[Daenerys]

So, my little boy Legend is a bit chubby. I havent weighed him in a while but he last weighed 10lbs when he should be 7-8lbs. I'll weigh him soon to get a more accurate idea of how much we should be working off but in the mean time: I feed him a total of half a cup of Earthborn primitive natural grain-free plus 2 spoonfuls of Merrick canned food per day. I've been taking him for a 40 minute walk each morning for the past two weeks and plan to continue that M-F from now on. Do you think I should decrease his food amount or no? I'm just so worried I'll accidentally underfeed since he doesn't eat a ton to begin with.

 

[georgiapeach]

I feed my almost 13 pound minipoo and my 12.5 pound westie mix a total of 1/2 c. of Innova Prime per day, with no canned food added, so I think you're overfeeding, if your dog should only weigh 7-8 pounds. I'd cut back to 1/3 c. daily and cut out the canned food. Try adding a little warm water instead of the canned food to bring out the aroma w/out adding the calories. You can give baby carrots and frozen no-salt green beans to add filling fiber.

 

[deege39]

I have a 20lb, low energy Chihuahua-mix. Since I've had him, he's gained 1lb, [says the vet] which I argue was probably a 1lb of poop since he hadn't pooped that morning.

Anyway! lol! He gets no less than a 1/4c of food each day, and no more than 1/2. He's never been the type of dog that, religiously, needs to eat twice a day, I found this out the first couple years I had him, because some days he'd eat both breakfast and dinner, and some days he'd only want dinner. On the days I plan to feed two meals, he gets 1/4c each meal; Then the next day I probably only feed dinner and give him 1/2c. He's rounda'bout four years old, and every check-up his doctor says not only is he handsome, but he's at his ideal weight.

Since having Miggy in the house, he's a high-energy little thing, probably only about 7-8lbs himself, so I give him 1/4c twice a day, and so since I've been feeding Miggy twice a day, Donatello has been standing expectantly at his bowl two times a day waiting for both his meals. lol!

I don't think it would hurt to cut back his food, especially if he's not very active. If you're not comfortable with that, maybe breaking up his meals more with more activity in-between?

 

[Kathyy]

I would cut back his food a little. Maybe feed a scant 1/3 cup a day with 1 small spoon of wet food mixed with a little water. If you happen to have an accurate scale around you might weigh the food instead of using measuring cups, far more accurate especially with the tiny amount of food.

Might be a bit much for every meal but once a day you could feed kibble from a puzzle toy so he is up and at em for a little while. I used to train with about half of each meal or toss it all over the floor to hunt down if I was lazy that day or throw it down the hall one bit at a time to hunt down. You could even give a few bits of kibble to everybody in the house and take turns calling him so he is tearing around the house.

Oh, the reason I wanted to post was to remind you it isn't about how much the dog weighs, it is about the body condition. Max weighs more now he is on raw food but his body condition is the same as he gained muscle. Muscle weight good! So put your hands on him as well as weighing him. You want to be able to easily feel his ribs and other bony bits but not see any or in his fluffy case, feel dips between his hip bones [although that is proper for some dogs].

 

[Daenerys]

He is definitely pudgy since I can't feel his ribs without pushing down and he has no waist, which is why I have been upping his exercise. If he is that out of shape and pretty lazy aside from his morning walks, do you think it would be safe to cut his kibble in half to 1/4 cup a day?

 

[deege39]

I wouldn't just up and do it....... Maybe ease him down to 1/4c from a 1/2c, sounds difficult, but just to make sure his stomach adjusts and his body gets used to smaller portions gradually so he feels less hungry.

 

[Jordan S]

Just under 1/2 cup a day. My dog weighs 23 lbs(his ideal weight) and eats 2/3 cup a day(1/3 cup twice a day). He gains weight very easily.

 

[kafkabeetle]

Sydney gets 2/3 cup of EB primitive natural daily and weighs a healthy 19 pounds (on TOTW she got 1 cup daily). I think 1/3 for Legend would be a good place to start. In a few months if he hasn't lost enough you could decrease it more. Most Earthborn formulas are pretty caloric so he won't need much.

Oh and I agree that feeding out of a toy is a good idea. It will both give him some more low-impact exercise and help ease the transition to getting less food because he'll be eating it longer as he messes with the toy.

 

[flipgirl]

Cut his food back by 10%. Cutting it back too much may deprive him of necessary nutrients. I can't remember what this deficit is called in medical terminology but try not to cut back .too much. Cut back the kibble a bit. A bit of canned food is okay. If it were me, I would weirdos h to canned food period and maybe using kibble for treats. You coulduld try putting kibble on each step on a flight of stairs So he has to.move. or hide his meals in various places. you also don't want him to lose weight too fast as it can be unhealthy to do So.

You can give veggies like green beans, carrots, broccoli etc as treats or add it this food to fill him up. Beat to feed these steamed or blanched.

 

[roxiefoxie08]

1/4 cup of the dry food would be ok ,keep 2 teaspoons of the wet to see how your dog does?if you give him treats replace them with one baby carrot

 

[Hallie]

Cut his food down.

A skinny dog is much healthier than an overweight dog.