# How much do/did you feed your puppy?



## LJSquishy (Feb 27, 2008)

London is 3 months old, and I was feeding her only twice per day, but you all recommended feeding her three times per day, so I am now doing that.

I started by just dividing her daily amount (1/2 cup) into three portions, but she still seems hungry. She will actually stand by where her food bowl is and bark. I clean her bowl after every meal, so she waits for me to set it back down with food in it. Today I tried feeding her 1/4 cup at 7am, about 1/8 cup at 12, and another 1/4 cup at 5:30pm. Should I be giving her more?

She is on Solid Gold right now, but after she's finished this bag (the tiny size one), I was going to switch her to Nature's Variety, Innova, or California Natural. I thought since this was a high quality food, she wouldn't even need 1/2 cup per day, but she acts like she wants even more. :huh:


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## Carly's Mom (Jan 17, 2008)

> London is 3 months old, and I was feeding her only twice per day, but you all recommended feeding her three times per day, so I am now doing that.
> 
> I started by just dividing her daily amount (1/2 cup) into three portions, but she still seems hungry. She will actually stand by where her food bowl is and bark. I clean her bowl after every meal, so she waits for me to set it back down with food in it. Today I tried feeding her 1/4 cup at 7am, about 1/8 cup at 12, and another 1/4 cup at 5:30pm. Should I be giving her more?
> 
> She is on Solid Gold right now, but after she's finished this bag (the tiny size one), I was going to switch her to Nature's Variety, Innova, or California Natural. I thought since this was a high quality food, she wouldn't even need 1/2 cup per day, but she acts like she wants even more. :huh:[/B]


I feed Carly as much as she wants, and when she was that age it amazed me how much she would eat. She definitely eats less now and she is 2 months older. North Central Maltese Rescue told me that puppies have to have food available to them 24/7 for the first year of life. I think this was good advice...I don't think too many Malts will overstuff themselves.


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## Harley & Dakotas Mum (Jun 11, 2005)

> London is 3 months old, and I was feeding her only twice per day, but you all recommended feeding her three times per day, so I am now doing that.
> 
> I started by just dividing her daily amount (1/2 cup) into three portions, but she still seems hungry. She will actually stand by where her food bowl is and bark. I clean her bowl after every meal, so she waits for me to set it back down with food in it. Today I tried feeding her 1/4 cup at 7am, about 1/8 cup at 12, and another 1/4 cup at 5:30pm. Should I be giving her more?
> 
> She is on Solid Gold right now, but after she's finished this bag (the tiny size one), I was going to switch her to Nature's Variety, Innova, or California Natural. I thought since this was a high quality food, she wouldn't even need 1/2 cup per day, but she acts like she wants even more. :huh:[/B]



You probably already know this, but just thought I would chime in anways! LOL - when I switched Harley & Dakota's food, I did it quite gradually - I started introducing just a tiny bit of the new kibble with the old kibble until eventually there was more 'new' kibble than 'old' kibble, I think it helped them to adjust better, and we didn't have any tummy upsets this way. So just be sure you have some 'old' food left before you start to introduce the 'new' food 

As for portion size - it's so hard to tell with the babies at London's age. I had to go back to work 2 weeks after I got Dakota, and I knew it was important for her to have access to food while I was gone, so I used to leave a small amount of kibble for her to snack on. Most days she would eat some, but there would still be some in the bowl when I got home. Actually, Dakota is a bad example - she's not a fussy eater - she will eat most things - but she is on her own timetable about it! Sometimes she likes an audience (ie: likes to eat while I'm doing other things in the kitchen area), but sometimes she wont eat if she thinks anyone will see her :wacko1: 

I don't know what to suggest but perhaps at the times when she seems to want more food, you could have a training session? Food is a GREAT motivator for training! Perhaps you could have a 5 - 10 minute training session and use little tiny pieces of boiled chicken breast, or cooked pasta, or something else 'soft' (or something healthy) to help 'top-her-up'. If she really is hungry, she will do ANYTHING to get whatever treat you have!

Good luck with your gorgeous little girl!


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## LJSquishy (Feb 27, 2008)

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Thanks for your advice. I will start working on her training around lunch time each day which is when she seems the most hungry. When I got her, the breeder had her on Purina Pro Plan (yuck! But she said when she tried natural foods it caused tear stains...), so I gradually switched her over to Solid Gold, literally adding about 2 kibbles per day until it was all new food!  I thought Solid Gold was the highest quality food I could find in my area, but then my husband stopped by a specialty pet store and they carry Nature's Variety, Innova, & California Natural. I was so excited!


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## camfan (Oct 30, 2006)

I've always free fed Ollie. I put down a full day's amount (according to the food's portion recommendations on the bag) and by the end of the day, it's usually gone or sometimes there's a little left over. Sometimes he "asks" for a little more, but he never eats more than a few extra bites. My theory is that if you leave it down all day, they will learn to regulate what they need, when they need it. If you ration the food, they'll gobble it up every time, right away, whether or not they even need it all. I feel that free feeding teaches them that their food isn't a "treat" it's for when they feel hunger. That's exactly what Ollie does. His weight is perfect and you can time his pottying like clockwork.


