How much to feed

Amen. Keep it simple.

 

yeah, I am on simple side too. Keep them trim and fit and active, food is adjustable.
I think many dog owners do go nuts trying to figure out their dog nutritional needs, I wish they did it for themselves and human food as much. OTOH lack of info and attempt of companies to produce "the holiest of holistic foods" and mass marketing would drive anyone crazy. And of course vets are not really taught on nutrition so there is lots of personal opinions all around. I suppose we should not be surprised since it is same in human world and medicine.

 

I think Some do petcurean list Now puppy as 440 kcals / 250 ml (8 oz) cup on there web site and adult at 400 ,,, I believe it 's on the bag as well But I don't have one to check right now and have a general feeding chart on thier web site for various size weight combinations. I have notice that a lot of the treats( pure bites & Charlie bears) now list calories as well on the bag so I think it is improving.


I allways use the you should be able to just feel thier ribs under thier coat as you run you hands along thier side with mine, as instructed by my vet, if the ribs dissapear it diet time.

 

I just checked my bag of Now! It's the adult maintenance at its 360 cal per cup.

I never noticed it before, but I agree that it would be a great add in helping decide what food is appropriate for your dog.

 

I'm currently on Orijen and Acana and both bags list the calories on it. I'd have to check a garbage food like beneful to see what those say. I'm not one to trust feeding guidlines on dog food bags anyway. According to the bag I should be feeding 1 1/2 cups per day for one dog and 1 cup per day to the other dog. They get 3/4 a cup a day and do a half-fast day every sunday(only get one meal instead of 2) and maintain their weights perfectly, right where I want them to be.

I'm switching to raw in 3 days so we'll see how that goes, I'm sure I'll have to figure out differently but I'll be starting at 1/2 a pound per dog per day and adjust from there.

 

I like knowing the calories. When we had switched to TOTW the first thing I told hubby was to watch their weight. Because it had about 150 less calories per (was it cup? or half a cup) less than the previous food. And when we switched again, it went up, so again, I said watch their weight.

And sure enough, on TOTW, we had to up their food intake to a heaping 1/2c versus back down to a level 1/2c on Acana. It at least helps me know where to start at with a new food.

Unfortunately, I can't tell if they're good weight, overweight, what? My vet said they were both fine when they weighed 24lb and 21lb. But now that they're at 18/19 lb, I have to say, Miko's back no longer arches. Although Koji feels the same fatness, but he's 5lbs less. You think it's all fur? lol. Time to go to the vet again.

 

How tall are they? Those weights seem reasonable for a smaller, fine boned Sheltie.

 

Koji is 17.5". I'd say he's more fine boned than Miko.
Miko is 15.5". He's on the fine boned side, but seems big boned compared to Koji (his brother was big boned).

I don't want this thread to get OT, so don't worry about it. I know they're not real skinny (their ribs aren't easily felt), but I just worry cuz that seems so low. lol. Vet time soon anyways.