Am I Feeding Her Too Much?

[GreyStella]

Stella often will not eat 2 meals a day. I feed her 2 cups in the morning and 2 in the evening. She doesn't get a lot of treats, just pb in her kong in the morning. She doesn't look like she is losing any weight

[rsieg]

Logan gets 1.5 cups in the am and 1.5 cups in the pm. But it is not uncommon for him to skip a meal. I don't worry about it since he is overweight as it is :-)

 

You might try cutting back to 1.5 cups am/pm and see how Stella does on that, especially if she starts gaining weight.

[Time4ANap]

By weight, most very large dogs get 3 to 3 1/2 cups a day max on many of the foods that are out there. Look at the directions for the food you are feeding and go by the feeding guidelines for your dog's weight. After a few weeks adjust up or down by 1/4 cup at a time if an adjustment is needed. Don't forget to include treats when you are calculating total daily intake or calories. Your dog may just not be as hungry if she's had treats throughout the day and is being given more food than she needs. Also, as dogs become seniors, they seem to get a little pickier and sometimes skip a meal here and there. No big deal if it's not a constant thing.

Edited February 28, 2018 by Time4ANap

[GreytHoundPoet]

A lot of dogs self-regulate their food intake. I have 3 here, out of my 6, that always have. They will not eat very much (and will skip meals) unless they get a good amount of exercise. They maintain beautiful, fit conditions and proper weight so I have stopped worrying about it. I can't tell you how many vet conversations it took for me to calm down about it and just watch to make sure they maintain and don't lose.

 

Food amounts also vary by quality and dog size, age, metabolism, and condition. For example, on the exact same food, my 38lb Ibizan gets 1.5 cups a day, my 44lb Ibizan gets 6 cups a day, my 55lb Ibizan gets 5 cups a day, and my 68 lb Ibizan gets 2.5 cups a day. The 44lb and 55lb ones are young and extremely active dogs, while the other 2 are very active compared to a Greyhound but kind of lazy for Ibizans. My Greyhounds are a bit closer in food amount. My 52lb girl ate 3 cups a day when actively lure coursing and 2 in the off season and retirement, and my 49lb girl eats 2. Both are seniors now.

[GreyTzu]

Danny, our 70 pound male eats about 1 to 1.5 cups once a day. He gets a treat most of the time when he comes inside from potty, a small treat.

[GreyStella]

She didn't eat breakfast so for dinner I just added the 3rd cup and she ate the whole thing in two rounds. I will see how she does. Thanks to all!!

[JohnF]

Peggy eats less now she's older but still enough to keep just a couple of short rib-ends showing. When the weather is really cold she eats more. When she exercises a lot she eats more. In the hot summer she eats 1/2 of what she eats now. I think she's still in control.

[LaFlaca]

I wonder if this is a Greyhound-ish quirk. Both Greys I've owned have been meal-skippers even at a young age. They'll eat several meals like they're starving and then go a few days skipping breakfast or eating only part of a meal.

 

Lola weighs 72 lbs. and gets 1 1/2 cups of kibble twice a day plus the occasional chew or treat.

[GeorgeofNE]

That's twice as much food as I give my dog, and he maintains his weight. Every dog is different.

[cleptogrey]

exercise, caloric count of food(look at the bag) and metabolism, exercise level and age all play into how much you should feed your dog. can someone chime in w/ the link that illustrates how an overweight grey looks? it's somewhere on this board.

 

when stressed(camping and traveling) my dogs can chow down 4 cups a day and loose weight. otherwise, the 65# girls ate somewhere around 3 cups a day, around 1100 calories.

[Walliered]

I pour a little Honest Kitchen gravy on top of their food. Keeps them cleaning their bowls.

[GreytHoundPoet]

can someone chime in w/ the link that illustrates how an overweight grey looks? it's somewhere on this board.

 

 

 

http://www.greyhoundcrossroads.com/index.php?page=weight

[cgs]

Wow, a couple of you are feeding1.5 to 3 cups/day total for 70lb dogs. We just got our 70lb male and the rescue lady said to give 2 cups morning and evening and then after a day or two increase to 2.5 each feeding. I've been giving 2 cups in the morning (didn't increase since he doesn't always finish it) and 2.5 at night, which he finishes. When I was only giving 2 at night, he was looking for more. Is this ok? 4-4.5 cups total? I can still see his ribs. We've only had him 5 days.

[GreytHoundPoet]

Wow, a couple of you are feeding1.5 to 3 cups/day total for 70lb dogs. We just got our 70lb male and the rescue lady said to give 2 cups morning and evening and then after a day or two increase to 2.5 each feeding. I've been giving 2 cups in the morning (didn't increase since he doesn't always finish it) and 2.5 at night, which he finishes. When I was only giving 2 at night, he was looking for more. Is this ok? 4-4.5 cups total? I can still see his ribs. We've only had him 5 days.

 

Most likely, depending on your dog's structure, you should always see some ribs. When dogs leave the track they are in peak physical condition, despite the fact that people think they are too skinny and try to pack weight onto them. That extra weight converts to fat as they lose musculature in retirement unless you keep them fit. The amount of food also depends on the things I mentioned above: quality of food, dog size, age, metabolism, and condition.

 

Check this out: http://www.greyhoundcrossroads.com/index.php?page=weight

 

This is one of my Greyhounds. I actually raised her from 8-weeks-old. I don't have easily accessible pictures of my others at the moment.

 

 

Edited March 2, 2018 by GreytHoundPoet

[Hubcitypam]

The calories per cup can make a HUGE difference. I found out fast when I tried Beyond. You just can't compare cups - you have to look further. Four cups of Iams is different than four cups of Blue Buffalo.

That said, my 80+ pound big boys ate 4 cups a day of mid range food (Iams or Purina One). Pitou & Bark hover around 22-25 pounds and each get one cup a day. Times three would be 3 cups for a girlhound.

[cgs]

Thanks for the link. That's really helpful. I know his racing weight was 70lbs, but I have no idea what he weighs now. He goes to the vet in a week,so I'll find out. I feel like his hip bones really protrude and I think his ribs show more than in the healthy pictures in that link. But he has a shiny black coat, so the light glinting off might make them seem more visible.

[fastpointydoge]

I think different foods and dogs are of such a wide variety that you can only feed according the individual situation. I find it helps to look at photos of my dog versus just staring at him in person.

 

Wow, a couple of you are feeding1.5 to 3 cups/day total for 70lb dogs. We just got our 70lb male and the rescue lady said to give 2 cups morning and evening and then after a day or two increase to 2.5 each feeding. I've been giving 2 cups in the morning (didn't increase since he doesn't always finish it) and 2.5 at night, which he finishes. When I was only giving 2 at night, he was looking for more. Is this ok? 4-4.5 cups total? I can still see his ribs. We've only had him 5 days.

My dog's racing weight was 85lbs and he was about 78lbs when I adopted him 11 months ago. We've tried 4 different brands of food in that time. The amount of dry kibble has changed from roughly 3.5 - 4 cups per day depending on the food brand and his level of exercise. He's up to 81lbs now and I think he looks great and needs to gain more muscle than fat. We're on a slightly higher quality of food now so I'm actually feeding him a little less than before to maintain his current weight.