how do I go about this???

[pepe mint]

ok, so far, so good today. the food has been in the bowls all day. They just went outside to potty, came back in, and each of them ate a few kibbles and then went to play. sooo...maybe this is a good sign??

[katelin]

Congrats! We Yorkie parents have to stick together. So happy you are having good results.

Katelin

[journey826]

I understand your problem.
I started free feeding yesterday and they ate every piece.
today they drank all the water and ate all the food and they were so full they were bursting.
I am not feeding them again today.I am afraid they could die.
maybe in a couple days it will even out as they see the food is always there.

I don't think I can go through this though.

good luck
and keep up posted on how it goes.

[Suzy]

Great thread, Mandee! My two are both food crazy-though Emma more than Milli. We had to start feeding her on a schedule per her behaviorist to help with her separation anxiety. That DID help with that, but my two both just wolf down food like you wouldn't believe. Emma doesn't even chew anymore-she swallows it most of the time.

I can't really leave it down all the time since I home prepare food and a lot of it's raw meat...not sure what to do with my two either!

[pepe mint]

Originally Posted by journey826

I understand your problem.
I started free feeding yesterday and they ate every piece.
today they drank all the water and ate all the food and they were so full they were bursting.
I am not feeding them again today.I am afraid they could die.
maybe in a couple days it will even out as they see the food is always there.

I don't think I can go through this though.

good luck
and keep up posted on how it goes.

it is so hard to know what to do to make this transition....
I thought "maybe if I keep food in the bowls all the time, they will realize that it is always there and not scarf it down" but they are eating sooooooooo much. all day long, they are snacking at the bowls. in the last 2 days, maggie has eaten 4 days worth of food!!!! I try distracting them and playing with them, but every chance they get, they are at the food bowl. so I just don't know. dh thinks that they will get used to the food being out all the time and not do this after a few days but I don't know. maggie looks like she is about to burst open!!!!

we had an idea (kinda like what someone posted earlier) to take her daily amount of food and just break it up into several feedings throughout the day...but I don't know if that will accomplish what we are trying to do. but seriously...I think maggie will eat herself to death....she just lost all this weight and got down to an "ideal weight"...she is going to get so fat and burst right open..I swear it. so i really don't know how to get her to adjust.

she isn't eating the food like she used to. she isn't scarfing it down. she is eating it slowly...and even grabbing a kibble or 2 and bringing them into the living room, eating them, then going to get some more...and so on. so she is eating slowly...but she is eating all day long and eating a LOT.

I want to stick with it and am sure they will eventually catch on...but in the mean time, maggie is going to eat herself to death

[pepe mint]

Originally Posted by Suzy

Great thread, Mandee! My two are both food crazy-though Emma more than Milli. We had to start feeding her on a schedule per her behaviorist to help with her separation anxiety. That DID help with that, but my two both just wolf down food like you wouldn't believe. Emma doesn't even chew anymore-she swallows it most of the time.

I can't really leave it down all the time since I home prepare food and a lot of it's raw meat...not sure what to do with my two either!

yeah, with the home cooked food, that wouldn't work out too good

[pepe mint]

Ok, so I think they might eat themselves to death. hopefully not but sheesh..they don't want to stop eating!!!!

today was better...but they both still ate a lot. I hope it gets better soon!!!

[Jeri Cunningham]

I free feed all 7 of mine and they always have a full bowl and none of them overeat. My smallest dog Spicy (3.6 LB Papillion) nibbles all day. My male big Yorkie eats in the morning and evenings. The others eat when it suits their fancy. My 5 yr old Mandy is over 6 lbs now and always weighted 4.8 or less so her I will watch. If she gains more I may need to discontinue free feeding

[Suzy]

How is it going, Mandee?