# Active Breed Owners...how much do you feed?



## jtm (Sep 22, 2008)

I have a very active 1 year old Vizsla, and I feel like I am feeding him more than he needs possibly? We initially fed him 2 cups twice a day, but have increased to 2.5-3 cups twice a day. We feed him Innova food which I know is rich. This is quite a bit more than recommended on the bag. He just seemed like he was still hungry after feeding him 2 cups twice a day. He was always looking around for something to eat (unfortunately pooh included) when he was outside. We figured we would increase the amount. He did weigh around 45 lbs., and now he is up to 48. He looks good, but I don't want to over feed him. He does have large stools though. Am I over feeding him?

Thoughts from others that have active larger breeds. I did search the forums, but it seemed that most posts were for puppies and smaller breeds. 

Also, any others feed Evo? Thinking about trying that out b/c I have read so much good stuff.


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## PitBully (Mar 12, 2009)

I would like to see a photo of your dog to be sure of my repsonse.

One of my male pitbulls is 60 pounds currently. This is because in the winter I increase his feed. In the winter he gets 2 cups of (Diamond dog food) or Nutro Max for breakfast and for dinner he gets one cup of raw meat and one cup kibble at night. 

In the summer I feed him one cup of kibble in the morning and one cup raw meat at night. Throughout the day I usually give raw chunks of meat as treats one XL milk bone. (I give the same treats in winter.) 

He naturally burns off 5 to 7 pounds and tucks up nicely. He goes from solid to lean, perfect for hot weather. 

My dogs are very active regardless of the weather and I never had an issue with increasing the feed somewhat. As long as the dog is still active it burns off or settles nicely. Some people like the solid look compared to my lean preference; that is fine. Long as you don't have to push firmly to feel the ribs. 

PB


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## pugmom (Sep 10, 2008)

I feed my 12mo female APBT 2 1/4 cups of TOTW per day...along w/2 small milkbones...and the training treats she gets during our sessions .....I will probably up her kibble once the weather gets warmer and we are doing more outside everyday

She is a very lean 55lbs


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## jtm (Sep 22, 2008)

PitBully said:


> I would like to see a photo of your dog to be sure of my repsonse.
> 
> One of my male pitbulls is 60 pounds currently. This is because in the winter I increase his feed. In the winter he gets 2 cups of (Diamond dog food) or Nutro Max for breakfast and for dinner he gets one cup of raw meat and one cup kibble at night.
> 
> ...



Hope this comes through.


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## tirluc (Aug 29, 2006)

he looks pretty good to me.....i feed each of mine 1 3/4-2 1/4 cups a day of Purina One.....they do quite well on this.....Jack, the foster dog, gets about 3/4-1 c a day but we'll have to see how he does on that (he really need to lose a bit of weight, he's about 5-6 lbs overweight).....


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## Spicy1_VV (Jun 1, 2007)

Your dog looks fine to me, so seems what you are feeding is about right. Innova is a very good food so you don't have to feed a lot of it but some dogs will still require more then what the bag says. As I was using the Evo feeding my female about 2cups of Evo at night and 1lbs of meat in the day. Which is essentially about twice as much as recommended but she was still lean. 

I don't judge on how they act because some dogs already act hungry even if they are not or shouldn't be. I judge by how the dog looks. I think your dog looks good.


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## Spiritguardian3 (Feb 11, 2007)

does he inhale his food? Make sure he eats his food slowly, bumper bowls could help, or split up his meals. Make sure he's not swallowing his food and waiting for more.

My one year old chessie eats 4 cups of Natural balance because otherwise he drops weight so quickly. High energy/hunting breeds can be hard to keep weight on, just remember feeding dogs is easy, they get skinny, feed 'em more, they get fat feed 'em less.


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## cshellenberger (Dec 2, 2006)

Evo is an EXCELLENT food, I have fed it but can't afford it anymore, so I went back to Solid Gold.


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## Squeeker (Dec 15, 2007)

My Brittany east Orijen, and at her weight of 33 lbs she should be eating about 1 3/4 cups of food as per the bag. She probably eats closer to 2 1/2, and she is very active, healthy, lean, and muscular.



> just remember feeding dogs is easy, they get skinny, feed 'em more, they get fat feed 'em less.


Exactly!


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## Inga (Jun 16, 2007)

My boys each eat about 4 1/2 to 5 cups of Taste of the wild each day. Oliver a little less then Carsten. They are maintaining their weight very well. My little girl Lulu used to eat close to 6 cups daily and maintain her weight. She was a Border Collie in a Rottwieler suit. She would go, go, go all the time. It certainly depends on activity level. Your dog looks fine though, not thin at all from what I can see.


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## JohnnyBandit (Sep 19, 2008)

I feed my dogs raw so its a little different.

Merlin - 22 month old Australian Cattle Dog. VERY high energy and actic. He gets about 3% of his body weight per day in food.

Buc - 7 year old Lab mix. Slower, older, less active. He gets about 2% of body weight per day.


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## PitBully (Mar 12, 2009)

jtm said:


> Hope this comes through.


