# How much should I feed puppies?



## yandesu (Dec 22, 2008)

I have a 8 weeks old bichon.

The breeder told me to just feed him twice a day, a small hand full each time. And that if he poops more than twice a day, I am feeding too much.

The vet told me to feed him as much as he can eat in 20 minutes, twice a day.

The label on the food package says I should feed him 1/2 cup a day.

Which is best and which should I follow? I am confused!!!
I did try the first two though. feeding him 2 hand fulls a day seemed not enough as he was hungry throughout the day. But the 2nd way made him threw up and pooped SO much! 

Any advice/opinion would be greatly apprecaited, thank you!


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## dinki2 (Nov 16, 2008)

Well if hes a puppy and your are feeding him maybe I dunno Purina puppy chow, really I read that growing puppies need to at least eat 3 times a day since their still growing and should stay on puppy food until they are at least a year in age. So really I wouldnt feed anymore than maybe 3/4 - 1 cup 3 times a day.

Puppies need to get enough nutrition while they are still growing so imo a puppy should poop more than twice a day....my 5 week old pups poop at least 3 times a day and thats only on 3 plates a day with 6 of them.

I atm have 6 five week old puppies and I feed them all about 1 1/2 cups moist dry food with wet food 3 times a day.


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## Acadia (Aug 6, 2008)

Since 2 handfuls doesn't seem to be enough and allowing him to eat as much as he wants doesn't work, try the recommended amount on the bag and watch your puppy. I have read that puppies should be fed about 3x a day. 

Each dog is different so you'll have to monitor your puppy for a couple days to get his food amount just right.


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## samaria (Nov 12, 2008)

A new puppy is an exciting time for anyone. It is filled with all sorts of exciting moments as well as more then a few moments of pure stress. Feeding your pup should not be one of them.

I am guessing when you say retriever, you are meaning either Golden or Labrador as they are the most common. Flat-coated, Chesapeake or Curly coat are all around the same size; in fact, the only small retriever is the Nova Scotia Duck Tolling Retriever. Reason I am emphasizing size is that I do recommend feeding any large or giant sized breed to feed food specifically formulated to their unique needs. The slower a puppy grows, the more likely they are to grow up healthy and strong.

Puppies normally eat as though they have not seen food in a week. It is part of the litter thing – survival of the fittest or in this case, the one that can stuff the most food down his gullet the fastest and then keep it down. He will naturally slow down in time but if you do not feel like waiting, try hand feeding him a few kibbles at a time with a pause in between. Or try putting an upside down bowl in the middle of his food dish – an obstacle makes them slow down substantially.

This puppiness you are dealing with right now will all be gone in too short of a time – enjoy it while it lasts.


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## fun4pets (Dec 24, 2008)

It is hard to say how much is enough especially since different dog food brands will suggest different amounts to be fed to your dog. The first thing I would do is look at the ingredients of the dog food you feed your dog.

If you notice that there is corn, by-product, wheat, or any other fillers as the first three or four ingredients listed then the two handful twice a day rule probably isn't the most accurate. There are really two concepts to think about when feeding your dog and deciding which food to purchase. 

Dog food companies will try to cater to two types of customers. One being the "Bottom Line" shopper, the customer who only looks at the bottom line price of a bag of dog food 

And the second is the "Ingredient Reader" shopper, the customer who reads the ingredients to make sure there are no fillers in the food.

These shoppers will end up purchasing two different types of dog food and for each type of dog food there will be different feeding requirements. Normally the Bottom Line shopper will grab a bag with a lot of fillers in it, such as corn. This bag tends to be less expensive because the ingredients are less expensive which translates to having to feed your dog more of this food to attain the daily amount of nutrients. 

Whereas the Ingredient Reader will purchase a dog food with no fillers or by-product which translates to a higher cost because the ingredients are healthier. In turn, the feeding requirements tend to be much less to meet the same daily amount of nutrients.

So in the long run the Bottom Line shopper and the Ingredient Reader end up spending about the same amount because the Bottom Line shopper has to buy a new bag of food about two times as quickly. 

Try reading the feeding guidelines on the back of your dog food and follow those instructions. If you think you pup needs more it's okay to feed him more. However, if he starts to gain too much weight you can cut back a little and just the opposite if he's getting too thin. It's important to remember that each dog is different so what's a good amount for one might not be the same for another and you will probably want to err on the side of too much food than not enough.


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## Patt (Feb 12, 2008)

I believe 8 week pups should be fed 3-4 times a day (small portions). 

I hope the following info will help... See link at bottom for complete info on feeding (what kind of food) etc. I would also buy a book on Bichon's.

What kind of schedule should my puppy be on?

We hope you have not purchased a puppy as young as 6 weeks old because he is just being weaned and is NOT ready to leave the litter. Most responsible breeders will not place pups earlier than 10-13 weeks of age. However we know that pups are shipped from mass breeding kennels as early as 8 weeks and we take that into consideration in providing this schedule. Remember that the total amount of food in a 24 hour period for a normal sized Bichon is about 1 cup of dry kibble. The following schedule is based on that total amount. Remove any uneaten food after 10 minutes.

*A schedule for feeding:*
Pups just weaned will eat 4 meals a day. These meals should be about 4-5 hours apart. Divide the cup of food into 4 portions and give him the first ¼ cup when he wakes up in the morning after he has been walked. The next ¼ cup will be about midday, followed by a third ¼ cup in the late afternoon, say between 5-6 PM. A final feeding will be given in the evening. Read Crate Training Your Puppy to understand how this works into the house training schedule.

Starting at 10 weeks, watch the puppy for signs that he may be about ready to cut the number of meals to 3 times a day. When he starts to leave some of his food at his second meal, try him at 3 meals a day. Adjust the following schedule to suit your family:

6-8 AM Feed 1/3 cup of dry kibble; midday feed 1/3 cup of dry kibble and about 6 PM feed 1/3 cup of dry kibble. You may want to set aside just a few pieces of kibble for bedtime but a full meal at bedtime will probably cause him to need to go outside during the night. Review Crate Training Your Puppy for more information on training him to be clean in the house.

http://www.bichon.org/CareFeeding.htm
http://www.bichon.org/


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## Love's_Sophie (Sep 23, 2007)

I agree with Pat's post...

A small breed puppy (especially) needs no less than 3 meals a day. 

It will vary per puppy, as I tried 4 feedings with my poodle puppy when I first got him at 8 wks, and he wouldn't eat at the 4th feeding, so I cut it out. 

A rule of thumb for puppies, would be to feed them approximately the same way you would a child; small amounts, fairly often. Let puppy decide how often you need to feed him right now. 

I would probably give a Malti baby no less than 1\3 cup, 3 times a day...let him eat as much of that 1\3 cup each time you give it, but don't give him any more than that per feeding. 

No puppy, that I know of will only poo 2 times a day either, especially the small\toy breeds; they have small systems, so they are naturally going to go more frequently.


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## Patt (Feb 12, 2008)

Awww they have Bichon's on Dogs 101 right now. 10:30pm PST


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