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Topic Dog Boards / Feeding / how much food to feed
- By kiri [gb] Date 18.07.07 16:14 UTC
I have a huge golden retriever puppy called Louie who at 14 weeks weighed over 2 and a half stone. He isn't overweight, but I am not sure how much I should be feeding him. Is there a way of working this out like the barf diet. At the moment he has 180 grams of dried food plus butchers tripe for puppies three times a day. He always finishes every thing. (the dried food is half purina propla mixed with burns puppy food.
Thanks a lot
- By chocymolly [gb] Date 18.07.07 18:15 UTC
What does his breeder suggest :confused: ?
- By AlisonGold [gb] Date 18.07.07 19:26 UTC
My Golden dog puppy at 14 weeks weighed in at 17.4 kg. He is fed about 110g of James Wellbeloved with tinned meat. It really depends on the bone on your puppy. If you don't feel that he is overweight (rolling all over the place) and you can feel his ribs, but not too much, then he is okay. However, be aware that if he gets overweight and he has got a lot of bone then you could be causing problems in the long run. Best to keep them with just a decent covering over the ribs. However, if you feel that you have got a good breeder, then you really should discuss this with them as they know their dogs best of all.
- By perrodeagua [gb] Date 19.07.07 21:30 UTC
Maybe give him less as you are nearly feeding double what AlisonGold was at the same age.
- By Harley Date 19.07.07 22:05 UTC
Another thing to consider is the amount of treats that are being used for training rewards. You could use some of his kibble, taken from his food allowance, to use as treats, or if you are using higher value treats such as cheese or kibble you could reduce his food accordingly so that the treats are a part of the daily allowance rather than extra to it.

The feeding recommendations on dog food packs always seemed to be rather generous to me - and the more weight the dog puts on the more the recommended allowance goes up. With an adult dog you should be able to feel their ribs but not see them, although the coat on a Golden Retriever tends to obsure the ribs anyway. If you look down on your dog from above he should have a waist that goes in just behind his rib cage and, when viewed from the side, he should tuck up behind his ribs towards his hips.

I would imagine it would be the same with a puppy but hopefully somebody else will be able to confirm/deny that for you.
- By stanyer21 [gb] Date 28.07.07 15:20 UTC
i would look at what it tells you on the bag, just we bought one type of food which told us to give him 200g a day, and another told us 400g a day, i think it depends on the food you buy.
- By Merlot [gb] Date 28.07.07 15:43 UTC
Feed by eye not by directions on the bag.. If he is the right weight and eating every scrap without gaining fat then you are just right, losing weight then give more too fat then give less...easy The bags I agree always recommend too much and every dog is different, one of mine puts weight on on half the food the others get so I have to be really mean with her. If he is really big boned then be carefull joints can be ruined for life if carrying too much fat.
- By ice_queen Date 28.07.07 15:45 UTC
Yup all done by eye.  You will soon find a happy medium he suits :)
- By stanyer21 [gb] Date 30.07.07 08:28 UTC
so is this the same for puppys aswell, just on the bag it semms to say to give an awful lot for a puppy.
- By Merlot [in] Date 30.07.07 08:54 UTC
Yep just the same, puppies can and do very often carry too much weight as they will eat everything you give 'em the little lovvies and can get really rolly polly. Just make sure it's a good quality food and they should be getting all the nutrients they need.
- By stanyer21 [gb] Date 30.07.07 15:41 UTC
well my bitch who is 20 weeks looks a little skinny but if i give her any more in her bowl she is struggling to eat it, she gets fed three times a day.
- By Merlot [in] Date 30.07.07 15:50 UTC
Try giving a fourth meal if she is skinny...I trust she is well ? if you are worried a visit t'vets may be in order just to check. Silly question really but has she been following a worming program? A tummy full of worms will not help her at all.
It is possible that the brand of food is not the best for her. maybe something with a little more fat content may help. It is a learning game with new pups as some are fine on one food and another does not do so well on it, trial and error very often, untill something gells with her. Don't get too big a bag untill you are sure she is doing well on the food.
Topic Dog Boards / Feeding / how much food to feed

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