# Getting Enough? He doesn't think so...



## TrailRider (Feb 25, 2013)

My coming 4 month old get one cup of puppy food, three times a day. Yet he acts like he's starving all the time. He tries to eat anything he thinks might taste good down to his own poop. The poop thing isn't just him being a puppy, he literally acts like he's soo hungry that he has to eat it. He has been seen by a vet and has completed two rounds of dewormer. The vet says he a healthy weight and looks good. Even though you can see and feel his ribs. I feel like he's under weight, but then my other is a corgi and being under weight has never been a issue with her. 

He's a very good puppy, doesn't chew on the furniture and plays really well withv my one year old daughter. He just seems hungry all the time. At food time I make him lay down and wait, while I put his food in his bowl, he whines and cries the whole time and has learned how to crawl closer to me, but never gets up. If I don't put him in a down position he's jumping all over and just going wild!

So should feed him more? Or is he fine?


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## KarmaTheGSD (Jun 26, 2013)

What type of food are you feeding him? And how is his activity level? That's where some of the more experienced people on this site will ask for first also can you post pictures ? 


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## MaggieRoseLee (Aug 17, 2001)

What are you feeding and what is the recommendation on the bag for a pup that age/size? Always the first place to start as a GUIDELINE.

If you pup is a bit slender you may need to up the amount (can you picture looking down from above and from the side so we can see?)

I'm thinking I was giving more like 4 cups a day at that age......... As adults my dogs only get from 2 to 3 cups a day.


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## TrailRider (Feb 25, 2013)

I will get picture as soon as I can. He's pretty active most days, him and my corgi play ALOT. And I was feeding Pedigree at the time but I'm in the process of switching him to Iams. The Pedigree bag suggested one cup three times a day.


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## KarmaTheGSD (Jun 26, 2013)

He may need more food then that from those brands not 100% sure though. I know the the higher the quality of the food the less you will have to feed and the lower the quality food you will have to feed more. Maybe someone else can have some more input. Also check with your vet and see if maybe you can give him 1-1/2 to 1-3/4 cup 3 times a day. If you plan to stick with that food. I know I feed my girl blue buffalo wilderness and I only have to feed her 2 cups in the morning and 2 at night she is almost 7 months not and about 54lbs. 


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## Lilie (Feb 3, 2010)

I'm not real big on the food that you've chosen. But I'm not a good person to give good reasons why you should feed something different. I'd suggest you search around this site and research the different foods.

Having said that, it sounds like your pup is very food driven. That'll make training easier for you. Count your blessings!!!!


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## boomer11 (Jun 9, 2013)

iams and pedigree both suck. they are full of fillers that the dog cant absorb so you have to feed more. but whatever you feed, just feed based on how your pup looks. if he looks skinny then feed more, if he looks fat then feed less. my dog acts like he's hungry ALL day. every time someone opens the fridge he'll come running and just sit there waiting. anytime someone is eating he'll want it. it doesnt even matter what it is. i could pretend to eat rocks and he'll sit there and staring longingly at it. he is not underweight. if anything he's a little chubby. he just LOVES food.


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## TrailRider (Feb 25, 2013)

Thanks everyone, I certainly take everything into consideration.


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## KWG88ss (Jul 1, 2013)

boomer11 said:


> iams and pedigree both suck. they are full of fillers that the dog cant absorb so you have to feed more. but whatever you feed, just feed based on how your pup looks. if he looks skinny then feed more, if he looks fat then feed less. my dog acts like he's hungry ALL day. every time someone opens the fridge he'll come running and just sit there waiting. anytime someone is eating he'll want it. it doesnt even matter what it is. i could pretend to eat rocks and he'll sit there and staring longingly at it. he is not underweight. if anything he's a little chubby. he just LOVES food.


Just feeding more when he should be getting enough nutrients with what he's being given is a recipe for disaster. If his body is having a reaction to the food and rejecting it, he won't necessarily put on weight. What if he is unable to process that kibble, etc etc. Just feeding more and more and more if he looks skinny can just lead to a nice bout of puppy howitzer butt. 

We dealt with this for almost 9 months with our Doberman and eventually found out she was allergic to almost every protein source and as such it's been Kangaroo ever since.


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## TrailRider (Feb 25, 2013)

And yes it has been easy to teach him things because he's so food driven. It didn't take no time for him to learn sit and down. We're still working on stay but so far he's pretty good at it. I have noticed he quit itching since I switched him to Iams, I know it's not the first choice for some people but I talked to my vet about it and she said it was fine to feed him the large puppy food by Iams. I will call tomorrow to ask about the issue with him eating his poop and I can do about it.


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## KWG88ss (Jul 1, 2013)

TrailRider said:


> And yes it has been easy to teach him things because he's so food driven. It didn't take no time for him to learn sit and down. We're still working on stay but so far he's pretty good at it. I have noticed he quit itching since I switched him to Iams, I know it's not the first choice for some people but I talked to my vet about it and she said it was fine to feed him the large puppy food by Iams. I will call tomorrow to ask about the issue with him eating his poop and I can do about it.


A "bad" food that your dog can process effectively is better than a "great" food that can potentially trigger malabsorbtion issues. Find a food they are processing well, supplement with digestive enzymes and cultures, pro biotics, etc and they will be fine. Many dogs have lived many many years on Iams, Purina etc. May it cause issues? Possibly. PEople eat junk food almost every day of their lives and don't just keel over.


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## boomer11 (Jun 9, 2013)

some pups just like to eat poop. with that said, if his body isnt absorbing everything and it comes out as poop, then the pup will eat it because its tasty. when i fed kibble my pup would eat his poop. sometimes he'd poop then turn right around and eat it lol. i switched to raw and he stopped eating it. his body absorbed everything and all that came out was waste so he didnt want any.


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## TrailRider (Feb 25, 2013)

boomer11 said:


> some pups just like to eat poop. with that said, if his body isnt absorbing everything and it comes out as poop, then the pup will eat it because its tasty. when i fed kibble my pup would eat his poop. sometimes he'd poop then turn right around and eat it lol. i switched to raw and he stopped eating it. his body absorbed everything and all that came out was waste so he didnt want any.


I talked to the vet and that's basically what she said. She told me some things that I can do to do to help him digest the food better so that everything could be absorbed properly. She said that because puppy food has so much fat in it that it can't be all absorbed at one time, and when he poops it just smells and taste appeasing to him because still has the fat and stuff that his body didn't digest. 


I was playing with him tonight with food and he's so smart. Even as a puppy he out ranks my Corgi. It's amazing how fast he can pick something up and remember it. He's my first GSD and I couldn't be more happier with him. Even though he can annoy me sometimes lol. But I wouldn't trade him for nothing in the world.


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