# Canidae Dry, Amount to Feed Question



## mackenziesdad (Dec 22, 2007)

I've transitioned Mackenzie to Canidae and the feeding instructions call for one cup for every 25lbs for pups over 6-months. Mackenzie is a year old and weighs about 60 pounds so this basically equates to 2 cups per day. We feed her twice a day so one cup per feeding.

While I understand this is a high quality food, is one cup per feeding enough? I ask as Mackenzie woofs this down in a matter of seconds...something that she hasn't done with other foods (well, not since she was small pup). And, after she eats, she'll beg for more and lick her bowl time and time again. I feel like I'm starving the poor girl! She's always been interested in eating but not like this. Could it simply be the new food? Maybe she likes it better than what she was used to eating (ProPlan).

What do you guys/gals think? Mackenzie is not overweight and is walked/exercised daily.

Any help would be appreciated. Thanks!


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## Ash (Sep 11, 2007)

Hey MD, It really depends on the dog. I have dogs can maintain themselves well on 1 1/2 cups a day and others that need 5 or 6. Sometimes with a new food you have to play around with it a little. How is her weight? Can you easily feel her ribs?


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## mackenziesdad (Dec 22, 2007)

Hello Ash! I can't see the ribs but can feel them. There is a layer of fat over them but I can feel them. I doubt these pics will help, but here are a couple I just snapped. She kept laying down...realize that standing up would be better. Do you think she looks plump?


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## missmarstar (Jul 22, 2007)

from those pics she looks a bit plump to me, but it could be because she's laying down...


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## missmarstar (Jul 22, 2007)

my dog is a "scarfer" too and will seriously eat his food (we're talking raw meat/bones too LOL) in a matter of less than a minute. some dogs just eat quickly, doesnt mean they are starving.. dont worry.


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## Ash (Sep 11, 2007)

Yeah she looks a little tubby to me too. How long have you been feeding the 2 cups of the Canidae? Has she gained or lost weight since the switch?? What a cutie pie though.


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## mackenziesdad (Dec 22, 2007)

I was just concerned as she's never eaten this quickly. I'll keep their feeding schedule and continue to monitor her weight. Thanks!


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## mackenziesdad (Dec 22, 2007)

Oh no...Ash thinks Mac's tubby too! I feel like a bad daddy...I thought she looked fine. 

Two weeks ago I transitioned, last week I started with the one cup per feeding. When she was on ProPlan I was giving her two cups per feeding. Guess I'll continue with the one cup per feeding and see how it goes. 

Glad I posted the question though...certainly don't want to overfeed her either!


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## GoldenJoyx'stwo (Feb 25, 2007)

Tucker gets a bit less than one cup because he had weight issues. I go by calories, so he gets around 730. Shadow eats almost 4 cups of the Canidae Lamb per day, but he's a very long and tall dog. He's skinny. Tucker always looks for more food!


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## lgnutah (Feb 26, 2007)

Ask your vet at next visit to evaluate weight


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## Merlins mom (Jun 20, 2007)

Merlin gets 1-1/2 cup per feeding (3 cups total) and he needs to put on a few pounds so I've been throwing 1/4 cup more in the last few weeks.

Can you take a picture with Mackenzie standing up? I also agree you can ask your vet too!


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## gold'nchocolate (May 31, 2005)

If she is used to getting 2 cups at each meal it may be that she's just used to having more in her bowl. Try adding the green beans for awhile to make her feel as if she's eating more. My dogs eat Canidae and they all get varying amounts depending on their own weight.


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## bwoz (Jul 12, 2007)

Those pictures may be deceiving because she's laying down. My vet said that you should be able to see a tuck up of the belly from the side view. If you stand above her, you should also be able to see a waist (an indent between the ribs and hips). Last, you should be able to easily feel the ribs just like you explained. Banner is about 75lbs and gets 2 cups of the chicken/rice Canidae and he seems to do fine. Every dog is different and you just have to find the right amount for Mackenzie. You're being a good daddy. By the way, Mackenzie is a doll.


