cups per day for a puppy

pawee · 06-01-2008, 12:49 AM

i've got a 4 month old pup. guys,how many cups per day do you feed yours? do you feed them 3 times a day? and when will i increase its food intake? is it ok to feed her twice?

THANKS!

zeus and me · 06-01-2008, 09:02 AM

I havent a clue how many cups a day my puppy eats. mine is almost 4mo I dump about 2 cups in his puppy pan every evening and he picks at it. but does not go after it with gusto! he enjoys looking around for my other animals food. he likes to run over to the horse lot and collect a horse poo.......or look for bird poo.....or look for cat poo from the litter box..... then he raids the cat food bowl if I forget to pick it up.... then he checks the farm dogs bowl for left over purina dog chow. then he will sniff around for left over cracked corn from the chickens. then he looks for guinea eggs the birds may have layed in the yard. his motto is to eat everything and anything except his expensive puppy food!~

rainddobes · 06-01-2008, 09:08 AM

At 4 months, I would feed twice a day, maybe a little snack late evening.
Depending on the size and weight of your baby it's a bit hard to say.
I ould think 2 cups per feeding plus some canned food should be enough.
Give it a try, and if your pup seems still hungry, give more.

**velmadobe** · 06-01-2008, 09:27 AM

It really is going to depend on your puppy - some eat more than others and you need to be able to look at your puppy and see if it is in good weight. My 5 month old male is eating 6 cups of high quality kibble a day plus some canned and treats. I just recently (this past week) cut out his third meal, but give him a few treats at lunchtime.

dobebug · 06-01-2008, 10:31 AM

With most of my puppies they have started leaving some of a midday meal by four months and as soon as they do that I cut them back to two meal a day. Generally I'm still feeding the same amount of food but going to two meals allows enough time between meals for them to actually get hungry.

I don't know for sure but it sounds like one of the people who responded to your question (Zeus and me) is free feeding and allowing his puppy to develop some very bad eating habits. So for the record I don't recommend free feeding at all--it's sometimes very important to know how much a dog is eating in each meal and free feeding highly inconvenient when traveling. I prefer to feed given amounts and look at the puppy every day to see if he needs more or perhaps less food to look good.

At four months most of my pups are getting somewhere between 1-1/2 to 2 cups per meal--for puppies under six months I usually feed as much as they will eat--they grow so fast that they rarely get fat. Also for puppies I generally add either yogurt, cottage cheese, cooked meat or a little canned to each meal to make sure they clean it up quickly--which only amounts to instilling good eating habits at an early age.

I increase the food as the puppy grows--and you have to do that by the individual puppy--I raise males and they always eat (and need more) than a smaller puppy bitch.

I don't feed many treats--those that I give are earned in the course of training (which as this age is pretty casual).

saesms · 06-01-2008, 10:34 AM

i would prefer feeding three times a day until 6 months and then twice a day after that,

if your puppy has good space to run and play she will naturally eat more

robinb · 06-01-2008, 10:50 AM

I too feed 3X per day until 6 or 7 months. The amount will vary depending on the pup, how he is growing and the amount of exercise. You just have to watch them as one week they can look too fat and the next week too lean.

gracieface · 06-01-2008, 10:55 AM

my 9 month olds still get 3 meals a day, large breakfast, small lunch and larger dinner, first 2 are kibble last is raw. I don't free feed at all, if they don't eat their meal they know their mother will clean out their dishes. the amount if going to depend on the size of your pup and what food you are using, kibble full of fillers will require more, and boy you will see more for cleaning up too. If you can see your pups ribs, he needs more. Not sure what is available in the Phillippines, but check what the bag says, relative to her weight, but again, if she is thin and will eat more, give him more.

zeus and me · 06-01-2008, 11:01 AM

yup I free feed always have and always will.I find that my dogs dont gulp the food if they know it is always there.they also are not as protective of a food dish that is always full. I am home all the time and watch them like I do my kids. so I know if they are not eatting well enough. with little kids it is very important for me to know that my dogs are not food protective.

I dont travel too much.but I have never had any troubles with that either.

I have read that house training is made simple by feeding at certian times. but I also have not had trouble in that area either. my pup has never pooped in his crate. only pooed in the house 2 times and went potty 4 times inside in the past month.....not at all in the past 2 weeks.

so anyway my way works well for me as I am sure your way works well for you

**errica** · 06-01-2008, 01:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by zeus and me

his motto is to eat everything and anything except his expensive puppy food!~

Don't you love that?!