senior and thin great dane

Question
I have an almost 13 yr old great dane. She is very thin. The vet did bloodwork on her recently and everything was fine. He said she is healthy otherwise and he is not worried. She was the runt of the litter and has always been thin. She eats and runs around like a young pony(when she hears my daughters car pull up). My question is should I try to "fatten" her up at this stage of her life or just let her continue to eat as she pleases. I do mix wet food w/dry to make her want to eat more which does work, but she is still a "skinny minnie". I love this girl to death and wouldn't of traded one moment of any time for her!

Answer
Paula,

If your veterinarian is not concerned with the current weight that your senior is at then I would not be too worried about it. You can always increase her to a higher protein and fat level so that it will take more for the calories to burn off. Most senior foods have low protein and fat ratios because as most dogs age, they slow down. Obviously this is not the case with her and if it bothers you that she is thin, raise her food up 1/2 a cup in the morning and 1/2 cup at night. It would not hurt to have a higher protein/fat content as I mentioned before. What is the current brand that you are feeding her? I will give you some food suggestions once I know what she is currently eating.

Thank you,

Paula