My average size boys would starve on 225 calories a day. You cannot make such generalizations about Yorkies and their dietary needs and how quickly they clean a plate.

I agree. What you feed per day depends on their activity level, temperament, climate..etc. Some days Max hardly eats at all, and a few days later it seems like he is a bottomless pit. If its a day we go to the park or beach, they eat a tad more.

I also agree that they get bored with their food. I'm trying to find a rotation that works for both of mine. We are currently on Artemis. I've tried grain free like Acana, and while they love it, I don't think Max tolerates it after a while. Anyone know of anything comparable to Artemis?

I feel your pain..lol..:).. My dogs have been on so many different foods, that I think I made them picky by swtiching them so much. :(. But I had too with some foods, it either made them sick,itch or they just wouldnt eat it. My dogs cant eat high protien foods, they do very well on a food that is between 26 and 28 precent protien anything higher than that, Tucker starts having stomach issues. We are currently re-trying Life's Abundance. I ordered some samples and they loved (for now) the wet and dry so I went ahead and ordered some more. So far its agreeing with Tucker's senstive stomach and he hasnt had any issues. I also like that you can set it up for autoship and have it delievered when you need it.
Im keeping my fingers crossed that we have found the right food.. Wishing you the best of luck on your search!! :)

Sorry if I did not make it clear. I certainly was not saying that all Yorkies should get 225 calories a day. It is only an average. I intended to convey just the opposite, that there is a huge variance in the amount dogs need. I was emphasizing the lower end because that seemed to be the problem with the questioner. The reverse is also true. Many need more than the average. I suppose I bungled it very badly based on your inference from what I said. What I mean to say is that individual dogs have varying rates of metabolism and it has been my experience that most people overfeed their dogs.

I know Sydney's vet said she only needed a 1/2 a day. I had been feeding her a 1/2 cup in the morning and a 1/2 in the evening. I couldn't understand why she wouldn't eat it all on most days. I was overfeeding. If in doubt, ask your dog's vet.

Well I disagree. Call it boredom, picky or whatever, but ours will just stop eating it and that's it!
We don't overfeed. Our two little ones get 1/8 cup twice a day mixed with a few green beans and just enough wet food to moisten. They get a treat twice a day, but no other food and no people food!
I never feed the amount on a bag, it's always too much in my opinion.
I would understand if they are eating part and then leaving some, but we have had a problem with not eating at all!

Thank you for the offer on the samples. I think the place we are going to had samples for that one, but if not, I will let you know. That's very nice of you to offer, I greatly appreciate it!

I'm curious what type of issues you had with high protein? I'm also wondering about the activity level of your babies?
Appreciate the info!

I understand now. Thank you for the clarification.

I agree that a lot of people overfeed their dogs -- our vet said that 80% of her doggy patients are overweight. However, I don't think that is the case here on YT. I have found the majority here, especially the regulars, are pretty savvy about maintaining proper weight.

Jackson is about 16lbs and according to the bag... he could be eating 1 cup or even a bit more a day. He rarely eats 1 full cup a day though! If he does extra activities or longer walks or dog park days, he will typically eat more. I pour 1 cup a day of dry food into his bowl and usually half of it gets eaten. Honestly, I don't really know sometimes if he's UNDER eating but he always has food readily available so my feeling is: if he's hungry, he will eat. Usually around 5-6pm, I will take some kibble (I don't measure, I just take it out of bowl that I poured 1 cup into) and mix in some Before Grain canned food and that's his dinner. He usually munches on kibble alone around lunch-time.

Well, I avoid high protein since Maddy has a history of HGE. I know many people avoid high protein foods because they are not easy on the stomach. Also, I have heard that it could cause liver and kidney functions later on (not confirmed).

First, welcome to YT.

Secondly, allow me to expand on your kcalorie comment. Unfortunately, determination of kcalories is somewhat more technical than a standardized 225 calories across the board. The basic standard equation that nutritionists use to formulate appropriate kcalorie guidelines is based on a canines RER, or Resting Energy Requirements; where
RER(kcal/day)= 30 (body weight in kilograms) + 70. The RER is only valued for resting energy requirements, when other things such as activity, specific breed variants, coat requirements, environmental factors, muscle maintenance, and organ repair are entered into the equation, kcalorie requirements can vary radically. This RER is then multiplied by a specific numerical rate exemplifying the activity level to predict appropriate kcalorie intake that your pup will need for adequate nutrition.

So, say you have two five pound yorkies, one is extremely active and the other is very sedate. After deciphering their RER:
RER = 30 ( 2.27 kg) + 70 = 138.1, you find that their basic resting requirement is 138.1kcal.
For the sedate pup a multiplier of 1.6 is normal so basic kcalorie count would be 220.96 kcals, whereas the active pup would be using a multiplier between 4 and 8 which would put the kcal. count between 552.4 kcals and 1104.8 kcals. So as you can see, there is a drastic difference between these and the standard 250kcalories that you have quoted. My pups are extremely active, and their kcalorie range varies between 325-700 kcalories per day, depending on the exact type of exercises that we are doing.

