Old Dog Losing Weight

[SFlormann]

Hi,
I have a 13 year old black lab/collie plus some mix (about 35lbs).  In the last few weeks she has lost weight to where you can feel her ribs most of the weight has been lost in her hips and stomach.  She has never been a dog that ate very much, usually id fill her large bowl up maybe 3 times a week.  She has slowed down eating her pedigree senior formula food and really only eats it when milk or table food is mixed in with it.  Should this be taken as a sign that she no longer likes her food, she is also getting into the garbage more often.  Is there a type of food that i should switch her to? Maybe a puppy food so she can gain more weight back?  Also she has never handled wet food very well, would it be a good idea to mix in a small amount of wet food into her dry food?

Thank You Very Much
Steve

[Soon_to_be_DVM]

When your animal gets old they will lose some weight especially in their back end - I call it old lady legs (muscle atropy from disuse).  If it is excessive then I would check some bloodwork on her.  Also I would give her another type of food.  Some dogs get tired of their food.  If she doesn't do well with canned food don't give it to her.  My dog is 17 and as she has gotten older I have had to switch to a few different foods.  Good Luck with her!

[KikiMay]

When dogs lose weight this fast I always worry about diabetes. Volunteering at the Humane Society made me see some elderly dogs diabetes' cases and the first thing was that the lost completely appetite. So I would suggest having him checked by the vet so he can run some tests and find the cause immediately.