How often do you feed your dog?
 

I am wondering because Oliver will be coming home in July and I have no idea.

I know some people have said that they leave the food out, but I don't want to take that route. I want a more scheduled routine so I can help get him potty trained before my school year starts again. Then I will also only be able to feed him twice a day. Anyway, since I teach 6 year olds and know how important routines are, I want to get Oliver in one ASAP.

BTW, how MUCH do you feed them? I am sure Stacy can tell me but I was just wondering...

THANKS! :)

Well with Tiffany being so tiny (2 lbs. 7 oz) I leave her food down all the time. She only nibbles a little at a time. I get really worried about her not eating enough so the vet suggested it would be better if I left it down for her. If you are not wanting to do that then I have no idea how often or how much to feed! LOL, I just fill her bowl up when its empty... every few days. Hope you get some good advise :)

I do a little of both I guess... Oscar has worked out his own routine - one thing I love about Yorkies, they don't overeat like some breeds, they eat until they are full and then STOP.

Usually, I feed Oscar twice a day - sometimes he'll eat it all right up, sometimes he only eats a bit and then I'll leave it out for him to pick at. Depends on how active he is that particular day - he'll eat more. Most bags of food will give you a recommended amount for feeding based on the weight of the dog. Oscar is 3lbs and eats less than half a cup a day. Probably closer to a quarter of a cup (plus treats!). He is super healthy and at a great weight, so i dont worry too much when he passes up breakfast once in a while. With one feeding in the morning and one in the evening (around 5 or 6) he has two poops a day on average - one in the morning and one later in the evening.

Another tidbit I found useful: When they are at a healthy weight you can just slightly feel their ribcage - if they are overweight, you wont feel it at all and if all you feel is bones (hip bones, back, too much ribcage) then they are underweight. I use this to kindof keep track of his weight... If I notice any significant change, then I know I need to change what I'm doing.

Hope my ramblings help!

We have been leaving Peach's food down for her, but last week when I took her to the vet she said she was fat:confused: She still wants me to leave her food down until about 4 months, then switch to 3 times a day feeding, like I do with our other dog. :)

We feed our dog twice a day, every 12 hrs. She eats about 1/3 cup per serving. She is about 5 lbs. Sometimes she doesn't eat it all though.

I've always left Hannahs food out all the time. She just eats when she feels like it, and never over eats.

I now feed kizzy twice a day, she is 4 and 1/2 months old now. she weighs over 5 lbs so I feed her about a 2/3 to one cup a day. I fed her 3 times a day for a long time. She now does better as usually she only has to poop couple times a day, mostly when she first gets up and then later in the evening or sometimes its night.

Bella is the same way. I give her wet food in the morning and the evening. About 3 tablespoons. Then I always have dry food out for her. She gobels up the wet and leaves a bit for later, then picks at the dry throughout the day. I fill the dry food bowl up every other day, not because she finishes it, but I don't like leaving food out that long. She never over eats.

I leave Bailey's food out and let him eat until it is gone. Usually fill it up once every other day.

I always read that young puppies should eat 3x a day. We didn't get Penny until 5 months, though, so she started with 2x a day. We feed her regularly at 12:00 and 5:00, but she gets treats during the other times.

Sissy is 10 months old and 4 lbs. She gets fed morning and night with snacks/treats during the day. SInce she has stopped eating her dry food (she used to eat between 1/4 and 1/2 cup a day), she is eating the meat in a roll from Natural Balance). She gets anywhere from 1/2 to 1" of the roll each day with some in the morning and some in the evening. During the day she gets fruit and other tidbits. But, there are days when I am gone for several hours and then she has some dry food out - I figure if she is really hungry she might eat a little.

Bailey is 14 weeks. We feed her 3 times a day, and generally leave the food down for about 30 minutes. She's a little over 3 pounds and gets less that 1/4 cup per meal. To see if she needs more, I add a little more from time to time, but she never finishes when I add more.

Parker is almost 6 months old. He eats twice a day. He does get snacks in between for going to the potty outside. (cherrios). And every other day or so he get one of our homemade dog treats. Maddie is 12 weeks and I feed her three times a day. I dont leave Parker's food out all day because we will gobble in up until its all gone. Rather is his usually feeding or the whole bag. ahaha. I cant free feed him. So I wont for Maddie either. They have there water out all day long, I take it way at 9:00 each night to help with potty training. They eat Puppy Royal Canine. When they get up to 10 months, I'll give them the Yorkie Royal Canine.

My Little Haruka eats 4 times or more because she is *a bit* smaller.

I am sure your breeder can give you more appropriate suggestion for your pup because she/he knows the best about the pup :)

I too have Gracie on a schedule because I need to get trained before school. Here is her schedule:

Up at 6:30, outside then eat. Food goes up at 7:00. She has half hour to eat.

Next feeding 3:00 (when I will be getting home from school) food up at 3:30.

Next feeding 8:00 food up at 8:30.

I take her out 45 minutes after she eats to do her thing. If she doesn't I take her out every 1/2 hour until she stools. She is 5 months old and weighs 2.5 lbs. She also takes a multivitamin.