doll and reminds me alot of Willy with her size, though Willy is older and he is 4 pounds now at almost 4 years old.

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Cuervo is also pretty skinny. I ask my vet every time I'm there if his weight is ok (he's 3 1/2 close to 4 lbs and the vet is happy with his weight. He's always been skinny and he's not a big eater. He usually eats 1 big meal a day and a smaller one in the morning. I've always had to encourage him to eat. I give him treats throughout the day to stimulate his appetite before his meals and to try and keep his weight up.

Penny update: So I tried a bunch of different foods,... Raw, rabbit, omega 3, duck,.. I spent more time researching and cooking for her than anything else. And what happened? She lost 3 oz! She was refusing to eat most everything, waiting for the slightest chance to grab a drop or two of cat kibble!
So, I went another way, I posted a request on my Facebook for anyone I knew with a dog to give me a small sample of their dog food. I got everything from Alpo to Eukanuba. So I let Penny choose! She was very fond of the Kibbles and Bits homestyle (ugh!!) but we settled on Newmans own organic. It's a 5 star, not the greatest, but she eats it VERY well, her poops are still "cute", however a tad bigger than the normal tictac, haha!, BUT she has gained back 2 oz! She eats 3 times a day and seems very happy to eat.

Ill keep you posted, but for now it seems that her eating this well and showing weight gain is the best!


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I can tell you one thing that gets my dogs to gobble their food if they are feeling a bit 'off' - goat cheese. It worked wonders on my dog who has some liver issues in getting her re-interested in food. All the dogs LOVE it and it is not too bad for them. You can probably even get some from a local producer? Anyway, mixing it with her food might encourage her to eat more.

Wishing you continued luck with her and bless you for taking them in!!!!!

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My dogs are my heart!

Kiddles and bits happens to be the only food my one chi will eat. He is also skinny but healthy at five pounds. The vet said that even though it isn't the best food it is better then letting him starve.