Great condition for a pup. They should have a little more weight on them until they are put through any truly "vigorous" activity.

PB


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## PatriciaLynn (Oct 20, 2008)

Champ is an 18 month old Boxer. He is very active and goes to doggy daycare most every weekday so he gets plenty of exercise there. He is eating three cups, twice a day for a total of six cups. He weighed in at the vet a few days ago at 66.7 lbs. I'll post a picture when I get back home in a few days. He is absolutely not overweight. In fact, he's finally starting to not look like a bag of bones.

I was feeding him the high quality no grain foods but he kept getting diarhea. I tried five different kinds. Finally, I switched to Beneful because my last dog did well on it. It's not rated as high but Champ has been doing really good on it. Even the vet said this is better for him. 

I keep a close eye on him and when he starts to slow down some (hahaha), I'll reduce his intake.


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## sheltiemom (Mar 13, 2007)

Two of my dogs are extremely high energy...my 37 lb Border Collie eats about 2 1/4 cups a day plus a couple of treats and and that's the _minimum_ I can feed him to keep weight on. My Mini Aussie is only 20 lbs, eats 2 cups a day, and still needs to put on some weight, she is _very_ thin...compared to my 25 lb sheltie who only eats 1 cup a day, and my other sheltie, who is the same weight as my bc, but only eats 1 1/2 cups a day to maintain the same weight.


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## jtm (Sep 22, 2008)

PitBully said:


> I would like to see a photo of your dog to be sure of my repsonse.
> 
> One of my male pitbulls is 60 pounds currently. This is because in the winter I increase his feed. In the winter he gets 2 cups of (Diamond dog food) or Nutro Max for breakfast and for dinner he gets one cup of raw meat and one cup kibble at night.
> 
> ...


Thanks for the replies. I just wanted to make sure I wasn't feeding him way too much. The 5 cups a day seems to be working, so I will stick with it for a while. He goes to day care twice a week and I take him running with me several other days so he is really active. Thanks for the advice.



PitBully said:


> I would like to see a photo of your dog to be sure of my repsonse.
> 
> One of my male pitbulls is 60 pounds currently. This is because in the winter I increase his feed. In the winter he gets 2 cups of (Diamond dog food) or Nutro Max for breakfast and for dinner he gets one cup of raw meat and one cup kibble at night.
> 
> ...


Thanks for the replies. I just wanted to make sure I wasn't feeding him way too much. The 5 cups a day seems to be working, so I will stick with it for a while. He goes to day care twice a week and I take him running with me several other days so he is really active. Thanks for the advice.

Here is a picture of Marley on a normal day.


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## jtm (Sep 22, 2008)

Thanks for the replies. I just wanted to make sure I wasn't feeding him way too much. The 5 cups a day seems to be working, so I will stick with it for a while. He goes to day care twice a week and I take him running with me several other days so he is really active. Thanks for the advice.

Here is a picture of Marley on a normal day.


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## Moker (Feb 5, 2009)

biz gets evo due to food allergies.

1 cup in the morn, 1 cup at night.


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## jtm (Sep 22, 2008)

Those of you that feed Evo, do you feed less b/c it is very rich and pure?


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## wvasko (Dec 15, 2007)

jtm said:


> I have a very active 1 year old Vizsla, and I feel like I am feeding him more than he needs possibly? We initially fed him 2 cups twice a day, but have increased to 2.5-3 cups twice a day. We feed him Innova food which I know is rich. This is quite a bit more than recommended on the bag. He just seemed like he was still hungry after feeding him 2 cups twice a day. He was always looking around for something to eat (unfortunately pooh included) when he was outside. We figured we would increase the amount. He did weigh around 45 lbs., and now he is up to 48. He looks good, but I don't want to over feed him. He does have large stools though. Am I over feeding him?
> 
> Thoughts from others that have active larger breeds. I did search the forums, but it seemed that most posts were for puppies and smaller breeds.
> 
> Also, any others feed Evo? Thinking about trying that out b/c I have read so much good stuff.


I am a last rib person, If I can't see the last rib I will decrease slowly amount fed till goal is reached. 2 ribs and I go back the other way. I never want to see backbone. The amount fed can be any amount because just like people some dogs need more and the opposite. You have to judge as you are the one who views the dog.


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## Cephis (Oct 4, 2013)

Hello JTM
I breed V's and have 5 in my home. They are a very complex breed for sure. 5-6 cups would not work for my stud dog as he is from Hungary and weighs 64lb- Having said that I have others that dont eat nearly that much. During really active times they can lose lbs quick. You might try to increase the fat in the feed and see if you can feed less. I feed a 30/20 purina pro performance sport and it really works nicely for my dogs. 
Aside from all the advice and information just watch the dogs ribs- if the rib cage is really pronounced then add groceries- when you find what keeps them covered you know you have the right mix. You will also not realize what your viszla is going to look like till he or she is at least 2 to 2 1/2. Thats when they really fill out and get to there playing weight so to speak.
The beggin and poor hungry me look is in every viszla no matter where when what or how feed

Good Luck
Chris


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