I have a 16 month old Golden and she has been on Burns for about 9 months (with a spoonful of Nature Diet)...she has done very well on it, her coat is great and although she is about the right weight... I wouldn't like her to put any more on. I have noticed that, particularly now she has been spayed, she eats EVERYTHING, she always scavenges on walks...she is always trying her best to get into the kitchen bin...she just seems constantly hungry. With Burns she doesnt seem to get all that much, Ive cut it down slightly now she has been spayed as she puts on weight VERY easily. So I dont know if it is the food that doesnt fill her up or if she is just a 'dustbin' that I will never fill! I wondered if another food (of similar quality) would fill up my 'poor starving' dog more than burns, in anyones experience??

My own bitches ahve all gotten like this after spaying, the best thing is to give them non calorific treats like carrot or cooked cabbage or marrow/squash/pumpkin to add bulk, but you just ahve to live with the scavenging and try to prevent it.

ahh, thought this may be the case! So do you think the quantities required for Burns is about the same as other good quality kibbles...just wondering as my friends little Cocker Spaniel (who is on JWB) seems to get as good a bowl full as Amber(my golden) does...I would be hesitant to change the food as she does do well on Burns its just the hunger thing that I thought would possibly improve on a different food...although I guess it is very doubtful that a cup more full of kibble would make much of a difference to my monster anyway! I used to often add veggies to her food but I read somewhere that they dont absorb many of the nutrients when given whole and you should whizz them in a blender?? and as my blender blew up a while back and has yet to be replaced I kinda got out of the habbit of giving them to her..but I guess they would still fill up the tum!! Thanks Brainless!

someone else on here mentioned porridge made with water (no salt/sugat etc) helps to give a fuller belly feeling ( cant remember who thou :) )
I have tried it on with my pup who is also on burns and it reduced his food raids. I am now adding nature diet (1 pk a day) i have reduced the amount of burns aday to compensate for the ND and dont get as many raids anymore. but he will still try and grab any food if i forget to hide it away...its just too much temptation :D

Yep It was me suggested oats. I swear by them as my labs are a nightmare if they get too hungry :D We would go shooting and they go in to cover then all I can hear is the smacking of lips as they chomp on blackberries - and thats not mentioning the horse poo and rotten carcases :rolleyes:

I tend to try and keep them on a regualr amount of kibble etc and then just use the oats when I know they will have used a lot of energy and be hungry.

Ah thanks Bluebell... i knew someone would own up sooner or later :D

A SPAYED bitch, unless she is shooting or otherwise working, would put on weight with oats, they are rich in carbohydrate and an excellent source of energy, but if that energy isn't being burnt off then she will put on weight ;)  Unfortunately Goldens do seem to be chow hounds and always seem to need watching :rolleyes: 

The oats certainly work better than feeding more normal or diet food, both of which I have tried and either result in weight gain or a very hungry scrounging dog. I think that if excercise is even then presumably you will have an idea of how much food is required to maintain weight and aprox how much will cause gain. What I would do is take the amount that would maintain weight (which probably leaves the dog a bit hungry and so scrounging) remove say a table spoon of food and add 1 1/2 to 2 of porrige (obviously depending on the breed etc). This has worked for me when a dog has been on restricted excercise and hence I needed to reduce its ration to prevent weight gain.

I dont really know what it is about oats but it works for me too, if I have oats for breakfast I tend to loose weight. Problem is I get sick of the sight of them and go back to toast - strange that I never go off of that :D

Bluebell - have you tried oatcakes, for when your fed up of porrige?

Yep but I think its the cheese and jam on them that stops them working so well :D

Cheese and jam together??? :-D

Cheese and beetroot is a bit messy on oat cakes :D

cheese and jam are wonderful together :D :D :D

Glad Im not the only one who appreciates a good chedar and strawberry jam :P

Oooh cheese and jam are fab together! Especially in sandwiches! Ive converted about 5 people by MAKING them try it, (much to their disgust at first!) Maybe they would fill up Amber??! (in her dreams!)
Great idea about the porridge, may well try it...she gets about the same amount of exercise everyday so should be fairly easy to work out how much she can have before there is a weight gain...she seems to gain/lose weight very quickly so should be quick to work out. She does get quite alot of exercise everyday (3x 50(ish) minute, off lead walks, a day) so Im sure the carbohydrates will be burnt off, and wont there will be less fat in the porridge than in the same amount of her food?

I think porridge works because ther is no sugar or fat in it and being a complex carbohydrate, it provides a SLOW release of energy, which keeps them feeling fuller for longer. I think that they can be a bit like us in as much as they digest some dog foods far too quickly (especially the diet ones) and then end up scrounging when we would snack. Incidentally if you are not keen on feeding your dog any grain, Oats are considered by many to be the best choice as they contain the highest level of essential fatty acids of any grain, they are high in soluble dietry fibre, high in protein, with a good level of minerals and vitimins E & B

Sorry I must be hungry and obsessing about food :D

Thanks for the info Bluebell, will definately give the porridge a try...might have some porridge with her on a morning...probably a better start to the day than Frosties!