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BB currently eats Diamond Naturals Beef & Rice. She loves it and does well on it, but she acts like she is Always. Hungry.

She's probably around 60 pounds. I feed her two cups in the morning and two cups at dinner time, which is bumped up from the 1.5 cups twice daily that she was recommended to eat from my group. Is it just her nature to constantly seek food? I hate the idea that she might be hungry still all day, but I also don't want to overfeed.

 

Should I split up her meals into smaller portions throughout the day?

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I agree with the above responses. That seems like a lot of food for a 60 lb girl. My similarly sized girl only gets 3 cups/day split between 2 meals. However, she would happily eat much more than that if we let her. Adding Olewo carrots and other fruit/veggies that we have on hand to each meal seems to keep her satisfied longer, so something like that (e.g. green beans, banana, pumpkin, shredded celery, etc.) might help her as well. The little girls can be drama queens! :rofl

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I mostly bumped up her food because I want her to put on a couple of pounds! I can clearly see her ribs, though she isn't obviously underweight or anything.

From Diamond's site, it says 337 calories to a cup. The 40 - 60 pound range is 2.5 to 3.25 cups, and 60-80 pound range is 3.25-4 cups.

 

I just looked at her paperwork and on the vet invoice it says 85.00 next to weight. I can't believe that she weighs 85 pounds? She is a smaller girl, I have a hard time accepting that!

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I mostly bumped up her food because I want her to put on a couple of pounds! I can clearly see her ribs, though she isn't obviously underweight or anything.

From Diamond's site, it says 337 calories to a cup. The 40 - 60 pound range is 2.5 to 3.25 cups, and 60-80 pound range is 3.25-4 cups.

 

I just looked at her paperwork and on the vet invoice it says 85.00 next to weight. I can't believe that she weighs 85 pounds? She is a smaller girl, I have a hard time accepting that!

Take her in to petsmart where they have a scale and see for yourself. Just seeing ribs isn't a sign of being underweight- I would ask a greyhound person what they think because sometimes lots of well-meaning people will tell you to put weight on your dog when they don't need it. Also, is she still new? When we first got Jake he would act starved all the time too, but eventually he slowed down and has now become a picky eater!

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We have had her for 1.5 weeks, so still very new. :)

 

The vet invoice has the wrong ID number, so that info is for another dog- good thing too! 85 pounds is just nuts to me. Brandy's race weight was 65 pounds which is more believable, and that was just back in February when she was still at the track.

 

I think I will cut back 1/2 cup and wait it out to see if she stops being so ravenous!

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she acts like she is Always. Hungry.

 

Wait... that's NOT normal? ;):hehe

 

I hear this a lot at work when I'm counselling people on their overweight pets. They say the dog is starving and always hungry. My suggestion is that the dog isn't actually hungry... just likes food.

 

Last night I ate chips and candy before dinner. Then after dinner I had strawberries (you know, so that ONE of my snacks was healthy) and more candy. I also contemplated having a popsicle but decided I'd already had an unhealthy enough night (to be fair my dinner was very healthy and I had a small portion). I didn't want a popsicle because I was hungry. I wanted one just because I like popsicles!

 

My dogs will eat any time, almost anything. They're not hungry, they're just food hounds. If they were offered 3 meals all in a row, they'd clean each bowl. They'd probably eat until their stomachs exploded if they were given the opportunity. They like food!

 

If your dog is losing weight then she's not getting enough to eat and probably is hungry. If she's maintaining her weight, or gaining, she probably just likes food. You can try adding low calorie, high fibre fillers to keep her full longer if you really think she's hungry but she's gaining weight... but if she's just a chow hound that won't do much.

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Wait... that's NOT normal? ;):hehe

 

I'm so glad to hear it! With Stu, our first adoptee, he never would really cruise for food or even get too excited about mealtimes. He would take treats and everything, but was very polite about it.

 

I guess Brandy just loves her food!

(I'm also guilty of pre- and post-dinner snacking :lol )

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some dogs are chow hounds,that might be what you are dealing with!!! emily, my first grey who was in excellent weight used to drag the 30# bag of kibble out of the closet and rip it open and bing until i bought a good container to store the kibble in. i also had this experience w/ my late scottie who i found sleeping in the closet lying on top of kibble- totally stuffed. both were crazy chow hounds!!!!

