I recently switched Kodee from Orijen Adult to Wellness Core. I was happy w/Orijen, and Kodee liked it, but I have to order it and sometimes it's not convenient. Anyway, I bought a small bag of Wellness Core, to make sure he'd eat it, and he LOVES it. I've never seen him eat his food so eagerly before. He doesn't wolf it down, but he eats as soon as I feed him. With the Orijen, he'd let it sit for a few minutes, then nibble off and on. Anyway, I then bought a bigger bag of the Core, as I'll probably keep him on it, at least for a while.

My question is - Kodee's appetite seems to have increased a lot lately. He isn't getting that much more exercise than usual. I checked on calorie content, and noticed that the Wellness has about 50 cal less per cup than the Orijen. I feed him according to the instructions on the bag, which is what I did with the Orijen as well, but he doesn't seem to get satisfied. At first I thought he was just being greedy b/c he likes the new food. But twice in the last 2 days, I've caught him licking the food empty food dish in between meals, like he's just starving. (He eats 2x/day).

Could he be going through a growth spurt (he's almost 17 mos old now)? I know he's not probably going to get taller, but maybe I should feed him more b/c his body is trying to "fill out?" He's probably around 80 lbs now, I'm guessing. He hasn't been weighed in about 4 mos., so he may be heavier (he was about 76 lbs 4 mos ago, and he's intact, if that matters). I don't want him to be hungry all the time, but I don't want to overfeed, either.

What do you all suggest?

i would NOT be feeding the recommended amount on the core dogfood.

it is SO carb heavy, your dog will get fat fast.

he might be like this just because it's new. or the excess potatoes he might find tasty....

just watch that carb intake.