# Five-month-old eating too much?



## eslucky (May 10, 2012)

I have a somewhat similar story. I have a female Golden that is just a little over 5 months and weighs 48 pounds. She was on Purina Beneful when we got her. We gradually changed her to Blue Buffalo and she had very loose stools. We were about to switch her to a different food when I read somewhere that the loose stools and diarrhea could be caused by feeding her too much. We were giving her close to 2 cups a day three times a day. 

We cut her back to a cup and a half three times a day and her stools became nice and solid and no more problems. She still looks very healthy and the vet is pleased with her weight. She was spayed about a week ago and not as active and I'm only giving her a cup and a quarter now. I might keep her at that and see how she does for a bit. 

I'm certainly not an expert and there are many here that know more about this than I do but I don't think it was just a coincidence that her stools became much better when we decreased the amount of food we were giving her. I think the Blue Buffalo is a rich food and it just might have been too much for her system. I'm curious to know what others here think about that.


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## Vhuynh2 (Feb 13, 2012)

How many calories is in a cup of his food? Molly is 7 months and weighs 43 pounds, but I suspect she is about 3-5 pounds underweight as I can feel her ribs and the bones in her spine too easily. I have increased her food from 2 cups to 2.5 cups, so she is getting about 1250 calories a day not counting training treats. She is VERY active and gets a ton of exercise every day.


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## Max's Dad (Apr 23, 2012)

Looked at the Science Diet Web site. They recommend about 5 cups a day for a 5 month old, 50 pound large breed puppy. If Wrigley has been a little underweight, seems that 6 cups for a while might be a good idea. Maybe keep an eye on his weight. At close to 50 pounds at only 5 months, Wrigley is probably going to be a big boy and needs plenty of nutrition for all that growth. 

I am pretty sure that the Science Diet line of dog foods are available at Petco and Petsmart. We fed our last Golden, Chewy, Science Diet Sensitive Stomach for years, and bought it at Petco.


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## Tanyac (Jun 18, 2008)

He is probably burning off the calories, any less food and he'd probably start to lost weight.

My main concern over any vet food is that it is not specifically formulated for a young growing dog. I know he had problems with some of the foods tried, but he should really still be on puppy or Junior food.

I also have to point out to any owners of young puppies, over exercise is a serious no no. This is probably the cause of just as many cases of poor joints than poor breeding. Pups should not be allowed too much rough play with other dogs, and although swimming is generally considered good, too much is not.

Good luck with him, he's a sweet looking boy.


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## jrr (May 26, 2012)

Just got through this situation with Flynn, 5 1/2 month old, 50#. Idiot me was misreading the bag and listening to my bride tell me he was too thin. 5-6 cups a day got me loose stool in prodigious amounts turning into diarrhea and vet bills.
Our food manufacturer consulted with their in house vet and local golden breeder and the calculation was 3.7 cups per day and round up to 4 max. Stool firm and obviously no "runs" after three days. Instead of 4 or 5 evacuations a day, now one.
Their educated opinion is dogs dogs will shed excess food in interesting ways. They feel a lot of folks plain feed their dogs too much. This from a company who makes a living selling food.


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## BajaOklahoma (Sep 27, 2009)

Banker came to us at 8 weeks on Pro Plan. He has done very well on it - and it is the food of choice for most of our club members in show and field. They do not feed "puppy" food due to the concern about growing too fast and the impact on joints.
Banker is doing great. He will be getting his hips checked in another month. 

Bennett was puppy food until he was one, the recommendation at that time, and he never had any hip issues.


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## Wiggly Wrigley (May 14, 2012)