 

my current female weighs anywhere from 63-65#s, i am feeding her a food that has 380 calories per cup and she eats a total of 3 cups of day( 1140 calories). my male(75#) who is on a low low fat diet eats 4 or 5 cups plus 1 c. each rice & oatmeal & 1 id canned food eats food that is only 290 calories per cup. but that's due to the lack of fat. Both play in the yard and walk somewhere between 2 & 4 miles daily. they are 8 & 9 years old.

 

when annie first came off the track at 2.5 her metabolism was different, she chowed down 4+ cups, tons of rice and was thinnish for quite some time. their metabolism changes w/ age and time off the track. be patient. i would wait a full 3-4 months and see what she looks like(weigh her) and check rib coverage. i know when my dogs drop weight, it's a full month of extra rice and oatmeal to get 2#s back on them. then i reduce the carbs.

 

it may be possible that that's not the right food for your pup. it's trial and error finding out. some dogs just need a different formulation, i'm not saying that what you are feeding is bad, it just might not be the right stuff. but it does look good, go know http://BEEF MEAL & RICE FORMULA FOR ADULT DOGS Real beef protein, along with added superfoods, provides the energy and muscle building blocks your dog needs to stay active and strong. Guaranteed levels of vitamin E and selenium ensure that your dog is receiving optimum antioxidant nutrition, while omega-6 and omega-3 fatty acids from super foods help maintain healthy skin and a shiny coat. INGREDIENTS Beef meal, peas, cracked pearled barley, pea flour, ground white rice, chicken fat, fish meal, pea protein, dried beet pulp, egg product, natural flavor, flaxseed, potassium chloride, salt, choline chloride, dried chicory root, kale, chia seed, pumpkin, blueberries, oranges, quinoa, dried kelp, coconut, spinach, carrots, papaya, yucca schidigera extract, dried Lactobacillus acidophilus fermentation product, dried Bifidobacterium animalis fermentation product, dried Lactobacillus reuteri fermentation product, vitamin E supplement, beta carotene, iron proteinate, zinc proteinate, copper proteinate, ferrous sulfate, zinc sulfate, copper sulfate, potassium iodide, thiamine mononitrate (vitamin B1), manganese proteinate, manganous oxide, ascorbic acid, vitamin A supplement, biotin, niacin, calcium pantothenate, manganese sulfate, sodium selenite, pyridoxine hydrochloride (vitamin B6), vitamin B12 supplement, riboflavin (vitamin B2), vitamin D supplement, folic acid. GUARANTEED ANALYSIS Crude Protein 25.0% Minimum Crude Fat 15.0% Minimum Crude Fiber 4.0% Maximum Moisture 10.0% Maximum Zinc 150 mg/kg Minimum Selenium 0.3 mg/kg Minimum Vitamin E 150 IU/kg Minimum Omega-6 Fatty Acids* 2.4% Minimum Omega-3 Fatty Acids* 0.4% Minimum Total Microorganisms* (Lactobacillus acidophilus, Bifidobacterium animalis, Lactobacillus reuteri) Not Less Than 1,000,000 CFU/lb *Not recognized as an essential nutrient by the AAFCO Dog Food Nutrient Profiles. Calorie Content: 3,600 kcal/kg (337 kcal/cup) Calculated Metabolizable Energy

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Some dogs will always be ready to eat, ANYTHING! ;lol

 

My girlie greys get 1 1/2 cups once a day. They weight about 60 lbs. each. Danny get about 2 cups, once a day. He is about 75 lbs. They all get a treat when they come inside from a potty to the yard. The treat is generally a small generic dog biscuit.

 

We feed Purina One Lamb and Rice.

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Guest Wasserbuffel

Don't believe the dog when it claims to be starving to death. My Kaylee would eat herself sick, and would happily weigh 85lobs if I let her.

