Can anyone give advice on what is best to feed a staffie. I am currently feeding my 5 yr old female staffie 350g of pedigree adult biscuits complete. She weighs 18kg and her height is 43cm. Does this sound about right on the amount and type of food she is getting??

She sounds rather heavy to me. My breed weighs around 20kg, and they are quite stocky and 19-20 inches at the shoulder.

You should have a definate waist and be able to feel the ribs easily, but not see between them.

Mine only get 200g of food a day, and my freinds Dobes get about 300g or 350g.

Hi
If your staffie looks good on the product your feeding why change,on the point of weight the staffs I see on my dogs walk there is about 4 of them all differant builds and weights but all lovely dogs, so I would not suggest to higher or lower a dogs food without taking into account the overall picture;ie build of your dog,exercise your dog gets and tit bits or scraps in might get.The food scales on the packets are a better than rough guide to what you should feed.

Hi There

me little mutt Dillon gets fed EXACTLY 8 ounces (250grams) a day of Nutro Lamb and Rice
no more
no less
he weighs in at between 40 and 41 pounds (15.3 KG) depending on time of day
and he could probably get by with 7 ounces a day no problem

22 kilograms = 59 pounds
to me that is TOO heavy for a fit and active staffy
unless your dog is working all day or a pure nutter and just doesnt stop running around all day, i would suggest cutting back on his food a bit
he will feel better for it in the long run, and you`ll save a fortune in dog food bils
also cut out the inbetween meal snacks, if there are any

As Brainless says, there should most definately be a definitive waistline
no waistline = a chubby mutt

read the feeding instructions on the packet well, then read them again and work out what amount you should be feeding

a fit and healthy average height/weight staffy should weigh no more than 45pounds at the most
preferably nearer 40pounds
and for a bitch, a few pounds less again

HTH

Ziggar

all weights are UK

different dogs need different amounts of feed to maintain a healthy weight.i do think that 39lbs for a 17 inch female sounds ok.personally i like to be able to see the back couple of ribs and the waist should taper in.

ziggar your sums are terrible :-), if your dog weighs 40/41lb then he is approx 18.5 kilos not 15.3 and 22kilos is 48lb not 59 .the female in quesation stands 17 inches and weighs 39lbs to me that sounds about right.

i am geting a staff soon and i just wanted to know when its a puppy what is the best dog food for it and how much dog food i should give it a day?
thank you

Hi Skanka,
The best food to give a puppy, at least for the first couple of weeks, is what it's breeder has been feeding it. As for quantities, your best bet is to get a good book about Staffies (Ringpress books do a good "Pet Owners" series, and can be bought at petshops) as this will give you loads of advice about feeding, training etc. Good luck! :)

the best person to ask is always the breeder as they know what suits their dogs.
we have a staffy pup and he is fed on hills complete ( dried food) but he also has chicken , tuna and mackerel.
Lel

Like everyone has said ask your breeder as changing the diet in a young pup can cause tummy upsets.
We wean our pups on Scrambled Egg with Cheese, Rice Pudding, mince beef and pasta/rice, chicken and pasta, Friskies tinned puppy food with small bite mixer and small amounts of Science Plan dried puppy food, well this is what they are on by 8 weeks old. Personally I do not like dried food as the only source of food for puppies under 6 months old, but that is just my own opinion.
The reason I have them on a wide variety is so when they go to thier new homes their new owners are not set to a rigid diet and giving the above gives the pups a good selection of food sources.

Hey, my staffy is only 9 months old and he weighs 20 kg is this
too heavy? how much do they weigh when they are fully grown?

my staffs are all left dried auturky down continiously from 8 till 6 they are all fit with shiny coats and they get 20 mins of excersice a day once or twice a week i give them a tin of tuna in oil. they all stand at 15 1/2inch at the shoulder, my male is 19 kg , my 2 bitches are both 17 kg.

Staffies come in a wide range of shapes and sizes...the adult weight of yours will depend on her type.
Archer

I've been reading with fascination what some of you wean your pups on.  I thought we weren't supposed to feed cheese or milk etc as dogs are lactose intolerant.

Staffies are prone to sensitive itchy skin, my little Stollie (Staffie x Collie) does too, I feed her along with my other 3 dogs JWB and they all love it.

hi, i read the reply you posted to someone else about the weight of her staffi...my staffy is 38kg and until reading some of these replys i believed this was ok for my dog but now i'm not so sure.....he is not fat but very muscular although he may be a little overweight any advise would be great

sarah

38 Kg is VERY heavy for a staffy.How tall is he?
Archer

he is aprox 20inch, but he does not look fat i never thought it was a problem until now..i really don't want my dogs health to suffer, better put the little porker on a diet then...any suggestions on how i can get him into shape without causing him any undue stress.

sarah

My Staffie is 20inches and weighs 17.5kg, he is 10 mths old...

38Kgs he must be very stocky?

hi

he is very stocky, he has 2 meals a day and hardly any treats

Have you remeasured him?In your other post you said he was 26'' tall.
My staffy was 18-19'' tall and weighed 28 Kg so if your boy is 38 Kg and 20 '' I would guess hes a bit overweight.
When you gently stroke his side can you feel his ribs?Does he have a 'waist'?
To reduce a dogs weight its the same as with humans...reduce calorie intake and increase exercise.Weightloss should be slow and steady.
Archer

i guesed at 26 so i re-measured when i get your reply and he is only 20, he doest have a waist but not much of one, i can feel his ribs but only if i stroke him quite hard.

In that case he could do with loosing a bit of weight.As I said...increase exercise and decrease calories.With a short coated dog like a staff it is not unusual to be able to actually SEE the ribs at times when they are fit but you should be able to easily feel his ribs when you touch him.
Archer

thats great. thanks for your help.