How much to feed??

[rockymomtoo]

Rocky is a male boxer...he gets a 45 minute run everyday and another walk in the evening.

We feed him Innova dry mixed with Innova canned and he gets a peanut butter bone in the evenings.

He looked like he was getting a bit heavy, so we checked and we were feeding him too much. Four cups of dry per day in addition to some canned! I (his dad likes to feed him) cut him back to 2 cups of dry plus 3/4 can of canned each day (divided into 2 meals). He looks as if he has lost a little (he's hard to weigh!).

My question is this....Rock eats his food very quickly now...inhales is a better word (I stand there and stop him everynow and then). He also seems hungry after he is finished....stalking me for food, etc. And one day I felt so sorry that I gave him more and he scarfed that down, too. Is that normal behavior? And should I feed him more? I hope we didn't just get him used to eating more than he needs.....I guess I'm worried that he is now not getting enough!

Thanks for any advice!birthdayic (Rock will be 2 years old on Saturday)

 

[BooBoo & Riley]

I think you need to stop feeding the Peanut butter bones at night. PB is very high in fat. You can try to replace the PB bones with some real raw beef knuckle bones instead... maybe 2-3 a week. Chewing real bones helps their teeth, but also makes them salavate and that makes their stomachs think it is getting more food. I think he just wants to eat more because he's used to having more, not necessarily really needing more. So feed him so low fat alternatives that keep him busy chewing.

as for eating too fat, try putting a rock in his food so that he has to take time to go around the rock to reach his food.

if he continues to stalk you for food, you should have the vet check him to see if he has worms or other aliments...

 

[rockymomtoo]

Thank-you...we'll do that. Do you just ask your butcher for knuckle bones?

By the way, we weighed him today and he is 77 lbs....

 

[Scorpio]

Butcher shud have them!

ozzy weights about 83 lbs and he gets two cups in the morning and 2 cups at night, he's a big boy though.

 

[sashamom]

If its one thing i have learned, its that different dogs eat different amounts/ways.....My 10 month old Sasha is 40 something pounds and eats 3-4 cups of Flint River Ranch everyday and we just recently have added rice to her diet to try to help her gain some weight as she is a petite little thing....just never know as the bag says to feed one thing, but both our vet and the nutritionist say to give her more if she is hungry....and she STALKS us for more food...its really kind of funny!! Good luck with your big boy!!
Sasha and Lisa

 

[kelseighgirl]

Hello all.....

I have a similar question but a bit more detailed ???

I just purchased a 30lb bag of Wellness kibble and am in the process of switching. I currently feed 3 1/2 cups-4cups in the am and the same in the pm. My female is 58lbs (1yr 4months) my male is 50lbs ( 7 months).

I was reading the feeding instructions on the bag and I was shocked. They said for a dog weighing 43-68 lbs 2-2 1/2 cups per day total!!! The bag said you feed less because the kibble is super concentrated. Is that amount correct? I feel like I would be starving my guys from what they are use to eating.

For those feeding Wellness or a similar "high grade" kibble, how much do you feed??

Thanks.

Robin

 

[GoCougs]

Sounds about right....

That amount sounds about right. Premium kibble is made from higher quality ingredients, and less fillers. It takes less for them to get their nutritional needs. The fillers, more or less, just pass through the system. So you have to feed more for them to get what they need. "Concentrated" is an interesting word to describe it, but that's a pretty close layman's way to describe what you are feeding.

I feed ProPlan Turkey and Barley. My female get 2 2/3 cups per day, divded into two meals. The bag calls for 2 - 2 1/2 cups/day like wellness, but as with all kibbles, this is a recommendation. Boxers are a bit higher energy dog, and IMHO have a slightly greater need than the average dog. This is why I feed slightly more than the maximum recommended amount.

As always...your milage may vary.

 

[1CRAZYBXRLVR]

Wow! No wonder my 8 month old puppy is always acting like he's starving. I've been feeding him 1 cup in the a.m. and 1 cup in the p.m. , except on weekends when they get lunch too. I've always fed my female (2 yrs) that and she seems content (she is skinny though). The vet I have told me to feed them that but lately I'm not too confident in what he says. I'm going to try increasing their meals to 1 1/2 cups a serving and see how that goes. Thanks for the info.