# Need ideas re: consumption



## Blanketback (Apr 27, 2012)

If anyone has any ideas about this, please share.

At 16 weeks, my puppy was eating 4 cups/day, Fromm's LBP: 1 cup morning, noon, dinner, and also for play with a buster cube. I thought it was too much food but he looked very thin. At this point he was a the vet's and I was told to up the quantity by another cup/day because he really was underweight. So I added 1/2 cup to his morning and evening meals. So 5 cups/day total. His stools were firm, vet check good except for weight...seemed like alot but what do I know?

He's now 6 months old, and for the past little while I've been trying to get him on a twice a day feeding, giving 2 cups/meal. At first this was too much for him at once, as he left food in the bowl, so I cut it back to 1 1/2 and brought back the lunch meal. Now he's able to eat 2 cups...but he's ravenous! 

Today he ate 2 cups at 8am, barked for more at 10am (I gave him 1 cup and just called it an early lunch) dinner at 5pm was 2 cups and at 8pm he was back barking for more, which I gave 1 cup. So today, 6 cups total. Alot?

I don't want to overfeed him, but I also don't want to underfeed him either. Does this seem normal? Wisdom says "watch your dog, feeding varies" but how much should it vary? Day to day? He's not a glutton, so I'm not worried about him asking for more if he's truly hungry. What do you think?


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## doggiedad (Dec 2, 2007)

i've never fed puppy food to my dogs. i generally
feed 1 cup in the am, 1 cup noonish and 1 cup in the pm.
there's snacks throughout the day. i also count training
treats as food. you're trying to beef your dog up but
maybe he's naturally on the small side. i wouldn't
over feed to put weight on my dog. i think your dog has
trained you to feed him when he barks. how much does your dog
weigh?


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## selzer (May 7, 2005)

did you take a stool sample and have them check for worms?


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## Blanketback (Apr 27, 2012)

Yes, he's has 2 stool samples come back clear. I was told to bring in another sample at 7 months to check for pinworms.

He's aprox. 65 lbs. It does sound like he's trained me to feed him, lol! But he doesn't do it all the time, usually he's content with the 3 feedings. I'm wondering if there's a 'growth spurt' that happens all of a sudden, and he simply needs more to fuel it? He's very long and slender - at one point he resembled a trout, his rib cage was sooo long but narrow - his tail can touch the ground. I'm definitely not interested in beefing him up, just making sure that he's properly nourished.


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## NancyJ (Jun 15, 2003)

Beau is about 75lbs at 10.5 months been eating 4 cups a day since about 6 months. plus about half cup of training treats. ... He has not really gained any height for the past month or so but is starting to add some muscle. Very slow at this point. I am certain he would eat more if I gave it to him.

We did not see any real growth "spurt" after 6 months just slow and study though. 

Doggiedad......The Fromm LBP is simply an all life stages food that is not too high in protein or calcium...that's all. Given todays trend towards 40% protein foods with 2.5% calcium for adult dogs it makes sense to me to back up a little so they can grow slow.

I don't see a problem with 3 times vs 2 times a day. I do twice a day because I impose "down time" for 2 hours after eating so I only do it in the morning and evening.


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## selzer (May 7, 2005)

65 pounds at six months doesn't sound out of the ball park. But it does depend on how the dog feels more than pounds and ounces for his age. 

If the puppy is eating a lot, and not gaining weight, then either you are feeding a food that is not working for your dog, or the dog has some reason the calories are not going on the dog. Worms would be one of those. I know hooks don't always show up on stool samples, but I think the symptom is bleeding as they attach to the intestines. I am unfamiliar with pin worms. Round worms could be causing this, but a stool sample should show rounds. 

Anyway, there are other things like EPI, but I think that you would not be getting a good stool. 

Maybe you need to try a different food. The protein/fat/calorie content of this food might not be right for your dog.


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## Loneforce (Feb 12, 2012)

65lbs is a good weight IMO you dont want him to become heavy and have health issues.


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## Jen&Bear (Jan 14, 2012)

Bear is 69lbs and 8months...does that mean he is small for his age? or all together?

He is normal to me. Not big. Not small. I find him quite big only sometimes or maybe just long or maybe I am just amazed at how much he has grown since he was tiny bebe when I brought him home.

