Treeing Walker Coonhound nutrition: calories and allergies

A Treeing Walker Coonhound is rarely a picky eater. The feeding problem is a hound with a strong nose, a big appetite and a workload that swings between nights of hunting and weeks on the sofa. The American Kennel Club gives the breed's weight as 50 to 70 pounds (about 23 to 32 kg) and its life expectancy as 12 to 13 years, and warns that a hound who isn't working can be prone to becoming overweight.

Calories and portion control

Start from the resting energy requirement (RER), which the Merck Veterinary Manual calculates as 70 × body weight in kg to the power 0.75. Merck's multipliers for maintenance are 1.8 for an intact adult, 1.6 for a neutered adult and 1.4 for an obesity-prone dog. Puppies get 3 times RER until four months and 2 times RER after.

These are maintenance figures for a companion dog, rounded to 5 kcal. A hound running trails several nights a week burns considerably more, and there is no reliable fixed percentage for it. Raise food in steps during the hunting season, weigh the dog every week or two, and bring portions back down when the work stops. The AKC warning about non-working hounds applies most in the off-season.

Body condition is the check. On a short-coated hound the last ribs may just show in a fit working dog; on a pet, the ribs should be easy to feel with a light hand and the waist should be visible from above. Weigh food on kitchen scales rather than using a scoop, and take training treats out of the daily total.

Ears, allergies and food trials

Long, hanging ears cover the ear canal and hold warmth and moisture, and the AKC advises checking a coonhound's ears at least weekly, clearing excess wax and debris, and looking for ticks after time outdoors. Recurrent ear infections usually have an underlying cause. Allergy is a common one, and in some dogs the allergy is to food.

When a hound keeps getting itchy ears or skin despite good ear care, a vet may suggest an elimination diet: a hydrolyzed diet or a protein the dog has not eaten before, fed with no other treats, chews or flavored medicines. A review of the evidence found that more than 90% of dogs with a food allergy were in full remission by eight weeks, so a trial should last at least that long. If the signs clear, old foods go back in one at a time. The foods most often responsible in dogs are beef, dairy products, chicken and wheat.

A painful, smelly or discharging ear needs a vet before any diet change, because the infection itself needs treating and some ear drops are unsafe if the eardrum is damaged. Fish oil and probiotics are often recommended for allergic dogs. They may help some dogs as part of a wider plan, but they do not replace treatment or a proper diet trial.

Hips and body weight

The AKC lists hip dysplasia among the conditions breeders should screen for, along with eye anomalies and thyroid function. For a puppy, ask to see the parents' hip results. For an adult, the part an owner controls is weight: a lean hound puts less load through a dysplastic hip on every stride, and extra weight makes arthritis pain worse.

Glucosamine and chondroitin are sold widely for working dogs. Evidence for them in dogs is mixed. A dog that is stiff after hunting or slow to rise needs an examination and proper pain management first; supplements are something to add with the vet's agreement, not instead of it.

Hypothyroidism and unexplained weight gain

With a food-motivated breed, weight gain is usually a portion problem. Not always. The Merck Veterinary Manual describes hypothyroidism as most common in dogs 4 to 10 years old, with weight gain without an increase in appetite, lethargy and unwillingness to exercise, a dry coat, hair thinning and a tendency to seek warmth. Coonhounds are not on Merck's list of the most affected breeds, but the AKC includes thyroid evaluation among the breed's recommended screens.

• Weight creeping up while measured portions stay the same.
• A hound that tires early on a trail it used to run easily.
• A dull, dry or thinning coat, or slow regrowth after clipping.
• Seeking warm spots more than usual.

Diagnosis rests on blood tests, mainly thyroid hormone (T4) and related tests. Treatment is thyroid hormone replacement (thyroxine), usually for life. Merck notes that changes in coat and body weight take 4 to 8 weeks to judge, so do not cut the ration hard in the first weeks of treatment.

Coonhound paralysis and recovery feeding

Acute polyradiculoneuritis is an inflammation of the nerve roots. According to Merck's chapter on peripheral nerve disorders, signs often start 7 to 14 days after a raccoon bite or scratch, though not every affected dog has met a raccoon. The hind legs usually weaken first, and within 24 to 48 hours the dog may be partly or fully paralyzed in all four legs. Some dogs also develop weakness of the face and throat, and death can occur from paralysis of the breathing muscles. Sudden weakness in the hind legs is an emergency.

There is no specific treatment beyond nursing care. Most dogs begin to improve within three weeks and recover fully in two to six months, although severely affected dogs may not recover completely. Relapses are seen in hunting dogs that keep meeting raccoons.

Feeding matters during those weeks because muscle wasting is typically severe within two weeks. A recumbent dog should be fed propped upright on its chest, never lying on its side. If the face or throat is weak, the vet will set the texture of the food and how it is given, since the dog may struggle to swallow. The dog needs fewer calories than when it was active, but not so few that it loses condition. The treating vet can set a target, and a weekly weigh-in shows whether it is right.

Feeding routine for a scent hound

• Two measured meals a day: free feeding a food-driven hound often ends in weight gain.
• Secure food: bins with locking lids, clear counters and closed pantry doors. A hound that raids the garbage eats unknown calories and sometimes something toxic.
• Food choice: a complete and balanced adult food suits most companion hounds. A higher-fat performance food makes sense only in weeks of real work, and it makes overfeeding easy the rest of the year.
• After a hunt: offer water first, let the dog settle, then feed. Check ears and coat for ticks and scratches before the dog sleeps.

Sources

1. Treeing Walker Coonhound dog breed information. American Kennel Club.
2. Nutritional requirements of small animals. Merck Veterinary Manual.
3. Critically appraised topic on adverse food reactions of companion animals (1): duration of elimination diets. BMC Veterinary Research, 2015.
4. Critically appraised topic on adverse food reactions of companion animals (2): common food allergen sources in dogs and cats. BMC Veterinary Research, 2016.
5. Disorders of the thyroid gland in dogs. Merck Veterinary Manual.
6. Disorders of the peripheral nerves and neuromuscular junction in dogs. Merck Veterinary Manual.