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06-08-2010, 02:37 AM | #1 |
Senior Yorkie Talker Join Date: Apr 2010 Location: Norwood, MA
Posts: 139
| Increasing food? Charlie is about 5 months old now. When we got him as 12 weeks, I kept him on the food he came with, which is Wellness brand for puppies. The vet said to give him a 1/4 cup of food three times a day. He seemed okay with it, both the taste and the amount he was getting. Now that's getting bigger, I've sometimes given him a little treat here or there, maybe a bit of chicken, or cheese as a treat. I can't remember when it was but at some point he'd leave his food. He might leave two feedings alone and then pick a bit. (Now I did ask the vet about this a while ago and he said they're like kids and they won't starve themselves.) But, of course, like my kids, I worried when he wasn't eating much so if he didn't eat much over a day or two, I'd add some chicken or vegetables to his dinner. (I know, I know, probably a bad idea.) Then he started to get a bit picky. The vet had given me a bag of Science Diet food and I was running low and I mixed the the two and he's ate every bit for all three meals for the past three or four days with no side effects and without me having to add anything to his food. But I started thinking this morning, how do I know if he's getting enough? If he finishes everything at every meal, should I give him more. (The vet had said when he was a bit older I could reduce three feedings a day to two, but I haven't done it as he seems to need his lunch.) But he's growing and active and I worry that he's not getting enough. (But I don't want him to get overweight and have problems from that either.) I just wonder if they're like kids when they're having a growth spurt, that they eat more and sleep more? He's definitely growing. At 14 weeks he was 7.5 pounds, and the vet thinks he'll grow to about 15 pounds; so he's on the bigger side. Should I give him a little more at each meal? (He's getting 1/4 cup of dry dog food for each meal. He also gets a few treats a day (though not many) like a baby carrot, a milk-bone type thing and/or a little cheese. |
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06-08-2010, 01:10 PM | #2 |
Action Jackson ♥ Donating Member Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Maryland
Posts: 17,814
| I really believe every dog is different. Some dogs self-regulate pretty well, while others will eat until they pass out. I used to just free fed and leave food out all day, and Jackson some days would barely eat, other days he'd finish the bowl. I used to put 1 cup into his bowl and he usually just only ended up eating 1/2 cup so I figure that's all he really needs. We've had an ant problem here where we live so I cannot leave food out all day anymore so I've been feeding my 16lb Jackson 1/4 cup of dry food (Acana grainfree) mixed with wet food in the mornings (usually around 9am) and then 1/4 cup of dry food again in the evening also mixed with wet food. So all day long he gets 1/2 cup total (plus whatever wet food) and it seems to fill him up really well and he's at perfect weight and really really active. Stop looking at "cups" of feeding and start looking at calories. Consider any treats also. There are a few different calories calculators for dogs online, they vary some but the good part is, each gives a range for a variety of activity levels. Acana Grasslands (what we feed) is around 430 kcal/cup. If I was feeding a food like Pedigree, he would need a lot more (probably 1 1/2 cups a day or something) but Acana is pretty calorie dense. He also gets quite a few treats (Wellness soft treats & Zuke's Mini Natural's for training, and 2 of these: http://www.avenuek9.com/wp-content/uploads/milkbone.jpg a day, which are around 15 calories a piece, I think).
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06-08-2010, 02:08 PM | #3 |
I♥PeekTinkySaph&Finny Donating Member Join Date: May 2009 Location: Baltimore, Maryland
Posts: 18,866
| I change foods all the time or mine get bored with the same old food, day in and day out. I always read the bag for the suggested amount to feed, and start there. If they seem more hungry, I'll increase the amount of food by 1/8 cup and see how they do. Also might add some veges some days, sometimes chicken (small amounts) sometimes fruits, and they go nuts for plain noodles. In the winter, they all eat less, so every spring I have to watch that they're all getting enough, and increase amounts gradually till they get adjusted to the new amounts, depending on their activity levels.
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