# Free feed or measure?



## bell (Jun 4, 2008)

I have been free feeding my puppies. Skipper is doing good on it. But I don't know if it is food for Cleo, since doing this she has started to get a little belly? Is that ok, or should I start to measure her food out?

I have actually never measured out animals food I have always just filled their bowl.


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## dr.jaimie (Mar 23, 2004)

u should always measure food. knowing how much is in there can help when there is a decrease in appetite. also free feeding leads to obesity.


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## Nikki's Mom (Feb 13, 2008)

My holistic vet doesn't believe in free feeding.


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## wolfieinthehouse (Dec 14, 2007)

I free fed Wolfie until he was a little over a year.

Now, I give him two handfuls of kibble and four cookies a day.


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## domino_angel (Apr 17, 2008)

I "free feed", but I only give a cup of food a day... Should I really be splitting the food up into seperate meals?? She just eats when she is hungry, and it seems to work okay. I figure when she is older, about full grown, I will start being more exacting with her food and meals. If do meals and all that as a puppy, I just worry she might play too much, and if she doesn't have easy access to food she might get low blood sugar...


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## mamamia (Jul 26, 2008)

I free fed Bleu until we got Mia. I took both to the vet and he weighed just a little over 14 lbs. Vet didnt say anything but I knew he was Fat. When I asked how much I should be feeding him...she said 1/3 cup twice daily. I've been doing that now for almost a month. I take him back next week for a weigh in to see if he's lost any. I like measuring it out much better now because he will eat all his food within a few minutes so I know exactly how much he is eating.


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## beckybc03 (Jul 6, 2006)

I free feed Lilly but I also "sort of" measure. I don't really keep close tabs on how much she eats but if I know that I gave her a good amount of food in the morning and it is all gone when I get home I won't fill her bowl up again. Lilly is a total grazer and eats when she is hungry. Some days it seems like she doesn't even touch her food and other days she cleans the bowl. I am glad she is like this instead of being a scarfer. My vet has no problem with free feeding as long as she is not overweight. Lilly has also been on the thin side of thin so I'm not worried for now.


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## binniebee (Sep 27, 2007)

I don't leave the food out at night and don't leave the food bowl in his kennel while I am at work. However, I do fill up his Kong ball with kibble and leave that and a Kong peanut butter cylinder for him while I am at work. Some days he empties the Kong ball of kibble and other days he doesn't touch it. But, I know how much he eats daily because the kibble I put in his Kong comes from his food bowl. He gets one bowl of kibble a day. That is about 1 cup of kibble, which he rarely finishes. He eats about 3/4 cups of kibble a day and he weighs 9 lbs. I had him at the Vet's a week ago and she said he was of the correct weight for his size. Oh, he also gets a very small amount of boiled chicken treats for going poop or pee outside, which is about 4 times per day.

Cyndi


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## camfan (Oct 30, 2006)

QUOTE (domino_angel @ Aug 7 2008, 03:38 PM) index.php?act=findpost&pid=616931


> I "free feed", but I only give a cup of food a day... Should I really be splitting the food up into seperate meals?? She just eats when she is hungry, and it seems to work okay. I figure when she is older, about full grown, I will start being more exacting with her food and meals. If do meals and all that as a puppy, I just worry she might play too much, and if she doesn't have easy access to food she might get low blood sugar...[/B]


This is exactly what I do with Ollie. He gets the same amount every day. By the end of the day he's only got a few kibbles left in his bowl. Occasionally he'll completely empty it by the end of the day and I'll put just a few more in his bowl but he usually doesn't eat it. He's very regular with his poop/pee and his weight is perfect. He's almost 2 yrs old and I've always done it this way and will continue unless something changes.


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## pebble's mama (Jun 1, 2008)

I used to free feed Pebbles, but she got a little overweight (but that could have been from all the extra treats I gave her  ) Now she only eats 1/2 of canned food twice a day mixed with a little kibble and she is down to her normal weight again.


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## jmm (Nov 23, 2004)

I feed meals. Each dog has their food measured out plus whatever meds they may need. My boys eat twice a day. They do get treats for training during the day. I am careful that they get less food if they have more treats.


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## wooflife (Aug 8, 2007)

Izzy and Hemi free feed however they don't really free feed. What I mean is that there is always at least 1/2 cup of kibble available at all times. But they get fed their yummy dinner at night at they wait for it unless they are really starving and then they'll have a little kibble to tide them over. 

Leslie


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## 2maltese4me (May 8, 2006)

Honestly....I think it depends on the dog. I can free feed Gracie and Brody, no problem. They never over eat. Cooper on the other hand....there is no free feeding that boy. He'll eat everything in sight and then some. His has to be measured out and he gets fed twice a day. BUT because of Cooper I generally measure everyone's out.


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