# Go to 3 meals a day?



## Dallas Gold (Dec 22, 2007)

About a year ago our vet suggested we feed Toby 3x daily, since he tended to throw up every morning. She felt the cause was his empty stomach first thing in the morning. So we give 1/3 in the a.m., 1/3 in the late afternoon, and 1/3 about 30 minutes before bedtime--works like a charm....except, Toby now thinks he needs a 4th meal in between his late afternoon and bedtime snacks.


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## monarchs_joy (Aug 13, 2011)

Sounds like our Boxer  I give breakfast, lunch and dinner, divided in 3 meals. She'll still let me know it's time for a meal, but isn't pesky about it anymore. Three meals can be a pain if you want to go somewhere during the day, etc. but honestly I've been doing it so long that it doesn't bother me much anymore. On the days I can't do it, I have someone come by the house and take care of it for me.


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## Elisabeth Kazup (Aug 23, 2008)

Okay, sounds good. Not being here isn't much of a problem. We generally are home (retired) or have her with us. We take water if we're gone with her all day, not that much of a deal to take a baggie with some food.

This used to happen once in a while...the pesky hunger thing. But now it's almost everyday. That why I'm thinking we need to make a better arrangement.


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## coppers-mom (Jan 9, 2009)

Hmmmm...
Have you had her thyroid checked?
Mine was overactive and had to be removed 8ish years ago.
While overactive I ate much more than usual and was still hungry all the time.

Maybe her needs have just changed, but it could be a symptom of hyperthyroidism if they follow people's symptoms like I think they do.


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## Dallas Gold (Dec 22, 2007)

Is she on steroids still for anything? That affects hunger. Just ask my stomach!


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## Elisabeth Kazup (Aug 23, 2008)

I never thought to have her thyroid checked. She has a bit of a weight problem...+ 3 pounds. Wouldn't that rule it out?


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## coppers-mom (Jan 9, 2009)

I'm a little pudgy:doh: and mine has been at about 1.0 for 6+ months due to medication change. Should be closer to 3.5/4.0 in humans, but 1.0 - 5.0 is the range I think.

I don't know how prevalent hyperthyroidism in goldens either. maybe it is a seldom thing.

could you ask your vet about it? It might not be worth checking is Penny isn't showing any other symptoms.

Maybe just changing to the 3X a day will fix the issue. I'll bet Penny gives that 2 paws up anyway.


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## GoldenCamper (Dec 21, 2009)

Penny's Mom said:


> 1. divide her 2 cups daily ration equally into 3 portions. breakfast, lunch and dinner.


This sounds good to me. When I home cooked for Tucker he ate 8-10 cups a day which I spread out into 4 meals.

His system could not handle more than 2 or so cups at a time. Long story I won't get into....


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## Elisabeth Kazup (Aug 23, 2008)

Penny gets her joint supplements @ 4. Causation or coincidence?


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## Wyatt's mommy (Feb 25, 2011)

My vet told me it's very rare if at all dogs are_ hyper_-thyroidism. Maybe she just needs more food period? How much are you feeding her? Have you noticed any other symptoms such as drinking more water and urinating more often?


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## Elisabeth Kazup (Aug 23, 2008)

I don't keep track of her potty moments. A lot of the time we're at the baarn and she's just hanging out. I have noticed that she can come inside early to mid afternoon and never ask to go out again. So if anything, she may be going less. I usually make a point of sending her out @ 8 and she looks at me like "Why?" I have to go stand on the patio with her and keep telling her to go.

She gets a 50/50 mixture of weight reduction food. Half is regular formula and half is higher protein. This is the mix we used for her to lose weight. She lost 13 pounds 78 down to 65 and then gained 3 back. 

The higher protein food has a lot more calories than the other which is why I mix them. Here's the link to both. She's always done really well on this brand. Her weight gain came when I switched her to Candidae (no particular reason except I thought it was 'better'). She eats Heathy weight I and II.
Premium Edge Pet Food | Products | Dogs | Dry Food


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## Wyatt's mommy (Feb 25, 2011)

Penny's Mom said:


> I don't keep track of her potty moments. A lot of the time we're at the baarn and she's just hanging out. I have noticed that she can come inside early to mid afternoon and never ask to go out again. So if anything, she may be going less. I usually make a point of sending her out @ 8 and she looks at me like "Why?" I have to go stand on the patio with her and keep telling her to go.
> 
> She gets a 50/50 mixture of weight reduction food. Half is regular formula and half is higher protein. This is the mix we used for her to lose weight. She lost 13 pounds 78 down to 65 and then gained 3 back.
> 
> ...


It does sound like she is just hungry then. I would try the 3 times a day and see if it helps. As long as she is eating the same calories a day it really doesn't matter when she eats them. Or give her some fresh veggies inbetween that might help too.


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## Sally's Mom (Sep 20, 2010)

Dogs are rarely hyperthyroid, more commonly hypothyroid.... The few hyperthyroid dogs I have seen have had thyroid cancers and are losing weight.


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## Elisabeth Kazup (Aug 23, 2008)

Today was the first day of 3 meals. She got 2/3 cup at each meal and while she was ready to eat and reminded me, she was satisfied after she ate...especially after supper. That was when she was most likely to pester me for 'seconds'. So, it seems to be a start.

Thank you for all your input!


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## coppers-mom (Jan 9, 2009)

Excellent!


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## JazzSkye (Aug 1, 2011)

Just and idea: maybe she needs one large meal instead of smaller ones which aren't satisfying? 

When mine were pups we had the three times a day, then twice a day routine. Now that they're both adults, they eat once a day, at night. They do fine with it, and although they're always interested in food, they're not pesky over it. Eating at night, I also don't have to worry about them running around right afterwards and getting stomach torsion.