But the original poster, has 6 months at 65lbs...then I wonder if Bear is along the right "path" for age/size...

Doesn't exercise and activities play a big part in a dog's appetite?


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## selzer (May 7, 2005)

69 at 8 months can be just right for some dogs. 65 at six months can be too big, it can be too small, and it can be just right. 

You cannot plug in a formula and say a GSD male at 8.2 months should weigh 67.9 pounds. It would be highly irresponsible to do that. 

There are GSDs that should be 110 pounds full grown, and others that should be 67 full grown, they should probably not weigh the same at 8 months. 

Also, some dogs grow rapidly, others continue to grow for 2+ years. Dogs that may weigh the same at maturity might be very different at six or eight months, and yet be properly sized for their length and breadth and height. 

You really have to look at the dog from the side, and from the top, and feel their ribs. and feel their back, and look for the presence of a waistline, and check that hips and spine are not protruding, and determine it hands-on. If the OP is not familiar enough with young growing shepherds, it is much better to listen to the vet who has had his hands on the dog and has said that it needs to gain some weight. For us to counter that by some GSD weight chart posted somewhere, or even by what our own dogs weighed at that age or currently weigh would not be in this dog's best interest.


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## Sheffield (May 29, 2012)

Blanketback said:


> If anyone has any ideas about this, please share.
> 
> At 16 weeks, my puppy was eating 4 cups/day, Fromm's LBP: 1 cup morning, noon, dinner, and also for play with a buster cube. I thought it was too much food but he looked very thin. At this point he was a the vet's and I was told to up the quantity by another cup/day because he really was underweight. So I added 1/2 cup to his morning and evening meals. So 5 cups/day total. His stools were firm, vet check good except for weight...seemed like alot but what do I know?
> 
> ...


As long as your pup seems happy and healthy, the quantity of the food shouldn't be an issue. Don't try to stick strictly on the guide of feeding or anything, I never trusted that. As the weight varies from dog to dog, so does the feeding.
According to my own experience---Sheffield has been a food craver ever since she's entered our life. She was abt 8 weeks then, ate 4 times a day plus a handful of treats. For every feeding time, she inhaled 1 1/2 cups or so(Yeah I know it's a lot, but what can I say ). Our girl is 4 mo now, I think she's eating 6-8 cups per day, and she weighs 35 pounds or so. Totally playful and healthy,not fat at all.
What I'm saying is, just like there're sum ppl who never get full though they eat a lot more than "normal" ones, same thing goes w/. dogs. I have raised 4 dogs in different breeds, what I know is a 6 mo pup already knows when to eat and when to stop. If he barks for more food, then just satisfy him. 
Also, don't get too worried about the weight thing, many dogs would grow fast a little later than others( size-wise or weight-wise). Your pup could have used huge amount of energy so he is always starving, which is just fine. And like everyone knows, a GSD could have a growing period of 2yrs+. Maybe your little guy is just a late starter, who knows? Just relax and feed'im what he wants.


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## Wolfiesmom (Apr 10, 2010)

Wolfie eats Fromms. 1 1/2 cups of food in the morning, and 2 1/2 cups in the evening. He gets a carrot in the morning and at night, sometimes a few green beans, and 4-6 small cookies at bedtime. He also chews on raw marrow bones at night. He is 2 years old and weighs 85 lbs. The vet said there isn't an ounce of fat on him. 
When he was a puppy he would go through phases of being ravenous, and then not interested in food for a while. I just attributed it to growth spurts.


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## Blanketback (Apr 27, 2012)

Thank you all so much for your replies. I've been blessed with 3 other GSDs but only my last did I raise from a pup, and he developed completely differently - he had gigantic paws to grow into, and grew proportionately. This pup was tiny one day, then looked like he was put through the ringer: all stretched out and narrow as can be. And he just kept getting longer and longer and longer. He's widening now, bone wise. His rib cage isn't trout-like anymore. 

Hopefully his skeleton is done and he can start filling out. He was 40 lbs. at 4 mos. so I guess the rough estimate is 40 x 2 = adult weight? 80 lbs. would be great. Vet check last month for HW meds found him at the proper weight. No bones sticking out like the previous visit.

My last pup was free-fed, so I wasn't sure if I made the right choice to give measured meals this time around.


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