I've just realised i've been feeding my pup about 100-150g more than the bag recommends which would explain him leaving some of it, however his breeder says to give him as much as he wants to eat and thinks he looks a little thin this week. He is 52 lbs currently and should be getting, according to the bag, 500g. Large breed pup, 4 months. Feeding proplan and taste of the wild.

My puppy is on 212grams split into 4 meals and like weighed her about a week ago and she weighed 6.85 she's doesn't look fat at all and I've just put her onto little champ.  How's that compare with how you are doing.  By the way shes a goldie and if I let her she would eat till she couldnt stand I think lol

What age is your pup? Mine is 4.5 months and recommended to be on 500g per day in 3 meals. He is funny in that he seems to have very little appetite in the morning and afternoon and worries me daily by picking at his first two meals and then turns into a hungry savage at around 6pm!!

> by picking at his first two meals and then turns into a hungry savage at around 6pm!!

My pup gets her three meals breakfast teatime (about 4pm) and 9pm, so if your boy is more an evening eater just give a smaller breakfast and give two bigger meals teatime and supper time.

At his age I would still give as much as they will eat unless obviously fat.  As for feeding guides they rarely concur, often being way too much (with my breed) or in some cases not enough.

She's 13weeks,  I have the opposite trouble I have to hold her back to put the food in her bowl then when she's finished it's polished lol but that's typical of that breed.  I'm hoping she will slow down a little bit , what breed is yours

Brainless - I'm worried about ending up with a typical fat lab so very conscious of how much I feed her although I've had 2 of this kind and never had an overweight one buts it's been along time since I had a puppy and lots has changed and I'm learning lots.  There's no fat on her at all she's all legs and tail lol.  Should I be feeding her more, whats your opinion

He is a greyhound and not food mad, which is fairly typical of the breed. I'd say he's eaten around 450g today but also beef mince so he probably is full!

Well under about 5 - 6 months unless obviously fat I feed to appetite.  My breed are generally fairly foodie, though I have had non eaters in the past. 

With a pup if it gets to looking a bit fat then you just stop at the amount they are on (within reason) until they have grown into their weight.

the rate of growth slows done at around 5 or 6 months (depends on breed size) and this is when pups can become too heavy, but during the fast growth stage you would really have to overfeed and not take notice of a pups condition for it to get seriously fat.

The only way to do it is to check how the pup feels each week and if ti appears too thin or too fat adjust food a little. 

Same with adults though I would not expect to need to check as often, but weather, moulting, exercise etc will all make a difference to what they need and adjustments need to be made to compensate.

> I have to hold her back to put the food in her bowl

Graciemay, at 13 weeks your puppy is old enough enough to start learning 'wait'.  Don't add the food to the bowl whilst it's within her reach - prep the food up on the work surface and before putting it down ask her to wait (I always do this in a sit position) then put the food down whilst telling her to 'go on' or 'get in'.  In the beginning the release and placing the bowl will happen simultaneously but you'll soon be able to ask her to wait for a few beats more each time.  You can also keep the food covered with a lid (plate or tea towel) until it's in position then release your dog to eat.  She'll eat quickly for a good few months yet but it's a good idea for her to learn some basic food manners.  Mine all have to make good eye contact before they are released to eat - I don't make them wait for the sake of it but I find it easier if they start eating in a certain order so that the three of them finish at about the same time, I also don't want them rushing the food bowl so that anyone in the family can feed them without risk of a mass bundle!!

> i've been feeding my pup about 100-150g more than the bag recommends

Inka, don't worry about what it says on the bag - it's a guideline after all.  At various life stages, and with different dogs, I've had them on significantly less and significantly more than the printed recommended amounts.

Do you think your boy is too thin?  If you think he looks thin most of the time that's one thing but a lot of puppies can go from gently rounded to skinny waifs in just one day so if you're sending photos to your breeder she's literally only getting a snapshot of one moment.

Are you feeding your other dogs once or twice a day?  It's not unusual for puppies to eat better at mealtimes they share with the other dogs.  I've sometimes given older dogs a snack at puppy meal times just to keep the youngster focussed - might be worth a try :)

Thanks dogs a babe I do say wait when I'm putting the food down but I shall make a big effort now to get her to actually do it. 

Don't worry too much what the food bag says it only a guide line. With our breed there are doing alot of growing up and across so one minture you might think there are looking fat and the next day there look thin. With my boy by the age of 4-5 months he was the same size as my ex racer but he look so thin. We had him on 4 meals a day I think he was on about 600grams aday and fresh meat.
At 15 weeks he was 14.2kg, 17weeks 16kg by 25 weeks he was 24.7kg.
Reading your other post I was giving my boy 3 meals aday up to 18 months. But remember ever dog is different and you boy will till you when he is ready to go to less meal time and when he is hungry.

