who "free feeds" their yorkies?

[chachi]

I free feed and give mine some canned or homecook once a day

[Mayas Mommy]

We free-feed ours .... she is a small one and I want her to eat whenever she is hungry ....... she has always fresh water and food in her bowl .....

[2Parises]

I guess I am in the minority...

We schedule feed twice a day with fresh water available 24/7. Thankfully, everyone is at a very good weight and we don't have any food dominance issues.

They all eat standing right next to each other. When they finish, they have to leave their bowl...no checking out somoene else's.

This has really worked for us.

[luvinmyyorkies]

I free-feed all 3 of ours. Kibble and water out all day. Wet food at approximately the same time everyday. Works for us and there is never any fighting. None of my dogs have ever had a weight problem.

[MyDuke]

I free feed Duke.
It's also because I work all day as well and he's home alone until I get home around 5:30PM. Similar to everyone else's yorkie, I use a measurement cup and give him as directed in the bag.
I do give him some home cook food for dinner. Duke and I would eat our dinner together. Duke is 9 months old and he's healthy, isn't too big or too small.

[Deegan's mom]

I fed Deegan on specific times through the day, but recently in the last 2 months we've noticed that he sometimes doens't eat his first meal until 4pm or so... He just recently turned 3 yrs old. So maybe now that he's out of his puppy stage and fully grown he's not as hungray as used to be. So now I free feed him - so that he can eat when he's hungry. He doesn't over eat, so I don't see harm in it.

[cory]

I free feed Kali and Mica. They are both very tiny so I want them to be able to eat whenever they are hungry. Also, Mica's breeder recommended this method and feels if food is always available it prevents over eating problems. Seems to be working out well so far. I must add though that when they were younger and had them on a schedule until they were housbroken.

[Tammyh]

We feed Lucee (our Lab) at set times once in the morning and once at night. If we left food out all day she would literally gorge herself, she has no self control when it comes to food. Now Bella on the other hand (Yorkie) is the complete opposite so we free feed her. She like to nibble here and there. We started timed feedings with her when we got her but I was afraid she wasn't getting enough. We keep her food in her dish in a small crate that Lucee can't get into so we don't have to worry about Lucee eating her food.

[Jeri Cunningham]

I free feed all of mine as to feed 9 on aschedule would be too hard. They do OK other than with Mandy I have to tell her leave it sometimes as she has overeaten lately.

[AVERYxo]

Originally Posted by y0rkiesR0ck

hey there!

i just wanted to get an idea of how many people on YT "free feed" their yorkies. i read a lot of threads on YT where people mention feeding their yorkies at specific times... i'm assuming there is a particular reason for doing this. maybe because some yorkies over eat/don't know when to stop?

i work all day so i like to leave a bowl of kibble for Kash to eat while i'm gone. and he never over eats because there is always food still in the bowl when i get home. while i'm at home, i leave the bowl of food out in the kitchen and he goes back and forth to eat when he wants to. he never just sits there eating until it's gone.

does this sound okay? he's not overweight, and he doesn't throw up his food. i guess i am just curious to know why some people feed a portions food a few times a day as opposed to just letting them eat when they want. is over eating the ONLY worry?

thanks!!

We free feed Avie..

I think everyone just does what works for them! and i think that is the best way to go! what works for me won't necessarily work for my neighbor.. but it may work for someone else's lifestyle/yorkie/etc.. ya know?!

I like to leave food down for Avery all day.. she eats when she is hungry.. but you do need to watch and make sure they are eating! (always keep nutra-cal on hand..) (even some people who home cook, etc. will sometimes leave kibble down for their babies to graze on!)

Not sure if this has already been mentioned or not..
But you may want to try feeding a different food-if your lil one is not eating the amount that should be eaten.

We used to feed Avery, Canidae.. which is an excellent food-BUT.. she was never really interested in it.. sometimes she would eat, sometimes not as much! so we started her on another recommended food! ..no problems since! you may wanna try changing the food.. and see what your lil one likes! there are a TON of threads on all the great kibble available.. check 'em out. do a search. good luck!!

[Jacksmom]

I free-feed my 18 month yorkie. I didn't always at first for fear he would overeat. He likes his dry food and we realized he doesn't eat more than he should. We put one small bowl out in the morning, he eats about half for breakfast, then he eats the rest for dinner. We both work during the day and he doesn't usually touch it when we're not home. Don't get me wrong, if he was eating chicken, he'd have no self-control. It's amazing what dogs can do!
Goodluck. Try it out, and do what's best for your baby!