# How much food to be feeding?



## Willow52 (Aug 14, 2009)

Here is the feeding calculator from Innova's site -

http://www.innovapet.com/feeding.asp

4 cups seems like a lot for a 35 lb. puppy, my guy eats Innova LBP (in the process of switching to LB Adult) but when eating only LBP he was eating 4 cups at 65 lbs.


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## Garfield (Apr 7, 2009)

Each dog is different, but I'm with Willow, 4 cups seems a bit much for the age/weight (and is even well in excess of the food's feeding guideline, which is really saying something unless your pup is _super_ active). Based upon that and the sunken belly and constant hunger you noted, has pup been worm checked/treated of late?


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## Ranger (Nov 11, 2009)

Really depends on your pup's activity level and current weight. If you want to try to fill out the sunken belly (after testing for worms), try adding an extra half cup a day or some stuffed kongs with peanut butter for treats.

My bro's dog has been eating 4 cups a day of Orijen six fish since he was 5 months old. He's always been really lean and lanky and is just now getting to a good weight at 10 months. But this pup never stops moving during the day. Ranger, on the other hand, gets two cups a day of EVO and puts on the pounds if he doesn't get an hour walk a day, but when he's not moving - he's sleeping. So it really depends on how much activity you provide for your dog and how much he does on his own.


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## Bender (Dec 30, 2008)

Is he 'ribby'? Can you see his ribs sticking out or is there a big difference between where his ribcage ends and his belly is (from above, you should be able to see where it ends but it shouldn't be extreme)?

If he doesn't have worms and is otherwise fine, I would suggest adding a digestive enzyme to his food, as well as probiotics. You can get special supplements for this at most pet stores (the better ones anyway), or I just get them at the health food store in capsule form. Plain yogurt with active cultures can be good too if you want to add a spoonful with his food.

You may also want to try a different food. Something with a different protien source, different grain source or no grains, you may have to play around with it. My border collie is on kibble now as he just never could gain anything on raw (well I'm sure he could if I could afford to feed him 4 pounds a day...) and I usually get a bag from my 'list' each time, so he's not on the same kibble each month or so. He may get three cups of one food and then only need two of the next food because it works better on him. I've cut out the four cups of food ones though. I just open the new bag, put the rest of the 'old' food on top and keep feeding, and adjust how much he eats as we go.

Lana


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## theriot (Nov 25, 2009)

He tested negative for worms last time we took him to the vet, about a month ago. You cannot see his ribs, just barely feel them when you touch but his pelvic area sinks in. I know you want them to be lean, so not too worried about that. Just wondering what to be feeding him. After he eats, he sometimes goes over to the food bin as if to say, can I have some more? We had given him one round of proflora which was really great, but I don't think we could keep up with the cost of that. May look into the probiotics for humans for him. I wouldn't say he is extremely active, just moderate.


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## jwemt81 (Aug 20, 2008)

Four cups definitely seems like a lot. When our boys were on puppy food, they only got 3 cups per day. Of course, the amount of calories per cup varies from food to food, but 4 cups still sounds like a ton of food for a puppy. If you can just barely feel his ribs and he's not that active, it's definitely time to cut back on the food. Goldens can pack on weight pretty quickly, which is very unhealthy, especially for a young pup who is still growing.


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## babbs (Feb 9, 2010)

Sandie gets 3 cups Innova lg. breed puppy a day and I would consider her very active.She is 29 lb. at 4 1/2 months and very slim. She would eat the whole bag in one sitting if I left it out, so you just have to kind of ignore the golden greed  Supplement with frozen green beans and dried sweet potatoes for treats.


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## Bender (Dec 30, 2008)

Some goldens/dogs are just like that! Bender would eat the whole bag if allowed to, and she generally does not do well with restraining herself. I once got a deer carcass, didn't have anything to cut it up or store it, so put it in the yard because it was winter and figured they'd just pick away at it for a week. She ate so much she went from 'lean and mean' to 'about to give birth to three elephants' - it was scary and funny at the same time. But, she was still willing to eat and drink, and was very happy, and apart from the gas (oh, the gas!!!!) she did totally fine and was back to normal within a few days. I just didn't repeat that with her.

Lana


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