Hello everyone

[dmey]

I was wondering how much should my puppy eat? He is 12 weeks old and I am not sure if he is eating enough. I try to give him what the label on the food says, which is 1 2/3 cup a day, thats divided in 3 meals, but he never eats it all. How much should he be eating??

[tanza]

@dmey:

I was wondering how much should my puppy eat? He is 12 weeks old and I am not sure if he is eating enough. I try to give him what the label on the food says, which is 1 2/3 cup a day, thats divided in 3 meals, but he never eats it all. How much should he be eating??

Each dog is different… and you need to adjust to his need... if not cleaning up the food at each feeding then reduce the amount... never judge by the amount on bags of food...

[dmey]

Thanks,
thats what ive been doing. I wasnt sure because the other day he ate my friend's pomeranian's food and ate all of it, about twice as much as he normally eats, so I was wondering if he didnt like his food or something and wasnt eating enough.

[Nemo]

How are you feeding? Free feeding or fixed meal times? if not already, you can try giving him his food for about 15-20 minutes and he doesn't eat it all, take it away. That will help to build good eating habits. If the puppy isn't hungry, he may not eat that time. Too many exciting things to do and see so food may not be on the top of his mind at that moment. He won't starve himself, and you can just save it for the next meal. My last puppy on many occasions wouldn't eat at all, but she was more than happy to chow down at the next meal time.

[dmey]

I am feeeding him with fixed meal times, three times a day. I leave it for a while then take it away. Ive been doing that and he always eats a little bit, but never all of it. I will keep doing it for a few more days see how it goes. Thanks

[TikaLynn]

The amount of food you need to feed will also really depend on the type of food you are giving. Even different sources of food from the same brand will require different amounts. Do you purchase your food from a pet food store? Usually the staff is knowledgeable on the brands and various foods. For instance, for Tika, she is now a year, and eats twice a day, but only 1/2 cup at each feeding. Sometimes she will not even finish all that off. Her food is higher in protein during the spring, summer, and fall, because she burns a lot more energy when the weather is nicer, but in the winter the protein is cut back, and she usually eats less. I cannot imagine a puppy eating more than a cup a day though. He may have been gorging on the pomeranians food simply because it was something different, and wasn't his. I would also suggest having regular eating times, to make it easier on you, and on him. But, I am definitely not an expert! This is just based on my experiences with Tika. She surely would never allow herself to starve to death. She likes to eat!

[dmey]

Thanks, Yes I ve been feeding him with regular feeding times and leaving the food for 20 min than removing. He always eats better at night than in the morning. We dont get any of the brands of food that I read about here. We get the more comercial brands , like Eukanuba, Science Diet and Royal Canin. Ive been feeding Science Diet, but I prefer Royal Canin, thinking of switching but later on. Thanks for the info