2 dogs 2 foods HELP - Spoiled Maltese - the largest maltese dog forum and website

**arommie** · 04-23-2009, 04:53 PM

My girls are about a year old and the vet wants me to switch Isa (my chunky butt) to adult weight control food and keep Tuni (my teeny tiny) on puppy food. However they eat from the same bowl and always have. They also have their food available all day and night. I tried feeding at night only with two seperate bowls in two seperate rooms but they only eat like 3 bites at a time. Any suggestions would be welcome.

ilovemymaltese · 04-23-2009, 05:09 PM

What foods are you feeding them! I used to have the same problem with Gigi, but I just switched her foods up and that all changed.

**arommie** · 04-23-2009, 05:18 PM

They are both on Eukanuba Small Breed Puppy and I want to keep the little one on that and switch the big boneded one to Eukanuba Small Breed Adult Weight Control.

**sassy's mommy** · 04-23-2009, 05:29 PM

This is a tough one...........I think you will have to put each of their foods in a separate bowl and feed them at the same time either together if you are there to monitor them, or in separate rooms. Give each about 15 minutes to eat her food, then take the food up. You can put it back down in a while but it should be at a time that you want to be on your schedule. For ex: you could put the food down at dinner time, and if not eaten you could put it back down just before bed time. Nonetheless, you will have to stop leaving the food down 24/7 is you want to monitor what your heavier girl eats. Otherwise, she will eat her sister's food. It will not take the girls long to adapt to the new feeding schedule. Good luck!

3Maltmom · 04-23-2009, 06:11 PM

At a year old, I wouldn't have either on puppy food, and not Eukanuba.

My thinking is, you need to find a good quality-Adult food, they can both eat.
And, of course, a bit more exercise for the overweight one, if necessary.

How much do they weigh?

drclee · 04-23-2009, 06:36 PM

I used to feed Jack and Jill out of the same bowl too. But soon enough, Jack would eat most of the food and poor Jill would get hardly anything. So now I feed them in separate bowls. Jack's a little bigger and he goes on the treadmill every night, so I give him a bit more food than Jill. But I still have to monitor their feeding, because Jack wolfs his food down and tries to get some from Jill's bowl. So I'm constantly guarding her bowl for her

.

I also think you need to stop with the Eukanuba and get a better food. And you definitely need to feed them separately.

**arommie** · 04-23-2009, 06:51 PM

Isa is about 10 lbs and she is 2 weeks younger than Tuni. Tuni is about 6 lbs. I think a big part of it is Isa is the "boss" and she hogs the food. But neither enjoy eating in front of people. They go to their room and get a piece or two out at a time put it on the floor then eat it and then run back into the living room to play with me. I did think a middle ground would be just an adult food that was not weight control and since Tuni can jump up put her a bowl up on the couch or a chair or something.

k/c mom · 04-23-2009, 07:35 PM

I am feeding 3 and 2 are on the same food and 1 is on puppy food. I feed Claire her puppy food in a large rolling crate. She sleeps in it at night and then I take the pillow out and roll it in the kitchen for feeding. Since I just got her, I am just learning her habits. She ate about 1/2 her food for supper and I'll put her back in the crate to see if she wants more in a few mintues and then that's it. I think eventually she'll learn the routine. Maybe try something like I'm doing and it might work for your situation.

**sassy's mommy** · 04-23-2009, 08:08 PM

QUOTE (3Maltmom @ Apr 23 2009, 05:11 PM)

Quote:

At a year old, I wouldn't have either on puppy food[/B]

I think it depends on your baby's activity level. At one yr. old my vet said it was perfectly ok to keep Sassy on puppy food as long as she was active. The difference is mostly the level of protein and fat. So if your baby is active, puppy food is ok, but not for the less active, overweight girl.

I agree with Deb that you could find a better quality food.

**roxybaby22** · 04-23-2009, 08:37 PM

When we tell you that you could be feeding a better quality food, we mean foods without by-products, corn, wheat, artificial colors, sugars (fructose, molasses), and/or chemical preservatives like ethoxyquin, BHT, and BHA (big NO NO!). Read the ingredients on your Eukanuba package and see how many "NO NOs" are in the food. Some good foods include Artemis, Blue Buffalo, Fromm Four Star, Innova (and other Natura products), Merrick, Natural Balance (N

, Nature's Variety, Orijen, Wellness, and many more. Basically, stay away from grocery store brands and don't listen to vets unless they know about nutrition (most don't, but get paid to advertise certain brands). Go to www.dogfoodanalyses.com and look at the reviews for foods 4 stars and above, these are the foods you want to feed.

As for the food problem, I recommend keeping them on separate bowls and maybe add some boiled chicken or steamed to their food to make it more appealing to them. If you get them used to eating separately, you won't have to encounter this problem again.

Hope I helped!