People tend to be pretty opinionated on what's best, but I really don't think there's a Golden Rule for adult feeding. It depends on what the dog's system can handle, and on the owner's preference as well.

Our old vet said he generally recommends twice a day feedings because some dogs can't handle big meals, but if the dog does well on one meal and is getting what he needs, that's the most important thing


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## cgriffin (Nov 30, 2011)

I feed my boys three meals a day, works well for them.


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## Elisabeth Kazup (Aug 23, 2008)

Regarding the 1 meal a day. We used to free feed Penny. Meaning we put roughly a day's worth of food in her bowl. She would eat that a little at a time and if she ran out, we'd add more. In fact, she'd pick during the day and then eat it during the night. There was always food in the bowl when we went to bed and it was gone in the morning. She did great on that until I made the mistake of changing her to Candidae. She gain 18 pounds in a year. We've had several years of trying to have her lose weight. 

Last year the vet told us that if a dog doesn't wolf down their food, then they are getting too much at the previous meal. So he had us cut her back until she was begging for food. That's the way he wanted her. We compromised at 'hungry' which some days led to pleading for us to feed her.

I sometimes think I should go back to what we'd done for the first half of her life. She was happy, not over weight and did just fine.


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## JazzSkye (Aug 1, 2011)

Penny's Mom said:


> R
> 
> I sometimes think I should go back to what we'd done for the first half of her life. She was happy, not over weight and did just fine.


Maybe you should? Like I said, I don't think there's a "golden rule" for feeding but everyone has an opinion. One feeding a day, at night, works well for us. Jazz at nearly 7 and 75 pounds was prononced "well-proportioned" by our new vet last week, and Skye at 14 months is just fine as well. They empty their bowls but aren't frantically searching for food during the day either. Whatever works for you; what's important is that you're both satisfied and smiling  :


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## Elisabeth Kazup (Aug 23, 2008)

The other thing that this vet said that I didn't like was that he wanted her to weigh 55 pounds. That is 10 pounds UNDER breed standard maximum and she is 1 inch OVER breed standard height. That means she should weigh between 65 and 68 pounds, approx. She weighs 68, I'd like her to lose a couple of pounds. He said that @ 78 pounds she was 'severely obese' and need to lose 23 pounds. He has since left the practice but I had made up my mind to use the other vet in the practice, who is more down to earth.

I have heard of a theory in feeding dogs that they should be rail thin, almost emaciated because in the 'wild' they don't get to eat very often. So his theory was that our dogs should be so hungry that they FEEL they are starving. 

I hate fat and take no comfort in seeing her out of shape and having a hard time getting around. She is much better now. I think when she runs out of this food, I will switch her back. Same brand, just regular formula. I don't think we can do worse. :uhoh:


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## Dallas Gold (Dec 22, 2007)

Our vet does not recommend free feeding since most of the dogs she sees that are free fed are too heavy. 

It's funny how different vets, even in the same practice, see the ideal weights for Goldens. The vet who gave Toby his first puppy exam the day after we adopted him from the rescue gave me a lecture about he shouldn't gain any more weight. He was 5 months old and 30 something pounds. I told her he was just 5 months old and still had some growing to do. Duh...puppy... He had maybe 2 meals with us at home before the exam. The two vets he sees now at that clinic laughed at the first vet's assessments on weight, saying she had a notorious reputation at the clinic for that. She has moved on to another practice in town, no doubt causing some anxiety among her dog owners about their dog's weight. For Toby, we've established that his ideal weight is in the 57 to 59 lb range. Both of these vets have retriever breeds for pets so I trust their assessments. During his wellness exams they carefully feel his fat layer by his ribs and let me know what they think. Since his diagnosis of the cobalamin and folate deficiencies we have a difficult time keeping his weight in normal ranges, so more often than not they tell me he could gain a pound or two--music to Toby's ears I'm sure.  He's in normal limits as of last weigh-in last week.

Elisabeth, I wonder if Penny's vet is being overly cautious about her weight due to her recent surgery, wanting to keep her extra lean to reduce stress on the joints. Even if that is true, I'd definitely not want to intentionally starve her.


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## cgriffin (Nov 30, 2011)

I think every vet has a different opinion on the weight, exactly.
I let Toby get too heavy before he had his orthopedic surgeries, the surgeon wanted him go down from his whopping 90 pounds to 75 pounds. I managed to get him down to that weight. Now he keeps ranging from 75-80 pounds, he looks just fine to me. Toby is really solid built, big head, big body frame, not over height standard. 
I am not a fan of free choice feeding either and not a fan of one meal a day. My dogs would be following me around all day if I did that, lol.


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## Elisabeth Kazup (Aug 23, 2008)

Dallas, this was about a year or so before her surgery. In fact, she was at her 'ideal' weight when the ACL went. I do think she was experiencing minors and that the last tear would have been minor too except there was no more tendon left. So, not sure the ACL was related to weight but suspect it could have.

So far the 3 meals is working. I think the only change I will make is to change her from the 2 weight reduction foods to a regular food of similar calorie content.


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## cgriffin (Nov 30, 2011)

Good idea. My boys never lost any weight on the light dog foods out there. I put my boys on regular food then. 
When Toby had to lose the weight, the surgeon told me to reduce the amount of dog food fed during each feeding session by a third of the original amount fed. Worked like a charm on Toby.


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## Elisabeth Kazup (Aug 23, 2008)

She hasn't pestered me for food once in these few days. In fact, doesn't even rush to her bowl to eat it right away. So not starving and not stuffed...a better place to be!

Thank you for all you advice and experiences!:kiss:


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## coppers-mom (Jan 9, 2009)

Most excellent!


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