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12-16-2007, 09:09 PM | #1 |
Just Pawz Donating Member Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Liverpool, NY
Posts: 1,827
| Free feed or not I have been free feeding dry kibble since day one with my girls. They were getting soft food a couple times a day for a while but I found it really didn't seem necessary after the settled in and were eating the dry well enough so they haven't had that in some time now. Bella is 6 months now and a little over 3lbs, Coco is 14 weeks and probably close to 3 lbs now. My biggest issue right now is I think Coco might be over eating, she is a bit chubbier then I think she should be, or I guess it could be normal since Bella has been very petite since day one ? I figured I could just free feed during the daytime hours and then when they are up in bed from about 11pm-8am only water in their upstairs pen with them. I'm wondering if this is ok as far as low blood sugar goes with these little ones. I don't want to cause them any problems by doing this, and really in reality I would like to get them down to a regular feeding schedule 3x a day instead of free fed as soon as it is safe. When do I know it is safe? Neither of them has had a hypo attack before. What age is it safe to no worry about it as much?
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12-17-2007, 01:25 AM | #2 |
Donating YT 500 Club Member Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: yorkie town
Posts: 876
| free feed or not all pups do not go through sugar problems just because they are small.are they having issues or did in the past?IF YES then I would continue to free feed.IF NO then you can start to feed them three times a day, just start on a day off where you can be with them the whole day and see if they have any blood sugar problems my pups are just now 12 weeks and have never had a blood sugar problem and I have never free fed them. they are porkers though
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12-17-2007, 04:48 AM | #3 |
YT Addict Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Long Island, New York
Posts: 328
| My Remi has been eating two times per day from the day he was brought home from the breeder. He has remained on this schedule and has grown and progressed nicely into a beautiful 16 month old 6.4 lb. dog. Remi eats 1/4 dry holistic kibble. Added to this is 1 tablespoon of either cooked chicken, beef, lamb, etc. He also has 1 teasp of yogurt either mixed in or "on the side". As a an after dinner treat, his favorite is either carrot pieces or a small stalk of broccoli. I believe in a scheduled feeding to help with digestion and also with predictable elimination to help with housebreaking, especially in those early weeks and months. Hope this is helpful. |
12-17-2007, 05:36 AM | #4 |
Owned by Tumi & Gracie Donating Member Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: NYC
Posts: 2,321
| i dont free feed personally because i don't want them to over eat and also they are on the raw diet. Once in a while i give them orijen kibbles but still i have the schedule for them. It just makes it a lot easier to potty train plus to predict their potty routine. they are both 99% pee pad trained but i like having them on schedule.
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12-17-2007, 05:40 AM | #5 |
Phantom Queen Morrigan Donating Member | I agree with journey. Most pups do not have low sugar problems. If you've never had a problem with this in the past then by all means start putting them on a schedule. I fed mine three times a day when i first got her, and this helped put her on a potty schedule as well. a few months later i just free fed her because she wasn't one to gobble all her food at once and liked to pick at it throughout the day. i decided to leave the food down, not because i was worried about low sugar levels but because she had earned it by holding her urges to go potty in the house. now, at 1 1/2 years old i have her on a raw diet. this cannot be left out for more then 30 minutes, which isn't a problem because she devours it within minutes. I feed mostly twice a day, sometimes only once and never had a problem.
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12-17-2007, 05:57 AM | #6 |
Donating YT 10K Club Member Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: Alabama
Posts: 11,432
| I don't free feed because I have one that would litterally eat until she got sick to try to keep the other two from getting any of it. I try to feed lightly in the AM and again early PM. |
12-23-2007, 01:43 AM | #7 |
Yorkie Talker Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Western US
Posts: 18
| In the past I free fed exclusively with my dogs, but they were on a kibble only diet. Bella, my current girl, is on a raw diet, so it is different. When switching to the free feed, my chow hounds thought they were in heaven--ate like little pigs for maybe 10-14 days. I was worried they would explode from overeating, but after the initial period of realizing the food bowl would always remain full, they regulated themselves and lived long, happy lives at perfect weights. These were spayed/neutered dogs and I never had a weight problem with free feeding. With Bella, I feed her a Freeze-Dried Raw diet, but leave Evo kibble in her bowl 24/7 to snack on if she is hungry. So far her wieght is perfect. |
12-23-2007, 06:40 AM | #8 |
Piper & Sebastian Donating Member Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: florida
Posts: 14,495
| I don't free feed, because mine are already porkers. I think they'd oink if I let them eat all day. LOL
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