Sherman is obviously in not-so-good condition. Physically, he's a mess, mentally, he doesn't really know much, the poor guy. I was just curious if anyone had any ideas regarding the best way to get him back in to tip top shape. (Aside from the medical care he is receiving, anyway.)
All adolescent, growing pups seem really gangly, but he looks...funny. He has SUPER huge paws (like, his feet are the size of Abrams' feet), ears, and tail, but the rest of him is kind of scrawny. I'll have to get a video of him pacing around, as it just seems like his movement is off, too. (Could just be because he's super uncoordinated.) Considering his body condition, it wouldn't surprise me if he didn't quite get the nutrients he needed as a young pup and that has thrown off his growth. Besides feeding him a balanced, quality food, is there anything else I could be doing to help him out with that?
On that note, any idea on how much I should be feeding him? He's 30 pounds right now, and should probably be around 40-45. (No idea how old he is. The shelter said 8-10 months, I say 5 months, the vet put his age as 9 months on his paperwork, but no way is he that old.) Right now he's getting 3 cups of food a day (split in to three meals), 475kcal/cup. I don't want to OVER feed him, even though we're trying to get weight on him, but I don't want to under feed him either. Abrams ate 4 cups of food a day as a growing pup, so I figured 3 cups would be alright for this guy?
Another question I had was in regards to his....mental capabilities. This is not the brightest pup. As in, he has no problem solving ability and just kind of bumbles around. He is VERY food motivated (obviously) so I stuffed a bone with some treats for him earlier, and he didn't know what to do with it. He doesn't really know how to settle (he just paces and paces and paces), or occupy himself, or even play with a toy for more than just a minute or so. He LOVES to fetch the legless Cuz, but even that he'll just kind of stop halfway through and wander off. Are there any easy, mentally stimulating exercises I can work with him on to help him...learn mental skills, for lack of better word? I know he's a baby and is going to have some variation of ADD, but he's kind of...extreme. I don't ever remember any of my pups being quite like this.
He's already grasped he's not allowed on the sofa, that if he sits he gets treats (although he doesn't know what "sit" means), and if he goes into his kennel he gets awesome food/chews, so he is beginning to make some associations, he just isn't very adept at it. If that makes sense. His problem solving skills are just...not there.
Picture of him falling asleep (not on the couch, the good boy) while I type this:
<3
All adolescent, growing pups seem really gangly, but he looks...funny. He has SUPER huge paws (like, his feet are the size of Abrams' feet), ears, and tail, but the rest of him is kind of scrawny. I'll have to get a video of him pacing around, as it just seems like his movement is off, too. (Could just be because he's super uncoordinated.) Considering his body condition, it wouldn't surprise me if he didn't quite get the nutrients he needed as a young pup and that has thrown off his growth. Besides feeding him a balanced, quality food, is there anything else I could be doing to help him out with that?
On that note, any idea on how much I should be feeding him? He's 30 pounds right now, and should probably be around 40-45. (No idea how old he is. The shelter said 8-10 months, I say 5 months, the vet put his age as 9 months on his paperwork, but no way is he that old.) Right now he's getting 3 cups of food a day (split in to three meals), 475kcal/cup. I don't want to OVER feed him, even though we're trying to get weight on him, but I don't want to under feed him either. Abrams ate 4 cups of food a day as a growing pup, so I figured 3 cups would be alright for this guy?
Another question I had was in regards to his....mental capabilities. This is not the brightest pup. As in, he has no problem solving ability and just kind of bumbles around. He is VERY food motivated (obviously) so I stuffed a bone with some treats for him earlier, and he didn't know what to do with it. He doesn't really know how to settle (he just paces and paces and paces), or occupy himself, or even play with a toy for more than just a minute or so. He LOVES to fetch the legless Cuz, but even that he'll just kind of stop halfway through and wander off. Are there any easy, mentally stimulating exercises I can work with him on to help him...learn mental skills, for lack of better word? I know he's a baby and is going to have some variation of ADD, but he's kind of...extreme. I don't ever remember any of my pups being quite like this.
He's already grasped he's not allowed on the sofa, that if he sits he gets treats (although he doesn't know what "sit" means), and if he goes into his kennel he gets awesome food/chews, so he is beginning to make some associations, he just isn't very adept at it. If that makes sense. His problem solving skills are just...not there.
Picture of him falling asleep (not on the couch, the good boy) while I type this:
<3