# How many meals a day?



## Sandy's Dad

How many times a day do you feed your dog(s), and why?

I've been feeding my girl twice daily. I know many people feed once daily but I thought it was just out of convenience. However I recently read somewhere that eating all their food in one meal actually helps them digest properly.

I'm sure I'd still end up giving her treats/snacks throughout the day, but should I keep her main food ration split into two meals or combine it into one?


----------



## Ranger

I feed twice a day so Ranger doesn't get too hungry or vomit in the middle of the night. He's got a common problem of throwing up bile if he goes too long between meals and his stomach stays empty. Like yesterday; he got breakfast at 6am which is earlier than normal but we were driving for the next 9 hours. Around 4pm, he got the runs (due to eating ice cream, a live crayfish, and something else the day before) so I opted to not give him supper in order to let his stomach/digestive system settle. 
He woke me up at 1:30 by puking up bile on the floor. At that point, he was almost 24 hours without eating...no wonder he threw up. I gave him a cookie and he was fine. 

So I'm all for the two meals a day camp, even though raw fed dogs (which Ranger is) are 'supposed' to get one big meal a day. Ranger might get a small meal and a bigger meal, or two small meals and a snack, or the odd day he gets a snack in the morning and a big meal in the midafternoon if it's something I can't cut up (like a beef heart or cow tongue).


----------



## GoldenSail

I used to feed two meals a day--but after getting frustrated with my girl's appetite I decided to hold off for one meal to make her hungrier. It has only marginally helped.


----------



## iansgran

twice a day kibble, God only knows how many snacks.Some he gets on his own, some I use for training, and some , well let's just say my husband likes to share.


----------



## Megora

Twice a day. Because my vet says it is healthier for breeds that are prone to bloat. You do not want a hungry dog to be eating a huge amount of food in one sitting. Besides that, it makes us feel better because we eat three times a day. Why would we make our dog sit there and watch us eat and tell him he has to wait a whole day for his food?


----------



## dberk

3 times a day. They eat when i eat.


----------



## LifeOfRiley

Twice a day. For the exact same reasons that Kate listed.
I've always heard that it's healthier and safer for a dog to eat twice a day, especially those that are at risk for bloat.
And besides, I wouldn't be too happy eating only once every 24 hours, so I don't imagine Riley would be, either.


----------



## Riley's Mom

I've always fed twice a day. Growing up we used to only feed the family dog once a day. I just always thought that was not enough and I wouldn't want to be fed once a day. 
Riley gets 1 cup per feeding.


----------



## MittaBear

Chester eats twice a day. It's much better to split his meal up into breakfast and dinner since giving him just one portion would be too much food all at once. Plus...he's a piggie so I doubt he could go 24 hours without having a meal.


----------



## Sandy's Dad

Thanks everyone, sounds like twice a day is good! I definitely agree with the reasoning of "I wouldnt want to eat once a day," but I wanted to make sure I'm not putting her wants before what's actually best/healthiest for her.


----------



## newport

twice a day. I cut back half on the dry as Lola weighed in at 61 pounds last vet vist and she should really be at about 57-58 pounds.


----------



## desi.n.nutro

I feed the girls 2 cups twice a day. I feed the boys 1 time a day. The boys eat their entire 5 cups at once. I do think it is better for them to eat once a day but when I feed the girls once a day they leave half of it any way.


----------



## GRTigger

I just leave his food and water in his bowl all day.


----------



## Angel the dog

My dog , Angel , eat twice a day. Because she's just a 3 months Golden...


----------



## Lilliam

Once a day but they do get an Old Mother Hubbard Bacon and Cheese cookie for breakfast.

They go to doggy day care when I go to work four to three days a week and I don't want them to play rough right after eating. So I feed their large meal at night.

Before Max came I used to feed the border collies at night because herding training usually happened in the mornings on weekends and days off and so I didn't want them running on a full stomach.

So to keep a consistent schedule all my dogs have been fed at night after all running around and jumping and playing has ended. They know after food it's quiet time.


----------



## Juno's Parents

Both of my dogs get free choice. When they were younger, they couldn't self regulate, so I had to ration it to twice a day, but now, I fill it if its empty and forget about it. sometimes I fill it once a day, sometimes I have to fill it twice. It just depends on how much they want to eat.


----------



## Mountian Man

desi.n.nutro said:


> The boys eat their entire 5 cups at once.



Holy cow, I thought our dog ate a lot at 3.5 cups a day.


----------



## xoerika620xo

Twice a day here as well. Chester would say we are starving him if hew as fed only once a day lol. Even tho I think he says that enough now.


Sent from Petguide.com Free App


----------



## Bonnie27

I too feed twice a day. If Sadie doesn't eat her morning meal and goes too long without eating she will throw up bile. I sometimes put a little chicken broth on top of kibble to encourage her to eat if we get late in the day and she still hasn't eaten. I feed her at 7:00am and 6:00pm.

Happy New Year to everyone!!


----------



## Juno's Parents

Mountian Man said:


> Holy cow, I thought our dog ate a lot at 3.5 cups a day.


wow must be nice... I go through 50 pounds of kibble in about two weeks with my two dogs...


----------



## GoldensGirl

Twice a day is the norm here and I wish I could make it three times. Our vet says feeding more frequently helps to keep their cholesterol down and it's also better for overall metabolism.


----------



## ScottyUSN

Puppies = 3 times daily (mine have always let me know when it's time to switch to twice daily).

Twice a day for the majority of their adult life. My boys prefer a small breakfast and a big dinner. Breakfast is a quality dry, and Dinner is the same amount of dry with a .5 pounds of prepackaged raw each.

Seniors may or may not switch to once daily after they slow down and quit burning so many calories. I've had senior grazers (fine if they are not overweight or you have other dogs that will eat their food).


----------



## egar2019

Very helpful. Thanks.


----------



## Shaurya

Ranger said:


> I feed twice a day so Ranger doesn't get too hungry or vomit in the middle of the night. He's got a common problem of throwing up bile if he goes too long between meals and his stomach stays empty. Like yesterday; he got breakfast at 6am which is earlier than normal but we were driving for the next 9 hours. Around 4pm, he got the runs (due to eating ice cream, a live crayfish, and something else the day before) so I opted to not give him supper in order to let his stomach/digestive system settle.
> He woke me up at 1:30 by puking up bile on the floor. At that point, he was almost 24 hours without eating...no wonder he threw up. I gave him a cookie and he was fine.
> 
> So I'm all for the two meals a day camp, even though raw fed dogs (which Ranger is) are 'supposed' to get one big meal a day. Ranger might get a small meal and a bigger meal, or two small meals and a snack, or the odd day he gets a snack in the morning and a big meal in the midafternoon if it's something I can't cut up (like a beef heart or cow tongue).


 I want to know the timings to feed them twice a day. 
i have 2 pups , 5months (female & male) ..
currently i feed the puppies 4 times a day..


----------



## Blu1004

Twice a day, recommended by breeder and same as my previous golden.


----------

