How much do you feed your basenji?
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Thanks for the replies.
She isn't fat by any means, I was just curious as to how much other basenji's eat but you all bring up some good points regarding size/food. I've recently moved her onto Orijen fish, before that she was eating Timberwolf.
I just measured her, shes 16.5" at the withers.
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I have free-fed dry Innova adult, which has 500 cal/cup, 1/2 C each per day, supplemented with human quality (human) food, whatever we had, a small portion. (lean meat, fish, veges, eggs, etc). My 2 adults are overweight but not obese, just a bit too heavy but have maintained stable weight for many years.
With Nicky's pancreatitis requiring 4 small feedings of ID, I figured it was time to start measured feedings, so have been feeding 1/2 C dry with 1 Tbsp canned all mushed together to each boy, twice a day. Eddie is getting 1 C/day, previously getting 1/2 c and he still is hungry when it's feeding time! Chipley is 26.5 lb, tall, not at all thin but a nice weight and I want to keep him that way, get a little off Eddie and Nicky while we're at it.
From what I'm reading the volume is about normal compared to what everyone else feeds.
I found a chart (Dr. Foster and Smith site) saying for their size, on average, 500 calories a day as a basic or reduction amount, with 1.6 X that amount for an active dog.
Assuming a balanced quality food, does that amount of volume and calories sound about right? I feel like an idiot, after all my life having dogs that self regulated and stayed a nice weight, I am doing measured feedings and I don't have a clue!
Poor Nicky, she is trying to get into the kibble bin, now that she is better that I/D is not to her liking, even with a bit of rice and chopped chicken mixed in. Hoping the vet will let us reintroduce normal food once she is recovered, or she may starve to death!
Thanks for any comments re volume, etc for feedings. So far, the boys eat side by side at about the same rate, then look at me like they are starving! Human treats are a thing of the past, except for a few bites of lean meat.
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i had always free fed till gambit came along, she is affectionately known as piglet because she leaves no kibble behind, ever. I give a jar of chicken baby food with their supplements in the AM, then 2 medalions of chicken raw diet with 1/2 c of either taste of the wild kibble, or red barn meat rolls in the pm.
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What are you feeding your b?
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I feed NRG dehydrated. A bit less than 1/4 cup (before the water is added) twice a day, plus Acana dry in his roller ball that he gets when we go out. Also some "Charlie Bears" treats in his Kong. I am a great believer in "the eye of the master maketh the horse", and feed according to what my eyes tell me. :)
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Kipawa gets 3/4 cup kibble twice a day. I also include veggies, as he loves them. On occasion, I scramble an egg or add a little canned tuna to his kibble. He LOVES food! :) For snacks, his favourite is dehydrated organic chicken breast or a tiny bits of organic beef hot dogs.
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Heavens… my dogs would starve if they lived with anyone on these forums!! lol
I don't have heavy or 'soft' dogs... they are all very lean.
They eat between 1.5 and 2 cups of kibble at night AND 1/2-1cup in the morning.
They run like crazy banshees the majority of the day, so don't have a chance to gain weight.During the winter, when they spend the majority of their time indoors.. .they eat about 1/2c in the AM and 1-1.5c in the evenings.
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My girls run 24/7 just about and anyone that has been to our home knows we have a pretty large yard to run. C-Me only gets 1/2 cup twice a day with some wet food and veggies, Franie on the other had, burns calories like crazy gets 3/4 cup in the morning and almost a cup at night, both times with wet and veggies (or whatever we have around). They both get cookies and yogart at lunch time plus "treats" during the day/evening depending on what we are doing. Franie was a pain to try and get any weight on, if I fed her more, she would only "poop" it away….
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Buddy gets about 2-1/2 cups a day. No dry food/kibble, all wet. A mix of baked chicken thigh and breast, a little frozen raw duck formula, Taste of the Wild and tripe. He's a very lean 27lbs. Buddy also loves wet grass/mud. He'll stand there and gobble it down unless I stop him. During the rainy season it's a pain! Or if the the dog park has areas of damp ground from being watered, he'll be more interested in eating the ground then playing with the dogs. I have to constantly run over and try and stop him or just take him out.
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Dear Cosmo,
your Basenji looks just marvalus daling! Nice waist and no ribs showing, you must be doing just fine! -
Heavens… my dogs would starve if they lived with anyone on these forums!! lol
They eat between 1.5 and 2 cups of kibble at night AND 1/2-1cup in the morning.
