Hi everyone,

I'm new here so bear with me!

I have a 6 and a half month old Irish Setter puppy and I'm concerned about his weight. We've recently switched his food from Burns to Arden Grange with a bit of Nature Diet mixed in as he was eating his own poo on Burns :s and people say Burns keeps dogs on the lean side, which is obviously not what I want for him at the moment.
I've never owned a Setter before, so I'm not really sure if this is normal or if he's extremely underweight. He is a lot better than he was before, and our vet has said that he's making progress but I'd really like him to put on a bit more weight and wondered if anyone had any suggestions?

I'm posting the links to some pictures I've just taken (sorry, I don't know how to post pics in this forum!) The above shot was as above as I could get and in the side on he's arching his back but you try taking pictures of a bouncy Setter pup! :P

http://i978.photobucket.com/albums/ae263/MinorSunrise/IMG_6338.jpg

http://i978.photobucket.com/albums/ae263/MinorSunrise/IMG_6337.jpg

Thanks in advance for any help :)

At first glance he doesn't look too bad; you can't see his ribs or the bones of his spine or hips, so that's good! He's at the stage where pups look very gangly anyway, added to which setters, particularly Irish setters, aren't a stocky breed.

That said, I like pups to have a bit of extra covering because they can lose condition so quickly if they pick up a bug. How easy is it to feel his ribs when you lightly stroke his sides?

Erm, it's quite easy to feel them but he does have a little covering.

It's so difficult to know what slimness is being a Setter and what is abnormal!

Dont panic, he looks fine.  Ive got two Irish Setters and I had real issues with one of them putting on weight when he was a youngster, he was on Burns, then I changed him to BARF, to be honest he didnt really put a decent amount of weight on until he was about 5 years old !!! His breeder always said he was underweight but he was fit and active so I wasnt too concerned, he was a lot thinner than your dog.

What lines is yours from ? I think some lines are slower maturing, my other Irish never had an issue with being underweight, infact most of his life the poor boy has had to have his food rationed as he is really prone to being a bit of a porker :(

in comparison to some of the show dogs though both of mine look skinny, I prefer them to be fit and lean to be honest, I dont care what others say, some of the Setters in the ring are carrying too much weight and would never be able to do a days work.

Thanks for that, takes a weight off of my mind! He's from show lines.

You hardly ever see any Setters around here, so it's really hard to compare him to other puppies. My other dog is a Lab so his shape as a puppy was obviously no comparison :P

He looks exactly like a female in the village who is a similar age, she's growing like a weed! I wouldn't think you've anything to worry about.

Hi, I'm quite new to the forum too!

I have an Irish Setter bitch, her weight varies quite a lot, if she doesn't eat well for a few days she looses weight quickly because of the amount of exercise she does, she will happily run full pelt for several hours! They are a sensitive breed so any change can upset them, I moved house about 8 weeks ago and it's only over the last couple of weeks that she has really settled in, is happier and eating better (although she has never been a big foodie). She lost weight initially and is now at a much better weight.

Like all have said they are very lean and don't look right (in my opinion) if they carry too much weight. Even though she is a working breed I am putting a coat on her in the colder weather so that I know she doesn't have to use up more of her food energy to help keep warm.

If he still looks lean in a few months keep him on puppy food (Roxy is back on puppy) as this will contain more protein to help hold the weight. At 6 and half months a lot of what he eats will be going towards growing bigger rather than growing outwards, he may have just had a growth spurt!

Jo

Hi Avansa, I'm another Setter mummy, and I agree with the others, your puppy looks absolutely normal for an Irish Setter of that age. My boy of 4 years old has been on Arden Grange since he was a baby pup. Can I tell you about a breed specific forum for Irish Setters, it's

www.irishsetters.ning.com

there you will see a gazzilion photos of Irish Setters of all ages.

Dawn R.

Thanks so much everyone.

It's really lovely to hear from other Setter owners! :D

Will check out that link in a sec :)

I'm not a setter expert, but he looks ok, perhaps slightly on the lean side of normal, but for a pup that age it's nothing to worry about. I get so many fat dogs in for grooming it's lovely to see a nice lean fit one for a change! :-D

as already said looks a typical setter pup to me :) I don't have an Irish at the moment - English and gordons - the gordons can be hugely fussy! and I still battle getting weight on one - what they eat they run off as well!!!

congratulations I'm sure you will have lots of fun with your pup - I really miss having an irish in my life - one day .... :)

Article quality are so good.