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## Lisacisme (Feb 21, 2008)

Remember you've got a puppy, so to watch the protein content on those high quality foods - I use EVO but waited until my pup was six months old and I cut it with a lower protein food.


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## LJSquishy (Feb 27, 2008)

> Remember you've got a puppy, so to watch the protein content on those high quality foods - I use EVO but waited until my pup was six months old and I cut it with a lower protein food.[/B]


What is the risk on feeding a high quality food to a puppy? I have never heard anything about that before.


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## Eli's Mom (Mar 20, 2008)

> I've always free fed Ollie. I put down a full day's amount (according to the food's portion recommendations on the bag) and by the end of the day, it's usually gone or sometimes there's a little left over. Sometimes he "asks" for a little more, but he never eats more than a few extra bites. My theory is that if you leave it down all day, they will learn to regulate what they need, when they need it. If you ration the food, they'll gobble it up every time, right away, whether or not they even need it all. I feel that free feeding teaches them that their food isn't a "treat" it's for when they feel hunger. That's exactly what Ollie does. His weight is perfect and you can time his pottying like clockwork.[/B]


Ditto here..


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## jazak (Feb 12, 2008)

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I am curious too!


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## LJSquishy (Feb 27, 2008)

I am trying free-feeding London now, and today is the 3rd day. Days 1 & 2 she only ate 1/2 cup total, which is great. Today, however, she's already eaten 1/2 cup and it's only 2:23pm! I will continue to free-feed her for a while to see how much weight she gains...bad weight, not good weight. I really think she may overeat if we continue, but we'll give free-feeding a chance.


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## Eli's Mom (Mar 20, 2008)

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LOL Ditto again!


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## lovesophie (Jan 28, 2008)

> I am trying free-feeding London now, and today is the 3rd day. Days 1 & 2 she only ate 1/2 cup total, which is great. Today, however, she's already eaten 1/2 cup and it's only 2:23pm! I will continue to free-feed her for a while to see how much weight she gains...bad weight, not good weight. I really think she may overeat if we continue, but we'll give free-feeding a chance. [/B]


Hm, if your puppy is constantly hungry, I don't think free feeding is a good idea. My Sophie is the same way as your pup; she's always hungry and never satisfied! If I let Sophie have her way, she'd seriously eat until her stomach exploded! 

I was advised by members of this board to follow the feeding instructions on the bag and only feed Sophie three times a day, even if she begs and gives me that look with her puppy dog eyes!! It was hard to resist her at first, but she now understands that I'm not going to feed her any more so she doesn't even try to beg me for more. Hope that helps! :biggrin:


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## I found nemo (Feb 23, 2006)

As a puppy I fed Nemo 3x a day. At about one year I started 2x a day. In the morning and at 5 or 6 pm I feed him. I can't free feed cause Nemo is a human garbage can  and he will eat and eat and gain weight , which for him is no good since he had Patella surgery in December 2006 and the extra weight on his legs the vet said is a no no. :biggrin:


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## CrystalAndZoe (Jul 11, 2006)

I don't think free feeding is for every dog. Some dogs won't gorge themselves (i.e. my Zoe) and some will eat non stop until they explode (i.e. my Jett). Puppies do need more food and more often then adult dogs. And puppies are smart. If you have one that wants to eat all the time and learns he can ask for more food and get it, then he's going to act like he's starving all the time. I found this out when mom and dad watched them. My parents were sure that I was starving them because of how they were begging for food. Well come to find out, after they were given their normal portion, they were licking the bowl (like they always do) and so grandma & grandpa thought they didn't give them enough and gave them more. That's all it took. When I got to their place and saw how they were acting I could understand why mom and dad thought they were starved. But when I found out how much they had eaten and felt their full tummies, I told them 'no', and that was that. LOL Unfortunately, I just don't think there is one formula that works for every puppy or dog. You're just going to have to watch her weight carefully and adjust accordingly. But I do know there are days that mine do seem to be hungrier then others. Maybe they were more active that day?


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## newpup (Mar 19, 2008)

My Mali, as the breeders states "lives to eat", the girl can never have enough. I tried free feeding her when I first got her, once she was comfortable she'd gobble everything up all in one sitting! When I brought her to the vet he said she was on the pudgy side, not necessarily overweight, but could be. So I split her food, once in the morning and once in the evening. I've read that it is only necessary to feed pups under 12 weeks three times a day, after that time it should be changed to 2 times a day, but I could be wrong. She knows when it's time for to eat, since I feed her everyday at the same times. She always acts like I'm starving her. But after every meal, I feel her tummy and it's usually bloated! We try to make ourselves feel better (not feeling like we're starving her) by giving her treats when we work on training. But we limit ourselves on that also. She isn't as consistent when we do training with toys or praise, but bring in the food and she's a little angel! LOL


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