Depends on the food you feed and the dog's metabolism/exercise, not amt. Cara is 35 pounds, gets 1/2 cup day and night. Arwen is 25 pounds, gets slightly less each time. Sayblee used to get DOUBLE what Arwen did without gaining weight.
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Great input from everyone, my guys seem to be adjusting to what is actually more dogfood and less human food, I hope to get 3 or 4 pounds off Eddie and a few off Nicky as well. I want Chipley to stay the nice weight he currently is.
They have stopped staring at the empty bowls and looking pitiful! Actually a fairly rapid adjustment, considering Ed & Nick have had constant kibble in their bowls for the last 10 years. And it's not as hard as I feared, none, including the new kid, guard resources thank goodness!
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I feed Taz 1 cup of IAMS Allergenic all natural formula(no chicken, corn, or wheat. Made with ocean fish and no meat byproducts) twice a day plus about 2 TBS of lowfat vanilla yogurt (for probiotics) @ nite. In the morning they get it with He is 22 lbs and very active. I can't imagine that another 2 or 3 lbs on him would make much of a difference in size. He certianly wouldn't look fat in any way, shape, or form. He also gets a does of dasiquin and a welactin in the morning with his morning feeding.
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Cosmo, your b looks great! Definitely the right weight, so whatever you are doing, it's the right thing. I mix 1/2 cup kibble and about a tablespoon of wet food twice a day, plus in the evening the girls get some of our veggies mixed in. I pick up the food in a half hour, because Gemma is a piggie and will clean both bowls which isn't a good thing, as Shaye eats merely enough to avoid starvation. Gemma's breed mix makes her bigger anyway, but really - she needs to lose about 4-5 pounds. I have been known to sneak extras into Shaye from time to time, just to keep her weight up to 20.
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Similar to kipawa, I feed my one year old male ( currently 23.0lbs) 3/4cup x2 daily. I have to feed him twice because he is the type of dog that will throw up if he goes too long without eating! Occasionally I'll add chicken or try tO add veggies but he is picky. I'm definitely going to tale some suggestions from others on the forum and maybe give him an egg on occasion ( maybe whole or scrambled), tuna… He hates watermelon and tomatoes and is "iffy" on apples. From the picture you have she looks good
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0_o wow.. I only feed maybe 3/4 to half a cup of kibble a day and Hope gets a raw bone or a piece of cooked chicken at night.
When she was a puppy I fed her 4x times a day (from 8-10 wk) then made it 3x a day (10-12wks) then til she was a yr old she was being fed twice daily. Now once daily with a small extra treat at night and she's perfect weight.
I have got her on one the highest quality type kibble here in Aus.
Expensive but worth it and don't need to feed her tons of it - cant go past quality kibble!Occasional treats (not daily): include pig ears/trotters, pig snouts, dried chicken and chicken sticks (all natural) as well as roo tail, and some yummy type dog treat biccies that have dried veggies n stuff inside them (natural again). Yum yum yum.
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I am joining late on this question how much do you feed your Basenji. My girl is 24 pounds which according to some of the online
sites is bigger for a girl, and she is 24 pounds. She is 9 months old. I think we were giving her to many snacks. lol. She is 16 inches
tall at her withers, and has long legs but not as long as some. Her elbows come up to allignment with her brisket area. She has
a small arch upward but not overly so. Her ribs are not visible but easily felt to touch and she does have a waist. She did have
fatty tissue over her ribs, so I cut her back on food and now feed her carrots for snacks. She eats 3/4 cup once a day, and my
husband thinks shes starving. I think she looks better and I think she was headed to obesity if I did not cut back. The Basenji site
says they will beg all the time, doesnt mean they are starving. Does 3/4 cup sound like enough. By the way our first Basenji, what
a sweet doll. Baroos and sings all the time, snuggles and kisses all the time, and grumbles when she doesnt want to do something.
I am a proud first time Basenji owner. -
I have 4 basenjis - they get fed in the range of 3/4 cup to 2.5 cups. My oldest girl (8yo) gets 3/4, the other girl (3yo) gets 1 cup. My oldest boy (8yo) gets 1.5 cups and my youngest boy (2yo) gets 2.5 cups (anything less and he looks like a rail). I feed Orijen, Instinct Duck and Honest Kitchen Zeal.
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So it sounds like no one Basenji is the same. They can vary in weight and you should go by your
individual dogs build and activity. I think she looks good, not skinny and not chunky. So I will
continue to feed her the amount I am and monitor any changes. Thanks for the feedback.