So there it is, somewhat academic and boring, but useful perhaps to someone.:rolleyes::D

Well, I thought I clarified my thoughts in response to Maximo but I suppose I still didn't do too well. I don't know whether I said too little or too much. I am well aware of the formula, RER and multiples and that different activity levels require different caloric amounts (my dog eats half the suggested amount and I am sure that some need twice the suggested amount). I use the calculator at mycockerspaniel.com/mer.htm which gives all of the variables at once. I was merely offering the suggestion that the questioner might be feeding too much since I have seen so many people jump from one dog food to another to another and all along the problem was that they were giving the dog too much and he was eating enough, just not as much as the owner thought he should eat. I have even seen some people try several high quality foods and then switch to a low quality food, which the dog needs twice as much of, because of the lower caloric content and they decided that the higher quality food was "too rich" and settled on the lower quality food because the dog ate more of it. It seems that I failed miserably if two people misunderstood so badly. I think I will steer clear of this site henceforth.

Lordy! Now I need a Tylenol!:p Yes, useful though.:)

I followed what you were saying. Don't worry. :) You will find it is not uncommon for users to add as much information as we can so that others can also learn who may visit.

Certainly wouldn't let it keep me away.:)

Well we got samples of all the different Fromm formulas to try.
We did also buy the small trial bag of Orijen as well.
I gave Camden a few pieces to try of the surf & turf and I didn't mix anything in it. (we always mix green beans & wet food) and she ate it! So we will see.
Orijen is higher in protein, so I will see how they do, I think it sounds like excellent food!
Thanks!

The place we went didn't have samples of this. They gave us a bunch of samples of Fromm and we bought a small trial bag of Orijen.
I gave Camden a few pcs of the Fromm surf & turf and she ate it right up without any mix ins!
Do you have any concerns with this food being manufactured by Diamond? I wasn't sure, I recall problems with them.

I haven't had any problems on the grain free diets with Lily (8 mos) but I have with Max (5 yrs) I noticed that after being on it for a couple of weeks, he would have occasional vomiting episodes which subsided after going back to a grain diet like Artemis. I'm not sure if it was pure coincidence. Usually my 2 are not very active. They play indoors and run around after each other but that is usually the extent of it. I feed the recommended amount according to the feeding instructions on the bag, but the lower end of the range.

I was really interested in trying Artemis and they are sending samples, but no one around me sells it! The place we went today said they have tried and can't get it! Another place said the same thing!

Oh no..that's too bad. Mine seem to really like it.

Are you talking about FROMM?

I believe all their dry foods are manufactured at their own plant.

No, not the Fromm. The Taste of the wild is what I was referring to.
I like that Fromm is manufactured at their own plant.
I know you switched off the Fromm, but when you were feeding, what amount did you feed?
We only have samples which didn't have the serving. On their website it shows 1/2 cup a day for a 5lb dog.

sorry... must have misread!

My dog is 6 pounds, I started out with 1/2 cup per day (split between two feedings) and he put on a little bit of weight.. dont know exactly how much I could just feel/see him getting bigger... I started just not filling the quarter cup scooper all the way at each meal, so he was getting under 1/2 cup but I dont know exactly the amount and he took the weight right off and looked good!

He got really spoiled on that food though... finding another food with such small kibble size was a challenge :eek:

Ok, are two small ones are a little over 6lbs too. I will try a little under a 1/4 each time too. The NV they were eating we fed them 1/8 each time+veggies+ a touch of wet.
I love the kibble size too, that can be a challenge!
Thanks!

Fromm's not here
 

I would like to have Sydney try Fromm's, but it isn't sold in my area. So, there aren't any free samples. I looked at ordering a free sample on line, but the shipping is around $12! :eek: I don't know why. We live in Upper Michigan, right next door to Wisconsin where it's made! :confused: I am curious what others think of there being cheddar cheese in Fromm's. I didn't think you were supposed to feed dairy to dogs.

I have been feeding Stella and Chewy, raw diet. Works very well for my furbabies. Does anyone else feed raw?:animal36

I loved Taste of the Wild Pacific Stream and so did the babies. But then I learned it contains ethoxyquin and I'm too nervous about it to keep feeding it. I just don't know enough about it, or the long term dangers.

I've been feeding NV Instinct Rabbit and Turkey/Duck, both of which are about 35% protein. But, they have a pretty high calorie count and my guys gain weight on it. A month or two ago I gave in and ordered Acana online (no one sells it locally) and I'm so glad I did!! They love it and I love how they're doing on it! Their poos are so firm and tiny and non-smelly. :D I ordered the Grasslands first, and then got the Pacifica for our second bag. I think I'm going to keep them on Acana for a while and rotate between these two. I think I have finally found THE food for us. :) PM if you're interested in the website I ordered from - I've been pleased with them and plan to continue using them (they have $5 shipping on orders over $50 and with my gang I have to buy the big bags. Orders over $75 ship free). My favorite website to order from carries Orijen but not Acana. :confused:

I don't think there's enough cheddar cheese in the food to cause any reactions or anything. I use cheddar cheese sometimes when training Jackson tricks (he is VERY motivated by cheese!) and it's never caused any harm. I cut it up in small little pieces. He also gets frozen plain yogurt in his Kong. Dairy is fine if it's given in small portions.

Thank you. That's good to know. I've emailed Fromm's asking if they would sell it in my area. No local vendors carry Fromm's let alone free samples. I hope to hear good news, but I might just have to switch Sydney from Evo to Wellness Grain-Free Dry.

Some dairy is okay. I give my boys plain yogurt every day, and many people on YT feed cottage cheese or some regular cheese. I would never give milk.

My boys eat Fromm's Chicken a la Veg kibble. The Surf n Turf did not sit well with the younger one.

Very good point -- I give only 2 teaspoons yogurt per day.