still concerned about low energy puppy

[matthewm11]

I have an 8 month female unspayed (mistakenly labeled her as 6 months in a previous thread) GSD/Siberian Husky mix I recently adopted (a "rehoming" situation, previous owners didnt have enough time or space) about two weeks ago. She was particulary sluggish yesterday and posted about and brought her to the vet. The vet found a parasite and prescribed panacur. I've lived with and helped raise and train dogs before, siberian huskies, but this is the first dog I have sole responsibility over. Because I live in an apartment and work from home I take my dog out often- an hour and a half walk/hike around 7 am, an hour romp off leash at the dog park or dogbeach around noon and two more walks, one at sixish and one around 8pm, both for around an hour. I also do about an hour of obedience-clicker training and targeting broken up throughout the day.
When not out walking, at the park or enticed by a treat my dog Indy seems only interested in napping. I know all dogs have different energy levels but from my previous husky experience and what I've researched about GSDs I expected a lot more energetic dog. I'm not complaining, not at all...Im just worried about her health. She has a follow-up with the vet in 9 days and will also be spayed as long as she is healthy. My question is, based on the exercise I described above, is it possible that she is just a calmer, well exercised dog or does the fact she is so inactive indoors for her age suggest an issue. Any suggestions I could bring up to her follow up vet appointment will be noted and appreciated. Thanks

[matthewm11]

BTW- elimination seems fine, she eats all her meals and drinks what seems like a normal amount. The vet found no other problems besides the parasite but didn't do bloodwork. She will often get active before bed but is generally pretty lazy throughout the day. She just vomited as I write this, first time this ever happened. Need to go clean this am going to call the vet tommorow.

[matthewm11]

seemed like a piece of unigested raw hide and a little kibble. I'll keep a close eye on her throughout the night and take her in first thing to vet in am

[blehmannwa]

I hope that she feels better. It could be that she needs a different food or more time to adjust. Havs has a lot more energy since a diet change.

[matthewm11]

I've been driving myself a little nuts with worry, her being a new dog and me wanting to make sure she is happy and healthy. Other than the one-time vomiting, there hasn't been any major signs of illness, she just seems "off" if that makes sense. To further complicate matters, she is so new I really don't know what her baseline state is. I suppose its natural for a dog to get stressed with the major change of home, food and daily routine and she might be an especially low key dog. Ill keep a close eye on her and consult the vet tommorrow.

[BowWowMeow]

Rawhide is really unsafe for dogs. They can so easily choke on them and they're really difficult to digest too.

I'd say she's adjusting to her new lifestyle. 4 hours a day is a lot of exercise and I think it will take a little while for her to get physically conditioned to that much exercise. Why don't you see what she's like if you work her more gradually up to that amount per day?

[blehmannwa]

Another possibility is panostetitis. She's about the right age for it. There are threads about it on here. It's basically growing pains and something that passes as they age.

You're doing great. New dogs are a lot of worry but given that the vet didn't find anything obvious I'd try to relax. As BowWowMeow said rawhide is not the greatest thing for dogs, try bully sticks or pig ears. Indy is a lucky dog to have you.

I went through a similar low level type of worry with Havoc. A change of diet, cooler weather and time have increased his energy and focus. Sometimes I miss his lazier days.

[BowWowMeow]

A dog with pano wouldn't be able to tolerate 4 hours of exercise a day. She would be limping and miserable.

[matthewm11]

When I got Indy, my mentality was "this is gonna be so great we're going to be outside running around all day" and took very seriously the maxim "a tired dog is a happy dog" Plus I knew I was getting a high energy breed.

What I failed to account for is that her lifestyle with me is 180 degrees from her old home. She spent the day in a small yard and lived with three adult dogs, puppies and kids. It was a hectic life but I don't think she got a lot of attention or exercise. She was lost in the shuffle, thus the rehoming. I was either gonna go to a breeder or shelter but loved Indy's temperement, look and size (smaller than a full bred GSD would be her age, she has a husky body with GSD coloring, a real unique looking dog)

Thanks for the tip on the rawhide. Ever since I started giving them to her is when these symptoms started. I also started mixing in can food (venison and duck with veggies) with her dry food.

[Rott-n-GSDs]

I see a few different things that could be going on right now.

1) It's a new environment for her. She could be missing her old family (even if they were terrible to her) and she's adjusting to her new family. Give her time.

2) The parasite problem is very likely making her lethargic/upset.

3) Is she on a new food? It could take a bit for her tummy to get used to it.

With that in mind, you are right to keep a close watch on her. If she vomited up rawhide, you'll want to keep a close watch to make sure there isn't some stuck somewhere. Keep a close eye on what she puts in and out... meaning make sure she's defecating regularly.

I agree that rawhide is not a safe treat to give.