Craig Campbell wrote 01/09/2008 02:59 PM Feeding amounts #174137 - 01/09/2008 02:59 PM
Craig Campbell Webboard User Reg: 12-15-2007 Posts: 23 Loc: Offline	Hi, I've been all over this board today and received very helpful information. If you've read my other posts, I have a 9wk old Doberman and he weighed in at 16lbs at the vet last Saturday. I feel like I'm not feeding him enough. The vet didn't think so, but I'm just concerned. I am feeding him 3 times a day (dry Canidae All Life Stages). The recommended amount is 1.5 to 2 cups per day. That's less than 3/4 cup per meal. When I got him he was a little plump. Now he is more lean with a certain definition behind the rib cage, which I know is desirable, but can that amount be right? I actually cheat a little bit and give him a little more each feeding. He gets a good 45-60 mins of outside play time a day; more on the weekends. No medical problems to speak of; he went to the vet on Saturday. Any thoughts? Concerns?
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Connie Sutherland wrote 01/09/2008 03:55 PM Re: Feeding amounts [Re: Craig Campbell ] #174145 - 01/09/2008 03:55 PM
Connie Sutherland Moderator Reg: 07-13-2005 Posts: 31571 Loc: North-Central coast of California Offline	Quote: Craig Campbell Hi, I've been all over this board today and received very helpful information. If you've read my other posts, I have a 9wk old Doberman and he weighed in at 16lbs at the vet last Saturday. I feel like I'm not feeding him enough. The vet didn't think so, but I'm just concerned. I am feeding him 3 times a day (dry Canidae All Life Stages). The recommended amount is 1.5 to 2 cups per day. That's less than 3/4 cup per meal. When I got him he was a little plump. Now he is more lean with a certain definition behind the rib cage, which I know is desirable, but can that amount be right? I actually cheat a little bit and give him a little more each feeding. He gets a good 45-60 mins of outside play time a day; more on the weekends. No medical problems to speak of; he went to the vet on Saturday. Any thoughts? Concerns? You are right to gauge the amount by the dog's weight/appearance and not by package directions or what looks like a good amount in the bowl in a human's eyes.
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Angela Burrell wrote 01/09/2008 04:09 PM Re: Feeding amounts [Re: Connie Sutherland ] #174148 - 01/09/2008 04:09 PM
Angela Burrell Webboard User Reg: 05-10-2006 Posts: 2273 Loc: Ontario, Canada Offline	Do not read the bag. Connie is right. I had 3 dogs all adults and all 50 lbs. One dog ate almost exactly twice as the other dog, and the third was in between. Each dog is an individual so you have to go by your own dog's growth rate and overall condition. If he look fat, feed him less. If he looks too lean, feed him more. It sounds like you have him at the right level for now.
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Keith Jablonowski wrote 01/09/2008 04:10 PM Re: Feeding amounts [Re: Connie Sutherland ] #174149 - 01/09/2008 04:10 PM
Keith Jablonowski Webboard User Reg: 12-07-2006 Posts: 127 Loc: Lombard, IL Offline	I always heard 8-10% of the dogs target weight for an active growing puppy. My question is how does that work in this case. Craig's dobe is 16lbs, expected to be 50lb? Does that mean he would feed 8-10% of 50lbs/day? Or would you say project out a week or two and feed 8-10% (only a guideline) of what you would expect him to be in that time frame and increase it weekly/biweekly until he approached his goal weight? Not trying to hijack as I think the answer to this would help the OP out too. Keith Jablonowski
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Debbie Bruce wrote 01/09/2008 11:30 PM Re: Feeding amounts [Re: Keith Jablonowski ] #174202 - 01/09/2008 11:30 PM
Debbie Bruce Webboard User Reg: 08-23-2007 Posts: 1196 Loc: Centralia, Missouri Offline	My 4 lb, 6-10 week old puppies can eat what seems like an incredible amount of raw every day. I don't weigh the food I just give them what it looks like their bellies will hold, twice a day. They don't get too fat with my method, and they always have good flesh. If they act like they're starving I'll give them some more. When they get a bit older they get about 1/2-3/4 of what they were eating in the 6-10 week old time frame. Their growth rate has slowed so I go by their body condition when feeding them. Now I'm curious if the formula is correct and I'll have to weigh some meals to see just how much they do eat....But my dogs are not your dogs so it may not hold true for anybody else.
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Craig Campbell wrote 01/10/2008 12:35 PM Re: Feeding amounts [Re: Debbie Bruce ] #174273 - 01/10/2008 12:35 PM
Craig Campbell Webboard User Reg: 12-15-2007 Posts: 23 Loc: Offline	Yeah, this is all too confusing. To add more complexity, as of last night, I added a combination of raw lamb medallions, kibble, vegetable oil and some gluc to his diet. I've basically took the recommended portions for raw and kibble and divided it in half. So, if I was feeding 2 cups daily kibble, I've backed that to 1 cup daily and if the raw daily was 6-8 medallions, I've scaled down to 3 daily. My vet said the same thing, "he has good flesh", I have no idea what that means. I can obviously tell if he's plumping up, but how can you tell if he's too thin? Thanks, Craig
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Debbie Bruce wrote 01/10/2008 12:56 PM Re: Feeding amounts [Re: Craig Campbell ] #174282 - 01/10/2008 12:56 PM
Debbie Bruce Webboard User Reg: 08-23-2007 Posts: 1196 Loc: Centralia, Missouri Offline	If you can see hip bones and spinous process (little bumps on the top of the spine) he might be too thin. But I have to mention that most women want to see their own hip bones and some ribs and are healthy that way, so I don't panic when I can see a little bit of hip bone on a dog. I don't want to see the run-way model/heroine addict look on a puppy. You also have to consider the build of the dog in question, a thin Rott would look horrible, a thin Grey Hound would look fine. It would also be better for the dog's digestion if you feed the raw and the kibble at different meals. The raw digests much faster than cooked/kibble which can create putrid contents in the gut if they are both in there together.
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Craig Campbell wrote 01/10/2008 01:12 PM Re: Feeding amounts [Re: Debbie Bruce ] #174284 - 01/10/2008 01:12 PM
Craig Campbell Webboard User Reg: 12-15-2007 Posts: 23 Loc: Offline	Quote: Debbie Bruce It would also be better for the dog's digestion if you feed the raw and the kibble at different meals. The raw digests much faster than cooked/kibble which can create putrid contents in the gut if they are both in there together. Thanks Debbie. That actually works better with the portion amount calculations. Craig
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Rachael Buskirk wrote 01/29/2008 03:38 PM Re: Feeding amounts [Re: Craig Campbell ] #178025 - 01/29/2008 03:38 PM
Rachael Buskirk Webboard User Reg: 07-25-2007 Posts: 23 Loc: Offline	I feed my boxer raw, and it's supposed to be 2-3% of the adult body weight. She will probably be around 60-65 lbs. I was feeding her 2-2.5 lbs per day and she was fine until about a month ago when she started looking really ribby. I upped it to 3-3.5 and now she is looking really nice, lean but not too skinny. She runs constantly, and I've always had a hard time keeping weight on her. Each dog is different, so just find an amount of food that makes the dog look good. Keep in mind it's better to have a thin pup than a heavy one b/c gaining too much weight too young can trigger the onset of symptoms from HD and cause joint problems in the long run.
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