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## My4Boys (Dec 14, 2007)

When I first got Baxter, I followed the Canidae feeding guideline to a tee and this was way too much food for him as his weight jumped and he had too many bowel movements. So I slowly adjusted the level of food down and now I feed him about 2 1/2 to 3 cups a day in two feedings (morning and night). He was a scarfer too but now leaves a little bit of kibble in his dish so I plan to adjust the amount of food down by an 1/8 cup or so. He's 8 months and weighs 74 pounds and although he's not "fat", he seems a bit chubby at the moment, so hopefully his body will grow into his weight.


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## mdoats (Jun 7, 2007)

Rookie is around 60 pounds and his weight is just right for his frame. I can feel his ribs easily and he has a nice tuck at the stomach. In some photos he looks plumper than he actually is because he has such a thick fluffy coat.

He gets 2 generous cups of Canidae a day. He scarfed it down as well when I first transitioned him to Canidae. So I increased the amount a little thinking he was hungry and he started to put on a little excess weight. I went back down to 2 cups a day and that seems to be the magic number for now. On days when Rookie is even more active than usual, I'll give him a "snack" mid-day of a milkbone, or an egg, or a very small bit of extra kibble. Other than that, I stick to the 2 cups a day.


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## Maggies mom (Jan 6, 2006)

Abbie and Cruiser get 2 cups 2x's daily and Maggie and Hootie get 1 cup 2x's a day. Abbie is very very high energy and burns it right off....None of mine have had weight issues being on it.I do add other things to there food , that is why i cut Maggie and Hooties down.


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## Faith's mommy (Feb 26, 2007)

Faith is about 54 pounds right now and she gets 1 cup morning, 1 cup night of the Canidae. her weight is fine. but, she is always looking for more food. it's a breed trait - you can give them 5 cups of food and they'll still want a bit of what you're eating.


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## kalkid (Feb 22, 2007)

Maybe it's a funny angle but that dog doesn't look like 60 lbs. to me. Are you sure about that? My girl is 65 and looks much narrower/smaller than that. Could just be the angle or picture though. My 65 pounder gets 2 1/2 cups of food, EVO, similar calories I believe total for the day in two feedings. She's/we're also very heavy exercisers though so 2 might be fine depending on the dog and activity level. As to wanting more food that's pretty obvious. There wouldn't be a bunch of overweight dogs if they could control their eating on their own.


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## missmarstar (Jul 22, 2007)

even if she IS a bit overweight, don't freak out... at the age she's at, it should be fairly easy for her to drop a few pounds to get her back in the ideal range. but everyone is right, it could very well be the angle the picture is taken at.


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## Ash (Sep 11, 2007)

Aww don't feel like a bad Dad. Its hard to maintain weight while switching foods and hard when you have nothing to compare to. Depending on her height that should give you a rough idea of what her wait should. Another poster suggessted adding green beans to give the full effect, I would reccomend frozen over canned. Depends on the vet I have seen lots of "pet vets" reccomend/tell the owners they are good at a certain weight which is quite a bit heavier then they should be. Good luck on the good side she likes the food LOL.


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## HovawartMom (Aug 10, 2006)

2 cup is not enormous,if you don't feed her anything else(I mean treats!).
or you could do 1 cup and half a day and a 1/2 cup of grean beans to help her with losing weight!.I would also add more exercise with a lot of swimming!.My golden who is 81/2 ,runs 2 to 3 miles a day,next to my bike + a lot of swimming.


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## Maggies mom (Jan 6, 2006)

Maggie last winter gained a few extra pounds...I keep them all between 60-65 pounds she went up to 68 pounds..she didn't look fat but I knew she was over the 65 pounds..... I added green beans and cut her food back to 2 cups a day and got her back to full speed with playing and walking and she lost the weight in No time..... Abbie doesn't even chew her food...even if you hand feed her she sucks it down like a hoover vac....


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## mackenziesdad (Dec 22, 2007)

Thank you to everyone who responded to this post! Your comments have been very helpful. I'm going to give her 1.25 scoops am/pm and track her weight weekly making adjustments as needed. I think we're due back to the vet in a month so I'll definitely ask her about Mac's weight. 

It took some time (Mac always seems to be on the move or taking a seat), but I managed to catch her standing up so here is the elusive side shot. Maybe she does need to lose a few...I can't tell anymore!

