7 pounds..almost 4 months. 1/2 cup food???

[Nikki+2]

My Gracie is 8 pounds and eats 1/2 c a day so to me it sounds like you're feeding the right amount.

[LuvmyYorkies2]

I'm another free feeder. I leave hard food out throughout the day and my girls nibble on it. 1 bowl between 4 girls and sometimes there's still some left. I cook for them for their dinner feeding but still leave the hard food out. To me, 1/4 cup seems too small but everyone should cater to their dog & how they eat. I don't agree with basically starving your baby just because one feels it will stay smaller/slimmer, etc. Any dog, regardless of how much it's fed, will grow into the size it's genetically meant to be...smaller framed or larger.....as long as they are not "overweight" healthwise, he should be fine.

I have girls from 3lbs to 8lbs..all are given & eat the same amount of food.

So adjust to what works for you & him, just as long as he's eating enough and not appearing that he has not gotten enough food.

[PennysMum]

My 13lb girl gets 1/4 cup of grain-free kibble in the morning, 1/4 cup of the kibble in the evening, plus treats and veggies spaced out as snacks over the course of the day.

Most dog food bags put down higher numbers than what a dog really needs. It makes sense when you think about it-- if you feed more food, you buy more food. Higher quality foods generally require you to feed less than lower quality foods for the same nutritional benefit.

There are a lot of arguments either way with free feed versus timed feedings-- I go with timed primarily because my cats were not doing well on free feeding and were becoming very overweight. If Penny's food were kept out, they would be in it right along with her. The important thing is to feed enough that your dog maintains a good body condition-- that amount is going to vary vastly on a dog to dog basis depending on energy level, how many snacks they get, and their own metabolism. There's a chart at: Body Condition Score Chart that illustrates it well. If you look at the dog marked optimal, a lot of people would think he looks too thin-- you can feel his ribs and his backbone, and you can see his waist-- but that is how a dog ought to look.

[alisonJ]

Originally Posted by ovie

Hmmm. i love him to death no matter what his weight
the funny think is the breeder we bought him from told us he would b 5 to 6 pounds max....

i think she lied. ahaha

You, my friend, are the proud parent of a TEAPOT Yorkie! Welcome to the club, and congratulations!

[ovie]

hA HA teapot i love it.

he def is a chunker and wants to be carried always my arms are becoming quite fit . ahaha

i jsut dont wanna be starving him

if i put more out he eats more he would eat the bag if he could