Hi,

My CKCS Harvey is now 8 months old. I have fed naturediet for some time now but he is terribly fussy - he turned his nose up at it no matter what time of the day I put it down and it was in and out of the fridge constantly as he would sit on his mat where I feed him looking at me like he was hungry but then wouldn't touch the food when I put it down. After reading good reports on here, I decided to try him with Arden Grange, I bought the lamb and rice and put his daily amount down in his dish for him to graze on throughout the day. This seems to work well for us as he eats as and when he fancies but he isn't eating nearly half the recommended daily amount - he's eating about 50 - 75g per day. I have been reading about the Prestige food and wondered if it would be wise to give it a try as I understand that he wouldn't need to consume as much of this food to get all the nutrients he needs, he is quite lean although not skinny. Can anyone advise me please?

Thanks

Hayley x

Sounds as if harvey has you well trained  ;) Personally I don't think its a good idea to let dogs graze. He should have his set meal times, think you're going to need to be a bit firmer with him, and if he doesn't eat his food, remove it after 15 mins. Then give him nothing at all, until his next meal time.

JMO

I've tried that in vain but it doesn't work. If he has an empty tum he sicks up bile so if he doesn't eat breakfast he's sick throughout the day .......at least this way he is eating little and often and not throwing up.

Hayley

I agree with Liberty -  I wouldn't let him graze - if he hasn't eaten it in 10 mins, pick it up and wait a few hours before offering it back to him.

But yes, the Arden Grange Prestige is a good choice because it is very dense in nutrients so a dog doesn't need to eat as much of it, and it's quite a good choice for small dogs for that reason.

Just wondered why letting him graze is a bad idea? I tried this as it's stated on the AG bag as a feeding option......I will try the prestige, thanks.

Hayley

I let my dog graze although generally she will eat everything initially but if she wants a pee, a sleep or it is too hot, just back from a walk etc she wont eat straight away and will eat when she is ready.  same if she has a slight upset stomach and isn't ready to eat at the time that suits me.  i thought all the stuff about not letting a dog graze related to the pack theories about showing your dog who is boss and I don't agree with that so am happy to continue to let my dog graze.

I don't agree with pack theory between dogs and humans either, cheekychow, but letting your dog graze isn't related to that.

I think there are lots of different reasons, for different dogs, on why letting them graze is a bad idea - here are some:

When puppies, you want to know when they have eaten so you can also know when they will poo and wee - this in turn will speed up toilet training.  If they are helping themselves throughout the day, you can't know for sure.

If you are into training in any area, you want to know how full or empty your dog is, because you need to know how likely to be motivated he is for treats.  If your dog is so "not hungry" that he is leaving food in his bowl (especially something tasty like Nature Diet), then chances are he also won't be interested in your treats - or not for long, anyway.

Many dogs when allowed to graze eat more than they would if fed in meals, because, just like people, the size of their stomachs restricts what they eat at meals and makes them feel full.  If they are always just eating a little bit they can eat more within a day, overall, than they would if they ate meals.  Just like people who constantly "snack" throughout the day, dogs which graze are more likely to become overweight. 

Dogs (and people) don't appreciate resources which are always available.  Nearly everyone finds that a dog will become bored with a familiar toy, so you take it away for a while, and then give it back to him in future, he will react as though it was a new toy.  If you want a dog which is keen on food, which treats food as a novelty, which eats his meals fast and with relish and enjoyment, then you NEED to ironically take them away and not let him graze, because he is just not going to see them as a valuable resource if the food is constantly sitting there all day, available whenever he feels like it.  If I had a neverending bar of Cadbury's Dairy Milk on my desk I bet even I would soon stop eating it much, maybe just nibble it a bit.  If you gave me a much smaller bar, twice a day, I'd stuff it in my gob pretty fast!

Those are just some reasons, off the top of my head, why I think grazing is a bad idea all round.  Not all of these reasons will apply to every dog, but one or more of them will...

I have to wonder why people always seem to think freefed dogs will become overweight??
A free fed dog will only get fat if the owner continuously fills the bowl once it gets empty.If the dog should only be getting 3 cups of food per day,and this is all the owner is putting into the bowl then how can a free fed dog pack on the pounds? Free feeding doesnt make a dog overweight,an owner filling up a constant empty bowl will!

Well it isn't realy free feeding then :D  Mine would never leave any of their daily ration in their bowls.  It may work OK for a single dog, but of course won't work in a multi dog household.

My foster that I have is lean and some of the others that came into rescue with her were grossly overweight, because they had more than enough food, but the lower ranking ones either weren't allowed to get as much or maybe weren't as greedy.

