feeding Duke enough?

[duketheboxer]

We feed duke 3 times a day:
8am
2pm
8pm


He gets one cup of Artemis dry food at each meal. In the morning we mix in one table spoon of plain yogurt. oh man he loves yogurt.

At lunch or dinner I typically mix in one chicken medallion of Nature's Variety raw frozen food. He loves that too. Actually I guess he loves everything.

He scoffs down his meals, and licks the bowl dry. He seems to be looking for more after he's done. He definitely is not overweight. You can see all his ribs, and he's pretty lanky. Does 3 cups a day for a 35lb 17 week old puppy sound like enough? I thought it should be enough, but the way he gobbles his food, and looks for more, I'm starting to wonder.


Maybe I should try increasing one or two of his meals by half a cup?


EDIT: doh, yes Artemis. corrected above.

 

[gmacleod]

I haven't heard of Armedis... You don't mean Artemis?

3 cups sounds like quite a lot for a dog of that weight, particularly supplemented with some raw. But look at the feeding guideline - what does that say to feed? And also look at his weight - seeing ribs is pretty normal for a boxer puppy. As long as you're not seeing prominant hip bones and vertebrae as well, then he's probably doing fine.

 

[duketheboxer]

hrmmm... his spine and hip bones aren't sticking out. So I guess we're doing ok. The packaging on the dog food says for a 30-40lb puppy at his age, he should get 4-5 cups/day!!!!!! That sounded completely insane to me. hence why we didn't follow the chart.

But maybe the manufacturer knows best. I'll start upping his feedings and see if he still gulps it all down. I just don't want a big fat overweight boxer with health problems.

 

[gmacleod]

LOL - yes, 4-5 cups does sound huge!

If you think he's a little on the thin side, then giving him a little more won't hurt. But let his weight be your guide, rather than his appetite (some dogs will overeat greatly if given the chance).

 

[bunkermom]

That is amazing...4-5 cups!

My two adult boxers only get 3 cups/per dog, per day. Your little guy is eating more than my two fully grown (and very active) dogs!

You might want to contact Artemis and see if he really should be eating 4-5 cups per day. Overfeeding can cause a plethora of problems: runny poo's, growth disorders, obesity, etc....

As Gwenyth said, if the hips are not sticking out, stick with where you are. He might just be hitting a growth spurt and feeling like he can never get full.

Autumn

 

[duketheboxer]

ya, well 4-5 is what the package says. I think I'm going to bump up to 4cups/day and see what happens.

right now he's at 3 cups with a smidgen of supplemental other bits... but really looking for more.

Don't forget, he's a growing puppy, and should be eating a lot. I just thought 3 sounded about right. heh. can't imagine 5/day. I don't want the poor dog to be starving all the time, or malnourished. on the other hand, I've seen my fair share of fatso boxers lately. I won't let that happen.

 

[gmacleod]

Don't forget, he's a growing puppy, and should be eating a lot.

Only within reason Overnutrition of puppies (that's excess calcium, protein or overall calories - meaning total amount of food) has a causal link to the development of some extremely serious musculoskeletal disorders (eg. panostetis, hypertrophic osteodystrophy) and exacerbates others (eg. hip dysplasia). The idea that a puppy should be fed all he wants just because he's growing is both false and potentially dangerous. At this age, overfeeding won't make him fat - but it can make him grow too fast, and the problems that can cause are not reversible. So use some caution there.

If the manufacturer recomends 4-5 cups, then increasing to 4 cups a day probably won't hurt *if* his weight/appearance suggests that he needs it. Do not judge by his appetite alone. But you should bear in mind that this food has a pretty normal protein/fat/calorie content - 4 cups daily is nearly 1400 calories he would be consuming. And that is rather more than comparable foods recommend.