Food Question???

[rckola]

Hi all. Just wanted to say a quick thank you to all for your help on the crate training issue. Cayenne is doing great. I accidently left the cage unlocked yesterday though and she got out. She had a little mishap in the basement. Well, that one was my fault. She's been doing great though.

Anyway, Cayenne just turned 4 months old and I am have tried feeding her twice a day. She seems to be starving though. I feed her only dry Nutra for puppies. She's getting very big quickly, but I really am lost on the food issue. Should I feed her three times a day? And how much? She gets a cup of dry food every 12 hours. Is this too much? Thanks for the help!

 

[Jan]

They should get 3 meals a day until they are 6 months or so. Then you can gradually cut back on their noon meal until they are only getting a dog biscuit or something.

I would think that 2 cups of food a day are not enough. How much you feed partly depends on the quality of the food that you are feeding. As a rule the better the food the less you have to feed. The better quality foods have less fillers in them. When Markus was a puppy, I fed a pretty good quality food, and he got four cups a day.

 

[Tulsa-Dan]

There are basic guidelines on each package of dog food on how much to feed your dog based on weight and age.

Please use these as a preliminary guide as to how much your dog should eat.

I agree with Jan, if you can do so, feeding 3 times a day is preferred, using the highest quality kibble you can find/afford

To that end, here is a list of the Whole Dog Journal's list of Top 10 foods. Hope this helps.

http://www.boxerworld.com/forums/showthread.php?postid=140228#post140228

Good luck.

 

[Vicki]

Question

Have a question & would appreciate any opinions. My boxer had a rash. The vet tried different things changing food,flax seed oil, etc. Now he put him on pred & I now have read pred is really not the answer. I've also read not so great things about Nutro. So went to the pet food supply company, they suggested get off Nutro chicken & rice & try either wellness fish or Solid Gold holistic(might have spelled that wrong) which is a veg diet. Any one have an opinion? Thanks.

 

[Debbie Magon]

Vicki,
try getting your boxer off ALL processed foods and onto a natural diet for a few months, drop all medications and see what happens.
Initially there may be some irritations as the body tries to rid itself of toxins etc but the majoritory of dogs I have seen over come skin problems on natural diets is truely amazing!!
If raw is to drastic for you tried lightly cooked foods.

rckola,
Your pup would also benefit form meat and veggies. If you want to continue with kibble make it less not more and up the extras like meats, beef , lamb, chicken and fish and add veggies.
Raw is best but lightly cooked is OK.
I would feed kibble as a meal then the natural diet as a meal.

 

[Vicki]

THANKS

Thanks for the info but now my question is what lightly cooked foods? What vegatables & what meats or dairy. Sorry for being such a pain but as you know they are our children. He likes the Solid Gold & turns up his nose now at Nutro & doesn't care for the Wellness fish & sweet potato (don't blame him there it really stinks) Did I already mention about the carrot bone? Those are the only thing that seem to help him have semi-normal stools. Now i heard they have something in them that causes cancer so I guess no more of those. He can have rawhide as those make him vomit. So what do you give a boxer to keep him busy? Not much I bought quite a few toys but as we all know those don't last. The one thing that hasn't been destroyed yet by him are those new teaser balls where there is one small ball inside a larger one. Oh yes & the good old tennis ball. So any more ideas my friend. I just love this boxer site. No one else understands how we feel about our babies. Thanks again

 

[Debbie Magon]

Vicki, You are absolutely NOT being a pain!! :D
Education is the key to everything in life and we all have to start somewhere.
I just wish I had had BW 15 years ago!

Now , you can feed just about anything except onions.
Think of what you would cook for a young child and add a lot more meat.
Aim for perhaps 50/50 or 60 meat 40 veggies.
Its not hard to feed a natural diet becuase if you can feed yourself and family correctly, you can feed an dog.
NO SWEET FOODS!!

This is a typical diet I fed before I went mainly raw.
Steamed chicken, or lamb or beef ( never weighed but probably about 2 cups)
Veggies ( pumpkin, kumara, spinach, broccoli,potatoe, ) about 2 cups, just whatever you have on hand, but some veggies do produce wind!! :eek:
If you are not feeding raw meaty bones some extra calcium may need to be added.
Dolomite is a natural calcium and cannot be over done like other types of calcium supplements.
Talk to your health shop suppliers and see what they suggest.
To this you can add cooked brown rice but if you are going cereal free dont.
Garlic granules are also good to add, along with a dolop of plain cottage cheese, or yohurt and a scrambled egg. (Use water to scramble)
Add shells finely crushed as these contain valuable calcium.
Things such as healthy Yeast flakes and sea kelp can also be sprinkled on top and an opened capsule of fish oil or similar.
There are endless combinations of good healthy foods , just like we consume.
A dog does very well on a similar diet to humans but does need more meat.
Now you say he needs something to chew on.
Well he would do very well on raw brisket bones , which are meaty and gristly but dont fragment and cause any problems.
I know you were asking cooked , but bones are something that should always be fed RAW.
Many "chewies" are quite dangerous for dogs as they can be ingested in large lumps, swell up and cause major blockages.
I would invest in a nyla bone or similar.
Kongs with peanut butter always work well and what about a treat ball?
Footnote: Extra calcium is not needed if you are also feeding a good brand of kibble. Over dosing calcium causes growth plate problems etc.
Natural calcium , like egg shells , cheese etc are very safe at any time.

 

[Vicki]

THANKS AGAIN!!

I really appreciate all the info. It made my day. As I said this site is great.

 

[ColleenAus]

hey deb

ive just started shelby of on kibble and pet mince mixed with carrots and im gradually trying other vegies and she gets 2 chicken necks a day - is too much cheese bad - eg constipation etc and eggs how many of them?!?! hehe sorry im just wanting to know im doing the right thing - im still giving her the kibble that her "breeder ha" was giving her - Pegigree puppy stuff is this ok?
as for the how many times t feed - shelby eats when she is hungry mostly twice a day but i dont pick up her bowl becuase im not there during the day and she likes to graze a little - is this ok?



thanks! Colly

 

[Debbie Magon]

Hi Coll,
Grazing is fine if thats how she likes it and is eating enough to maintain weight and/or growth.
A slim pup is far beter than a fat pup, but we should make sure they are getting enough vitamins and minerals, fats etc each day.

2 chicken necks isnt much, but I am not sure what age your pup is now?
Clover at 5 mths eats 6 or more, for breakfast in about 10 seconds!!!

I have found chicken necks wonderful "bait" when teaching sit, stay etc.
Seems boxers will do almost anything for a tasty chicken neck :D
Think of me this weekend as I enter the show ring, with the pocket of my beautiful new suit, bulging with dripping ,icky chicken neck "baits" :eek:
Wonder what the judge from England will think????? :o

I have raised pups on a diet with an egg each per day and they have been fine, but some feel that is too much.
How about 1 egg every other day. To my knowledge dogs dont suffer egg related problems like humans.

Aim for kibble on its own. This seems to be the agreed method of mixed feeding.
If you are at work during the day and like to leave her food , this is ideal to be left out and "grazed" upon.
I would try to give all the meat and veggies together at the evening meal.
See how you go and let us know