04-23-2009, 05:09 PM	#2 (permalink)
ilovemymaltese Maltese Guru Name: Briana, Gigi's personal assistant Dog's Name: Darla Giselle(aka Gigi) and the beloved Imani in heaven. Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: Northern VA Posts: 3,787	What foods are you feeding them! I used to have the same problem with Gigi, but I just switched her foods up and that all changed. __________________ Rest in Peace Kitty- 1992-Sept. 2009 <a href="http://www.TickerFactory.com/" target="_blank"> </a>

04-23-2009, 05:29 PM	#4 (permalink)
sassy's mommy Maltese Guru Name: Pat Dog's Name: Sassy Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Sunny Florida Posts: 14,793	This is a tough one...........I think you will have to put each of their foods in a separate bowl and feed them at the same time either together if you are there to monitor them, or in separate rooms. Give each about 15 minutes to eat her food, then take the food up. You can put it back down in a while but it should be at a time that you want to be on your schedule. For ex: you could put the food down at dinner time, and if not eaten you could put it back down just before bed time. Nonetheless, you will have to stop leaving the food down 24/7 is you want to monitor what your heavier girl eats. Otherwise, she will eat her sister's food. It will not take the girls long to adapt to the new feeding schedule. Good luck! __________________ Pat & Sassy

04-23-2009, 06:11 PM	#5 (permalink)
3Maltmom Maltese Guru Name: Deb Dog's Name: Jops,Frankie,LBB,Tommy,Raul,Coby,George,Pee Pod Join Date: May 2005 Location: Orange County, CA Posts: 9,230	At a year old, I wouldn't have either on puppy food, and not Eukanuba. My thinking is, you need to find a good quality-Adult food, they can both eat. And, of course, a bit more exercise for the overweight one, if necessary. How much do they weigh? __________________

04-23-2009, 07:35 PM	#8 (permalink)
k/c mom Sher Dog's Name: Kallie, Catcher and Claire Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: United States Posts: 20,077	I am feeding 3 and 2 are on the same food and 1 is on puppy food. I feed Claire her puppy food in a large rolling crate. She sleeps in it at night and then I take the pillow out and roll it in the kitchen for feeding. Since I just got her, I am just learning her habits. She ate about 1/2 her food for supper and I'll put her back in the crate to see if she wants more in a few mintues and then that's it. I think eventually she'll learn the routine. Maybe try something like I'm doing and it might work for your situation. __________________ How to Find and Evaluate Maltese Breeders

04-23-2009, 08:37 PM	#10 (permalink)
roxybaby22 Maltese Guru Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Ohio Posts: 1,563	When we tell you that you could be feeding a better quality food, we mean foods without by-products, corn, wheat, artificial colors, sugars (fructose, molasses), and/or chemical preservatives like ethoxyquin, BHT, and BHA (big NO NO!). Read the ingredients on your Eukanuba package and see how many "NO NOs" are in the food. Some good foods include Artemis, Blue Buffalo, Fromm Four Star, Innova (and other Natura products), Merrick, Natural Balance (N, Nature's Variety, Orijen, Wellness, and many more. Basically, stay away from grocery store brands and don't listen to vets unless they know about nutrition (most don't, but get paid to advertise certain brands). Go to www.dogfoodanalyses.com and look at the reviews for foods 4 stars and above, these are the foods you want to feed. As for the food problem, I recommend keeping them on separate bowls and maybe add some boiled chicken or steamed to their food to make it more appealing to them. If you get them used to eating separately, you won't have to encounter this problem again. Hope I helped!

04-23-2009, 04:53 PM	#1 (permalink)
arommie Newbie Join Date: Sep 2008 Posts: 31	My girls are about a year old and the vet wants me to switch Isa (my chunky butt) to adult weight control food and keep Tuni (my teeny tiny) on puppy food. However they eat from the same bowl and always have. They also have their food available all day and night. I tried feeding at night only with two seperate bowls in two seperate rooms but they only eat like 3 bites at a time. Any suggestions would be welcome.

Remove Advertisements Sponsored Links
Maltese Dog Advertisement

04-23-2009, 05:18 PM	#3 (permalink)
arommie Newbie Join Date: Sep 2008 Posts: 31	They are both on Eukanuba Small Breed Puppy and I want to keep the little one on that and switch the big boneded one to Eukanuba Small Breed Adult Weight Control.

04-23-2009, 06:36 PM	#6 (permalink)
drclee Maltese Guru Name: Claudia Dog's Name: Jack & Jill Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: Long Beach, CA Posts: 1,078	I used to feed Jack and Jill out of the same bowl too. But soon enough, Jack would eat most of the food and poor Jill would get hardly anything. So now I feed them in separate bowls. Jack's a little bigger and he goes on the treadmill every night, so I give him a bit more food than Jill. But I still have to monitor their feeding, because Jack wolfs his food down and tries to get some from Jill's bowl. So I'm constantly guarding her bowl for her . I also think you need to stop with the Eukanuba and get a better food. And you definitely need to feed them separately.

04-23-2009, 06:51 PM	#7 (permalink)
arommie Newbie Join Date: Sep 2008 Posts: 31	Isa is about 10 lbs and she is 2 weeks younger than Tuni. Tuni is about 6 lbs. I think a big part of it is Isa is the "boss" and she hogs the food. But neither enjoy eating in front of people. They go to their room and get a piece or two out at a time put it on the floor then eat it and then run back into the living room to play with me. I did think a middle ground would be just an adult food that was not weight control and since Tuni can jump up put her a bowl up on the couch or a chair or something.