 

I feed both Jayne and Kaylee 3 cups of Iams Proactive Health (green bag) each day. (Wash is still on puppy, but she'll get a bit less than the others once she's adult, because she's only 47lbs)

 

Jayne raced at 57lbs, and stays at about 59 for her pet weight. Kaylee raced at 60lbs, and actually stays about 56 for her pet weight. They both have different body types that show their optimal weight differently. Jayne's not quite as wasp waisted as Kaylee, but even when she was younger she had a sturdier build than Kaylee does.

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Guest Bean_Scotch

I feed Diamond Naturals Large Breed Adult...
My 65lb girl gets 4 cups/day
My 65lb boy gets 4 cups/day
My 45lb boy gets 3 cups/day
My 85lb boy gets 6-7 cups/day
My 72lb girl gets 6-7 cups/day.

Some Greyhounds are just ALWAYS looking for food. Mine would gorge themselves if I let them. Especially when they are new. I'd feed her 3-4 cups/day and see where she is weight wise. She should be close to her racing weight.

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All my 80# plus boys ate 4 cups a day. It does depend on the calories in the food though. Can't wrap my head around an 85 pound girlhound. I think the biggest one I've seen/adopted out was Creme White who was about 75 pounds. Here kennel name was Toni and we called her Toni the pony. :lol

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I'm keeping her around 4 cups a day unless I see too much weight gain now. I had her cut back to 3 cups a day and she has recently started occasionally throwing up bile about an hour or two before her normal feeding time, and she has no issues with an upset stomach when she gets the extra cup of food. She's still really young and active, so I don't feel bad giving her a little more as long as she maintains her current weight!

 

I may just take her to petsmart today and let her pick out a new toy and weigh her if they have a scale, just so I have a good reference point. I'm really happy with where she's at now, she isn't so ribby looking but her structure is still well defined.

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I'm keeping her around 4 cups a day unless I see too much weight gain now. I had her cut back to 3 cups a day and she has recently started occasionally throwing up bile about an hour or two before her normal feeding time, and she has no issues with an upset stomach when she gets the extra cup of food. She's still really young and active, so I don't feel bad giving her a little more as long as she maintains her current weight!

 

I may just take her to petsmart today and let her pick out a new toy and weigh her if they have a scale, just so I have a good reference point. I'm really happy with where she's at now, she isn't so ribby looking but her structure is still well defined.

If she's young and active, it's a fine amount. She's also super new, so I wouldn't rock the boat too much. Yes, she might act hungry, but that's not unusual. Wait a month, then adapt as needed. I had a small female foster (55 lb) that ate more than my 90 lb. male. She just had a high metabolism. She was 5 years old, not very active, and never gained a lb! The 90 lb. male (my Sobe), I had to watch constantly so he wouldn't get pudgy, eating 3 c. per day and would eat anything that didn't eat him first! He'd eat until he vomited if I'd let him. My Diana, was a skinny-minnie-ribs-sticking-out most of her life and I couldn't put weight on her in ANY way. She ate what she needed, and refused any more.

 

Do what works for your dog. They're all different. Know what a healthy "look" is, for that dog. But don't get hung up on it right away. Transition is hard.

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  • 3 weeks later...

I have had and lived with dogs my entire 54+ years. I have never seen a dog (except sick ones) who don't "act hungry" all the time.

 

My dog is male, but the same size as your girl. I feed him 1 cup in the AM and 1 cup in the PM. He also gets two large sized Milk Bones (one when I leave for work, and one after last potties), and I let him lick my dinner plate or occasionally give him a bite of my food.

 

He looks just right on that amount of food, and I expect your girl would to.

 

Please resist the urge to add weight to your dog. If she's your first greyhound, she no doubt looks thin to you. She should not look like a Labrador or a Pointer, she should look think and steamlined.

 

There are a whole lot of fat greyhounds out there.


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I have had and lived with dogs my entire 54+ years. I have never seen a dog (except sick ones) who don't "act hungry" all the time.

Different experience here. Cody is the least food motivated dog I've ever seen and is a "hard keeper". Barkley will eat what he wants and will walk away from food in the bowl when he's full then I pick it up to keep street waif Pitou from finishing it. I free fed many dogs successfully for many years until Poodle became diabetic.

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