Blimey, I don't think I've seen food in my 9 mth old puppies bowl for more than 30 seconds

I agree that by controlling feeding times, it is MUCH MUCH easier to house train as you can judge when your pup is likely to need the loo much easier.

Arden Grange do say that your dog may need a smaller amount of their feed compared to other brands.

I feed my pup twice a day, and will stick to twice a day.
Why don't you try controlling your dogs feeding times by starting with 4-5 meals a day - removing the bowl after 15 minutes, then gradually decrease to twice a day.

Maybe you are feeding too much which is why your pup is leaving it's food. You need to take the amount of treats into account too when calculating daily allowance.

And of course canines, being opportunistic feeders by nature, are hot-wired to eat whatever food's available in case of future scarcity.

you cant free feed if you have more than one dog ..

I was told by my supplier of AG (feed Nutro now) that the difference in classic and prestige is minimal as she studies all the ingredients foods she sells .

Well it is 5% higher in both protein and fats, and has a higher meat content.

I use prestige for pregasnnat bitches sand reang pups and the classic for adults.

When I ahd a picky eater I used the prestige until she was two or more years old.

Thats a complete load of rubbish, I have 3 dogs and one bowl of food which is continually topped up. No problems all dogs fit and healthy.
Becky

What ages are your dogs?  How long ahve they been free feeding and are they all picky eaters?

It would be very unusual to ahve three dogs that could permanently self regulate their weight permanently with access to as much food as they liked.

I have had two that were quite good but by the time they reached Veteran age they would put on wieght if allowed as much as they would like.

> I have 3 dogs and one bowl of food which is continually topped up. <

Becky how much does each dog eat?

How do you know each dog is getting the amount he/she needs?

How can you tell if one of them is sick if you cant tell exactly how much he has eaten,if at all?

Why do you continuously fill up the bowl?

Dont mean to bombard you,but these  would be my concerns if i free fed. :)

I have no idea how much each eats they eat enough that ensures that they are fit and healthy. None of them are underweight and none of them are overweight so clearly they are getting enough.

Dogs can go off their food for many reasons, maybe just the eat, knowing how much they eat wouldn't make a difference. If my dogs look ill they go to the vet.

I fill the bowl up when it is empty, that way I know they have food they can go to whenever they want.

When I had more dogs they were all fed this way, at one point I had 8 dogs feeding from the same bowl. None of them were ill, none were either under or overweight. Should I add to the 3 I currently own then they too will be allowed to eat from the same bowl.

Becky

I am very curious as to the breed you own that are so restrained where food is concerned. 

Wish I had their genes/willpower/restraint

They do say people are like thri dogs,a dn mine woudl all get fat once they are past their youth, and most sooner.

I currently own 2 mini poodles and a mini dachs. The 8 were poodles, Boxer, crosses, dachs, terriers and a schipperke.
Becky

I have a dog that has 1/2 his daily food quota put down in the morning,rarely he eats it straight away usually picks at it and is finished by mid afternoon, at approx. 7pm I then give him the remainder of his daily quota which again he finishes at his own pace.
He is on the lean side but not thin,preferable as it helps stop back problems due to being over weight. The only treat he gets is 1/2 a dentastix at bed time

I have tried various other methods mentioned here and like someone else said he vomits if he is left for too long without  any food.As a faddy eater I am only too chuffed when he has finished what is in his dish

Seems we have two alike RHODAP:rolleyes: I'm quite comfortable with this method of feeding for now. Thanks for the input everyone.

Hayley

Quick update.......The Prestige arrived this morning, so I put some down for breakkie and Harvey seemed very impressed! He had quite a good munch on it which is promising.

Hayley

I found it the only way I cxould keep any weight on my Kizi when she was so fussy (will esat anything now).  It is calorie dense wso even when she only ate 150g at most it kept her up together.

It is definitely calorie dense - I just had to take ours off it because they put too much weight on, on it!!!!  So now they're on the Premium instead!

Yep it is very good for getting a bitch back into show condition after a litter.  I tried something else last time and was not impressed by the less good results.

I'll be monitoring Harvey's waistline very carefully! He really is loving this food and ate his breakfast this AM for the first time in ages. I am giving him 100g per day split into two meals - seems that I don't need to leave the food down for him to graze on anymore as he eats it as soon as it hits his dish

Hayley

Mine would get about 170g of the Prestige to maintain a weight of around 18 to 20kg, so monitoring his weight once it is how you wnat it will be a good idea.