# 2 dogs 2 foods HELP



## arommie (Sep 4, 2008)

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.


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## ilovemymaltese (Oct 9, 2008)

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.


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## arommie (Sep 4, 2008)

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.


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## sassy's mommy (Aug 29, 2005)

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!


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## 3Maltmom (May 23, 2005)

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?


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## drclee (Jul 16, 2008)

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.


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## arommie (Sep 4, 2008)

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.


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## k/c mom (Oct 9, 2004)

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.


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## sassy's mommy (Aug 29, 2005)

QUOTE (3Maltmom @ Apr 23 2009, 05:11 PM) index.php?act=findpost&pid=766899


> 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.


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## roxybaby22 (Feb 25, 2009)

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 (NB), 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! :biggrin:


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## wolfieinthehouse (Dec 14, 2007)

I tried feeding one of my dogs puppy food and the other his small bites dry adult kibble and gave up (short of feeding them in crates).....

I mix the two kibbles half and half and hope that suffices!


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## roxybaby22 (Feb 25, 2009)

Whoops!  After steamed, it should say vegetables. I can't edit on my iPod Touch.


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## jmm (Nov 23, 2004)

A baby gate so they can see each other may help. Putting them on a meal schedule and sticking with it (food down 10 minutes then up, no treats) can help.


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## arommie (Sep 4, 2008)

I think we will try the schedule and I will look for different food. Thank you all agian for your advice.


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## rdb911 (Apr 17, 2009)

Need to schedule a feeding time for them and separate where they eat. I wouldn't recommend leaving food out all day. Also, find a better quality food. The stuff at Petco/Petsmart is not that great for dogs, they have a lot of fillers. But they do sell Wellness which is a decent brand.


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