# feeding Once vs Twice



## BrianO (Apr 7, 2016)

I feed twice daily life-long. (And three times a day for the first six months.)


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## CAROLINA MOM (May 12, 2009)

I feed twice daily also.


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## LynnC (Nov 14, 2015)

I also have been feeding 2X a day since she’s about 8 months old.


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## OscarsDad (Dec 20, 2017)

AM and PM. I also split each of Oscar's meals in two, waiting 10 minutes or so between each portion. When he ate his breakfast or dinner all at once he would tend not to keep it down.


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## Megora (Jun 7, 2010)

Feeding once a day = elevated bloat risk.

Whoever told you feeding once is better is clueless.


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## ceegee (Mar 26, 2015)

I feed three times a day: one cup in the morning, half a cup at lunchtime, one cup in the evening. My dog is the biggest glutton I have ever seen - he literally inhales his food - and I'm terrified of bloat.


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## scully91 (Sep 4, 2018)

Twice daily is better for digestion than once!


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## Aidan0311 (Jun 12, 2019)

I don’t know where you heard that, but I don’t think it’s correct information. Twice daily is better for digestion and getting nutrients to absorb better. I’m sure if the pup could speak human, he’d rather be fed twice daily as well! Ceege, my pup is the same way with his food! I’d love to know how many cups he’d eat before he’d fill up! It seems like he could finish 1/2 a bag if he could!


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## ecaba (Aug 19, 2019)

My 10 month old gets fed twice a day with a slow feeder bowl, typically 12 hours apart or so, with about 30 minutes of crate rest immediately after as she can get a little rambunctious after a meal. I'm obsessed about making sure she doesn't get bloat. She gets fed according to the instructions on the bag by her age and weight.


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## DblTrblGolden2 (Aug 22, 2018)

I was told once a day only by a professional field trainer. He only feeds once a day when he has the dogs in his care. He trains for both of my veterinarians so I figured it must be okay. He has reasons that pertain to when he trains, etc.. I have done it prior to them going to them to get them use to the schedule, but I personally disagree with it. I actually feed three times a day now. I always only fed twice a day, but my oldest dog, Duke, has recently been diagnosed with megaesophagus. After reading about it and learning everything I can I now feed both dogs three times a day and from an elevated feeder. I don't have Moe's food elevated to the point that I do Dukes for megaesophagus, but it is elevated.


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## Megora (Jun 7, 2010)

DblTrblGolden2 said:


> I was told once a day only by a professional field trainer. He only feeds once a day when he has the dogs in his care. He trains for both of my veterinarians so I figured it must be okay. He has reasons that pertain to when he trains, etc...


Bet it had to do with wanting the dogs hungry when working.

The scary thing for me on this story though is dogs in field training need to eat a lot to keep weight on. A friend of mine who owner/handled her dog to a MH would feed her dog 9 cups a food every day while training.


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## Maggie'sVoice (Apr 4, 2018)

I didn't read through the whole thread yet but just from the question asked in the thread title....

No it's not generally good to feed a dog once a day and there are a few reasons but the one that should really out the thought to bed is the risk of bloat and gastric torsion (stomach flips)

One meal a day means A LOT of weight and volume on the stomach at once plus the longee it takes to eat, the more gulping of air. This will lead to a much much greater chance of bloat and gastric torsion.

Not to mention that a lot of dogs throw up bile if there stomach is completely empty Anna for to Long a period of time. Food is in the stomach for a did from 4.5-5.5 hours.

Overall I don't think it's at all a good idea to feed once a day. Ok days where Maggie is very active I'll do 3 meals those days.


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## DblTrblGolden2 (Aug 22, 2018)

Megora said:


> Bet it had to do with wanting the dogs hungry when working.
> 
> The scary thing for me on this story though is dogs in field training need to eat a lot to keep weight on. A friend of mine who owner/handled her dog to a MH would feed her dog 9 cups a food every day while training.


You are exactly right! They also work them in the morning and evening and feed them in the middle of the day. The trainer said he doesn't like to work them and feed them close together, and doesn't ever want to feed them later in the evening when he's not outside with them to monitor them. He only feeds them in the middle of the day when they are off for a few hours and he's outside to monitor them all directly. For me, only training our dogs, it's easy to work around, but I can imagine when you have 8-10 dogs at a time it can be difficult.


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## Maggie'sVoice (Apr 4, 2018)

DblTrblGolden2 said:


> You are exactly right! They also work them in the morning and evening and feed them in the middle of the day. The trainer said he doesn't like to work them and feed them close together, and doesn't ever want to feed them later in the evening when he's not outside with them to monitor them. He only feeds them in the middle of the day when they are off for a few hours and he's outside to monitor them all directly. For me, only training our dogs, it's easy to work around, but I can imagine when you have 8-10 dogs at a time it can be difficult.


Yeah, your not supposed to feed the first hour after heavy exercise and not to exercise for at least an hour after a meal. Dogs will drink a lot or water coming in after exercising and then eat with a full belly of water. This makes it easy for the stomach twist just laying down and rolling over. Plus the water makes the food expand in the stomach.


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## nancie (Aug 4, 2018)

zeyadeen said:


> hi all, i was wondering is it fine to feed your golden once a day, currently i am feeding her twice 6 am and 6 pm... personally i think its way to long for her to stay 24 hour without feed, but i was told that feeding her once is better.. your advises are highly appreciated,, she is 3 years and half.
> 
> best regards


I feed my dog 3 times a day. We were told by the vet to feed twice, but I just take the same amount (maybe slightly more) and split it over 3 meals. For us that works great. Every single time Maximus has gone to the vet to be weighed, he has been the perfect weight (literally bang on). 

Here he is - he gets fed 3/4 cup of biscuits each meal. And he has daily exercise where he can run. This is even after he got castrated - the vet warned us that they can gain a bit of weight afterwards, yet they are always so happy with him when they see him, because he's stayed the same perfect weight.


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## Sweet Girl (Jun 10, 2010)

Until about two months ago, I fed my 6-year-old three times a day. But during the months I was off in the summer, we were so active all day everyday that she kept on falling asleep before her last little "snack" late evening, and I didn't want to wake her up to make her eat a 1/4 cup of food. She can't afford to lose any weight, so I increased her two other meals to make sure she was getting the right amount of food for the day and she just totally weaned herself off that third meal. I would never feed just once a day - too much food in the stomach all at once.


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## dcolado (Sep 5, 2019)

I'll probably get a lot of flack for this but for over 30 years, three golden life times, I just kept the bowl full. I never had to put more than was necessary ( 3 to 4 cups a day) and all three of them ate when they wanted and never ate it all at once. All kept their weight perfect and water was always full. Now me, that's another question, I wish I had the disciple they had.


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## jeffscott947 (Jun 9, 2019)

Twice a day for all my dogs.


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## Kora2014 (Sep 15, 2014)

My girls love their food...so right now with the puppy...I feed them both 3 times a day! 

When the puppy is a bit older and I don't have to come home at lunch, I will go to twice a day!

Although on weekends...they always get 3 meals a day with a bonus sardine for dessert!!


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## Mouchka (Apr 10, 2019)

In my opinion I believe it's better feeding her the required amount of food split into two. One in the morning and another at the evening. I do the same with my adult girl however to not leave her without food all day along I give her healthy chews such as vegetables in between meals to keep her stomach active and avoid any Reflue.


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