Thanks, everybody. Eslucky, I agree that Blue Buffalo might be too rich for some dogs. When Wrigley developed loose stools he was only getting one cup of food three times a day. I have heard of several others having the same problem. When you research on the Internet, all of these high-priced food that boast little filler are designated "best" for our dogs. Yet, it seems like many dog's have problems with them and that most breeders use Purina Pro-Plan. Am I missing something?
Molly's Mommy, it looks like we are giving him 2,142 calories a day — which sounds like a lot. He doesn't seem overweight, though, except for his little puppy pot belly. He has always acted like a starving dog and will gobble his food, then sit and stare at the bowl. Since we upped his quantity, he doesn't do that and, in fact, several times lately he hasn't finished his bowl. I think perhaps his growth has slowed down a little. 
Max's Dad, I think you are right — he may be a big boy. I know he sure is a sweet boy! You are right about Science Diet being at several food stories, but this particular type is a "veternarian exclusive." And, Tanyac, I wasn't clear — it is a large breed puppy formula. I am glad you brought up the topic of too much exercise. I have worried about how much he plays. Several times a day he plays with the neighbor's one-year-old Samoyed, and it is pretty rough and tumble. Wrigley spends a lot of time on his back, but then gets mad and gives as good as he gets. He just learned how to swim, but now swims every day that he can. I try to let him retrieve that ball (not too far out) 10 times or so then make him rest. His idea of rest s digging a hole in the sand to China. So, my question is: How much exercise is too much exercise? He seems very happy and in-between these activities sleeps a lot.
Jrr, he generally has two-three large stools a day. Does that seem like too many?
Baja, I have read that some vets are recommending a change from puppy food to adult food at six to eight months. How can you tell if your puppy is growing too fast?


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## MikaTallulah (Jul 19, 2006)

My vet supports feeding an all stages formula after 3 months for most breeds. He also believes in feeding the dog not the bag or the label. Feed what works best for you and your dog. He carries Hills Rx. but does say all the Rx food are basically the same thing.

FROMM works for me and the furbutts. They love it and I love that the food is US made in their own plant and they have been making pet food since WW2 and never had a recall.

I have feed Wellness, BB, and Proplan. Yorkies have done great on all foods fed to them. My goldens have had sensitive tummies so they could not tolerate the BB or Wellness even with the slowest transitions. 

I feed Proplan for close to 15 years til I lost my precious Zoey to tainted jerky treats made by them.


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## Vhuynh2 (Feb 13, 2012)

Wiggly Wrigley said:


> Molly's Mommy, it looks like we are giving him 2,142 calories a day — which sounds like a lot. He doesn't seem overweight, though, except for his little puppy pot belly. He has always acted like a starving dog and will gobble his food, then sit and stare at the bowl. Since we upped his quantity, he doesn't do that and, in fact, several times lately he hasn't finished his bowl. I think perhaps his growth has slowed down a little.


How long have you been feeding him 6 cups a day? How easily can you feel his ribs? Does he have a waist visible from above and from the side can you see his stomach "tuck" up? That does seem like a lot of calories. Molly will always act like she's starving; goldens just LOVE food.


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## Vhuynh2 (Feb 13, 2012)

Tanyac said:


> I also have to point out to any owners of young puppies, over exercise is a serious no no. This is probably the cause of just as many cases of poor joints than poor breeding. Pups should not be allowed too much rough play with other dogs, and although swimming is generally considered good, too much is not.


What are the long term effects of too much swimming? I have yet to worry about that since Molly isn't CRAZY about the water, but I am curious.

Too much of anything isn't good, but I think the general concern is that too much forced exercise especially on concrete before 2 years of age is detrimental to their joints. Distance must be taken into consideration especially on leashed walks. Most of Molly's exercise is off leash romping on grass or running through fields to her heart's content. I take her home before she starts slowing down.

To the OP: I would be wary of playing too much fetch though, because Molly skids and slides all over the grass when trying to "brake" when she reaches the ball and I was concerned about what that could do to her joints. We play fetch in tall grass so she can't see where it lands and has to "find it".


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## jrr (May 26, 2012)

Wiggely
God only knows if we are talking about the same situation. However, We were getting 3-4 plus huge stools per day and formed but loose.

It was suggested by some smart folks that he was just dumping excess food out when then lead to the diarrhea. It started when I hit the 5 -6 cups a day. 

A lot of info was given by us and apparently the manufacturer, their vet and the Golden breeder came up with the proper calories and therefore the amount.

The breeder indicated that I should expect that 4 cups would pretty much hold through his life.

By way the food is Grain Free Lean from Annamaet with 8%max fat. He was on their Encore which was 14%. He tolerated the Encore until I started screwing up the amount. We are now in the fourth day and every thing is great with the pup.


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