I've called into the vets today to get her weighed and they said she could do with her food putting up a bit, she isnt under weight by any means and shes putting weight on nicely but still a touch skinny :) so I started at lunch time and I've just given her her tea in a kong and I think she seems more settled so I'm wondering if that's why I've had trouble making her wait for her meals cos she's starving by the time she gets to her next meal? Training her to sit was easy really but I have found that trying to move on has been hard as she just can't wait to get to the treat in my hand so maybe that was the sign that her food needed upping.  Am I thinking in the right direction here and I just didn't understand the signs. 

> I've had trouble making her wait for her meals cos she's starving by the time she gets to her next meal
> she just can't wait to get to the treat in my hand so maybe that was the sign that her food needed upping
> Am I thinking in the right direction here and I just didn't understand the signs

She's a gundog isn't she (GR)?  It kinda goes with the territory.  Both of my current g'dogs were voracious eaters and right up until they were 12 months old they'd tell anyone who'd listen that I was starving them!!

Even now we are clearly going through a phase as my middle dog is perma-hungry.  He's 5 years old and quite convinced that he hasn't been fed since he was 3 :)  Obviously nothing to do with the fact that he's full of beans (and blackberries) and zooming about like a puppy at the moment!!  Daft dog  V cute but clearly has a memory problem.  Some dogs are fibbers - they're not actually underfed but they do get hungry for each meal, and they do love eating.  The best way to tell if your pups food needs upping is to check for her ribs.

Re treats you can teach her to wait by holding the treat in one hand and as soon as she gets her nose off that hand, quickly feed her treat from the other hand.  Watch me is another exercise that's useful to get her to focus on eye contact with you rather than the treat.  I'm sure I may have mentioned it before but have you looked at The Puppy Primer by Patricia McConnell?  It's a great book and full of these sort of exercises and training information with clear explanations about what to do, and why.  Give it a go, it's a great option to accompany your puppy training course.

I'm going to look for the book on amazon :). Yes shes a GR and yes they live and breath food lol
This may sound strange but you say feel there ribs to see if food needs upping (that's what the vet did) how do I know when it feels ok and when it's too thin. The only puppies I've really been in contact with recently are my sisters rough collies and there coat is so thick you are in up to your elbow before u get to there skin let alone there ribs lol I'm taking note of how she feels now for future reference :).
By the way is she at 13 weeks ok to have bones, she's not on a raw diet just thought they might be good if so which ones, what do I ask for at the butchers and what about the - are they cooked/roasted or something that you see in big buckets at pet shops. 

> is she at 13 weeks ok to have bones,

cooked roasted big No, raw any type yes. 

> how do I know when it feels ok and when it's too thin

I was told that when you run your hands over their rib cage it should feel as though they have a blanket covering them - if it feels like a duvet they are overweight and if it feels like a sheet they are underweight.  I use this guideline for judging the weight of my dogs - it's simple and it works.  You also get used to noticing particular points on your dog and feeling for bone when you pat or groom them

Bones - always raw, never cooked or those manky rancid yellow jobs you see at the pet shops.  Try giving her a chicken wing - and if you feed it frozen, or only partially defrosted, it's great for teething too.  I like turkey necks or poultry portions rather than bigger beef bones but that's partly because one of mine chipped a tooth on such a bone!!  When you feed a wing it can be a good idea to fully extend it before feeding so that she doesn't try and swallow without chewing, don't leave her unsupervised and give her a quiet place to eat it in her own time.  I fed my youngest pup in a puppy pen in the garden so that he couldn't run around with his bone and so that the bigger dogs couldn't steal it from him.  I used to sit by the pen with a cup of tea and a book as the first few wings took him nearly an hour to eat - those were the days - now it's a nano second!!

Here is a link to The Puppy Primer on Amazon.  Her website is also worth a read if you find the time :)

She had her first chicken wing this afternoon and every bit of it has gone and she's a very settled puppy :) ( I was a bit scared though never done ths before my oh said whats she done with the bones lol)

She's been VERY subdued and slept since late this afternoon, I thought she was just contented but I started getting a bit suspicious,  she's just been out and got the runs ,  could this mean the chicken wing was a bad move, I hope not she sooo enjoyed it:(

Thank you for the tips too, I've just ordered the book too :)

Do I give her any more chicken wings after it gave her the runs ( I can't spell the d word lol)

First time of eating raw can give your dog a loose tummy and it's generally nothing to worry about.  To a kibble fed dog it's quite a different food for them to adjust to :)

Oh and mine always like a good sleep after a bone meal, they're a very satisfying food and all that chewing is quite tiring for a youngster.

Puppy Primer by Patricia McConnell
i read that one its really good book about puppies
currently i am using that only reference but i have some questions about dog food
recently i saw commercial about arden grange
is it good food for dogs?

> i saw commercial about [url=http://www.chemistdirect.co.uk/arden-grange_7_4352.html" rel=nofollow]arden grange[/url]
> is it good food for dogs?

It has been my favourite/main food for 12 years.