Loss of Muscle mass

[MrsK44]

My 13 year old retriever mix has lost almost all muscle mass in her hind legs.  She also has started to kick her legs when she is laying down like she is trying to scratch herself but isn't.  Is there anything I can do to help rebuild any of her muscle?  Would extra protein help?  It's just hard to watch her healthy as can be and struggle to get around.  Thanks.

[piggly_wiggly]

This happened to my 16 year old Terrier mix, he lost his muscles mass due to a diet of low in protein. His vet prescribed a low protein dog food to protect his kidneys. This was the worst thing she could have done. I've since learned that his kidneys were not that bad for his age, and these low protein diets do nothing to protect the kidneys or cure kidney disease in dogs. He lost so much weight and lost his hair. He became very weak, and lethergic. By the time I went to a second vet for her opinion it was too late. He was so weak he couldn't stand to eat without being held up by his harness, he could hardly swallow, had to put his plate up to his month so he could try and eat. It was very sad to see our sweet baby wasting away, and not knowing what to do except rely on our vet to know waht was best. Unfortunately she did not make the best decision for him and it cost us the loss of our pet. As a result he ended up weighing only 5 lbs, we decided his condition to far gone, and he was suffering, so we made the difficult decision to put him to sleep. Don't wait, take your baby to a good vet, who can determine whats causing the muscle loss.In the mean time you can feed her fish like sardines, cooked eggs,cheese, and cottage cheese. All of these foods are very high in good protein. Wish I had known these things before my baby got in such bad condition. I didn't know his weight loss was due to loss of muscle. Get on top of it before it gets worse. Wish you the best, broken hearted pet mom.

[BluCrystal]

!3 years for a dog is 91 in human years.  This needs to be taken into account when you go to the vet to see what can be done.  Too much 'treatment' of elderly dogs causes them alot of undue stress.  Blessings - Blu