Anyway, thanks again!


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## bwoz (Jul 12, 2007)

She doesn't look heavy to me, she's a beautiful girl by the way.


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## Lucky's mom (Nov 4, 2005)

She's got a definate tuck to me....

Lucky is overweight...its hard for me to evauate him because of his hair that hangs over his tuck and its thickness makes it hard for me to find his ribs.

But he reacted to Innova like you say she reacts to Canidae....never could get satisfied and lived by the dog food bowl. With innova he never did that after-dinner face rubbing in the carpet thing that dogs do when they had a good meal.

Green beans (low sodium) added in to the food, do give them that sense of fulfillment and you might try that.


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## mackenziesdad (Dec 22, 2007)

Thanks BWOZ! We think she's a cutie too!


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## mackenziesdad (Dec 22, 2007)

Lucky's Mom - Adding beans is a good idea! I was reading on another post about using kibble as a low calorie treat. I just took Mac out and gave her a couple bits and she really seemed to enjoy it! Don't know why I didn't think of that before.

Now if I could just eat as healthy as Mac...


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## mackenziesdad (Dec 22, 2007)

Humidae?


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## kalkid (Feb 22, 2007)

mackenziesdad said:


> Thank you to everyone who responded to this post! Your comments have been very helpful. I'm going to give her 1.25 scoops am/pm and track her weight weekly making adjustments as needed. I think we're due back to the vet in a month so I'll definitely ask her about Mac's weight.
> 
> It took some time (Mac always seems to be on the move or taking a seat), but I managed to catch her standing up so here is the elusive side shot. Maybe she does need to lose a few...I can't tell anymore!
> 
> Anyway, thanks again!


Yeah sorry I forgot to mention your girl is beautiful. She looks a lot like mine in the face and I'm a fan of the "red" ones. You're right on track in my opinion with the food amounts and like I mentioned before just try to get her as much exercise as possible. I think it's hard to "evaluate" a dog from pictures, maybe it's the old camera adds 10 pounds thing. Personally I think the best shot is with them standing up and you shooting down on them. You should be able to see a definite tucking in of the body (not sure if that's the right lingo) behind the rib cage and not just a straight line. Kind of hard to tell as this isn't a real good photo either but you can see her body go in behind the rib cage if that helps at all.


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## Charlie06 (Feb 10, 2007)

Charlie at 18 mths gets 3 cups dry and about 1/2 can of canned Evanger's everyday and barely weighs 60 lbs. I guess it all depends.


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## Maggies mom (Jan 6, 2006)

I think a lot has to do with how exercise they get as well...... Mine are on the go pretty ;much all day except Hootie..... Here they are .








(Hootie- 60 pounds)








(Cruiser-80 pounds)








(Maggie-62 pounds)








(Abbie-56 pounds)


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## Ash (Sep 11, 2007)

golden&hovawart said:


> 2 cup is not enormous,if you don't feed her anything else(I mean treats!).


I think sometimes people under estimate the amount of food. With a food of decent quality there is no need for huge amounts. Try putting a 1 1/4 food in a large bowl and putting water in it. It will expand to almost double of what was there before. So I di believe in a lot of cases (my dogs included) sometimes 1 1/2 of food a day not a feeding is enough for them.


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## Rena450 (Apr 16, 2007)

Gosh, Oakley will be 1 year next month and we've been feeding him 1 3/4 cups of Canidae in the am and 1 3/4 cups in the pm. 
He definately has a tuck, but, from the top he doesn't seem to have that "hourglass" shape near the back. He does have quite a full coat though so its hard to tell. 
When he saw the vet this past December he weighed 58 lbs and the vet said he looked good.....but, my vet liked puppies on the chubby side.....where as I always kept Oakley pretty lean. Think I should start to decrease his food a touch?


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## Ash (Sep 11, 2007)

No, if he is at a healthy weight he should be fine. I guess I should have mentioned that some dogs are fine on 1 1/2 cups a day and other dogs of mine eat around 6 cups. It all depends on the dog but if your dog is an "easy keeper" meaning he can maintain weight on a smaller amount of food then some dogs there is no need to feel bad about the small amount your feeding if thats what keeps your dog healthy.


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