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When to lower puppy portion

Atlas_Mama

Well-Known Member
Hi
I have been feeding my puppy Taste of The Wild(it is one of the only foods he will agree to eat) and at 9 months he is still being fed his puppy portion of 3 cups two times a day. At what age would you suggest me decreasing his rations for "adult" portions? He always seems VERY hungry even after he is done eating so I really am not comfortable lowering his portions just yet...what do you think?
 

Smokeycat

Well-Known Member
I would go based on his physical appearance. If you start to notice that his ribs are getting harder to see/feel than start to lower the amount of food. Many dogs can act like they are starving even though they are actually being over fed. Kryten acts as if he has never been fed every meal time.
 

ruthcatrin

Well-Known Member
I would go based on his physical appearance. If you start to notice that his ribs are getting harder to see/feel than start to lower the amount of food. Many dogs can act like they are starving even though they are actually being over fed. Kryten acts as if he has never been fed every meal time.

This. Your goal is to be able to at least feel (if not see) the last couple ribs, but not actually be able to slot your fingers between them. If you can't find the ribs easily he's on the chunky side and reducing portion size might be a good idea (or increasing exercise), if they're TOO easy to find then increase it. If he's still STARVING, but you think he's a good weight then you can add some green beans or carrots (cook them if thats what it takes to get him to eat them) to his food.
 

Atlas_Mama

Well-Known Member
Well according to the bag guideline he is about a cup or two more than suggested- but he isnt full grown yet at 110 pounds- and i assume the bag is writing their guide for full grown adult dogs. I like the idea of adding green beans or carrots though i may try that. He looks like he is perfect weight, and the vet agrees. Lately he has started to look lanky to me actually- he is leaning out and growing upward these past few weeks. When did everyone else start transitioning to adult portions?
 

Robtouw

Well-Known Member
Cruiser is on TOW Bisen and is 5 months @75 lbs. He eats three times a day @ 2 cups and once at 1:30am @ 1 cup. I am beginning to cut back a bit on his serving portion size to 1.5 cups per feeding. He is a heavy pooper which tells me he isn't using all the food going in!
 

Jadotha

Well-Known Member
I agree with Smokeycat tna Ruthcatrin.....we have found that until our dogs are fully mature, they go through periods of growth followed by plateaus. So we observe their condition and adjust food accordingly.
 

voidecho

Well-Known Member
Cruiser is on TOW Bisen and is 5 months @75 lbs. He eats three times a day @ 2 cups and once at 1:30am @ 1 cup. I am beginning to cut back a bit on his serving portion size to 1.5 cups per feeding. He is a heavy pooper which tells me he isn't using all the food going in!

Is that seven cups a day? I agree with cutting back a bit. Lincoln's around 62-64 and he's around four cups a day.
 

Sherri

Well-Known Member
Winston is 5-1/2 months and weighs approx. 65 lbs. He also eats Taste of the Wild. We go by the weight guidelines on the package......That is what I thought we were supposed to do. Winston gets 1-3/4 cups morning and early evening. Do I need to increase his food because he is a puppy??? I don't think he looks to thin.

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voidecho

Well-Known Member
I would think 3.5 cups a day would be a little low for a dog his age and size. Most of the adult foods don't list the feeding requirements for a growing puppy. I'm feeding Orijen Six Fish, which is an adult food. Lincoln is 4 months and a little over 60 lbs. Per the Six Fish feeding guidelines, I should be feeding him 2.25 to 3.25 cups per day for his weight. However, if I look at the Orijen Large Breed Puppy feeding guidelines, it says a puppy 3-9 months old who's going to weigh between 175-240 should be fed 6 to 6.25 cups per day. That's a huge difference. I'm going by the Puppy food guidelines.

From 1-3 months it was recommended he get 3 to 3.25 cups. Once he hit 3 months I started upping it and he's around 4 to 4.5 cups a day now. By the time he's 9 months he'll be up to the 6 to 6.25 cups. I'll slowly increase from the current 4.5 up to the 6.25 over the next five months.

All that being said, most people here recommend to go by look and feel. If the puppy is getting a little chunky, cut back. If he's a little thin and seems hungry, add more.

Edited to add: Winston looks healthy to me. :)
 

voidecho

Well-Known Member
I also should add that different foods have different calorie contents per cup. Orijen Six Fish has one of the highest per cup calorie levels out there (480), so if you're feeding a food with lower per cup calories, it goes without saying you'll need to give them more cups to meet their daily calorie requirements. I'm not sure which TOW you guys are referring to above, but looking at the High Prairie Canine (Puppy and Adult) it's around 370 calories per cup.

6.25 cups of Orijen Six Fish is 3,000 calories. You'd need to feed 8.1 cups of the TOW to get the same calories.
 

Robtouw

Well-Known Member
Yep, seven. He has a huge appetite and is a little lean. Health checks have all been positive. We tried cutting back and his weight gain slowed and his attitude change was not good. He is actively gaining about 14 lbs every 2-2.5 weeks. His parents were large, over the average breed size for OEMs, but their size was not why they attracted me. Actually, it was a bit of a turn off. Cruiser's mother & grandmother were beautiful, his grandmother was the most amazing brindled female I have ever met. I offered to take her! His mom weighed in at 190 and dad topped 225. Dad was a bit dumb, really but had a very sweet disposition, both were very healthy and well cared for, exceptionally well behaved and super gentle. Cruiser has his mother's personality, a little goofy, a little loving, smart and a little trouble.
 

voidecho

Well-Known Member
Lincoln's dad was pretty much the same. He didn't seem like the sharpest knife in the drawer, but he was sweet as could be. He was about 220 too.

If Cruiser looks lean and happy, then by all means continue with the current feeding portions. I could be underfeeding, who knows. I actually thought you said he was heavy above, which is why I thought the seven cups was too much, but after re-reading it, I see I missed the word "pooper". How I missed that word I have no idea. :)
 

Padme's Pop

New Member
I have been told that not allowing the digestive track to rest will cause improper nutrient absorption. The acidic level in the stomach never lowers and because it remains high upset stomaches can easily occur. You may want to check with your vet.