From: bws20@duts.ccc.amdahl.com (Brian W Simmons)
Newsgroups: rec.pets.dogs
Subject: Re: feeding times (was: New Puppy - Need Advice!!)
Date: 6 Sep 92 00:22:32 GMT
Reply-To: bws20@DUTS.ccc.amdahl.com (Brian W Simmons)
Organization: Amdahl Corporation, Sunnyvale CA


In Message-ID: <17tf5mINNdl7@moe.ksu.ksu.edu> Terry Hull responded

]bws20@duts.ccc.amdahl.com (Brian W Simmons) writes:
]
][Feed at specific times and pick it up discussion deleted]
]
]>I suppose this would be true for some individual dogs, IF you left out
]>massive quantities of food.  If you just leave out enough for one meal
]> and let the dog eat when it feels like it, then your scenario simply
]>cannot happen.  PArticualarly for breeds susceptible to bloat, providing
]>one meal a day is not a wise idea.  Our 93 lb dog gets about 7 cups of
]> dry food per day, half in the moring and half in the evening.
]
]Unless this dog is a puppy 7 cups is a *lot* of food for one day.  My
]87 lb Rottweiler is eating about 3 cups / day of Lamb and Rice Max
]with two large milkbones.  He is in very good shape.  I have a friend
]who feeds her Danes about 5 - 7 cups per day of Max depending on their
]age and activity level.  They range from about 110 lbs to 130 lbs.

The exact quantity I feed our Bouvier is somewhat irrelevant to the
discussion of how to feed one's dogs; the point I was trying to make was
that if one leaves only 1 meal's worth of food out, and one is of
reasonable intelligence and reasonably observant generally about one's
dog, there should be no problem with this.  One should be able to
recognize whether one's dog is off his feed; I certainly can.

What I neglected to mention (because I considered it irrelevant to the
discussion) was that Raleigh is on a high fiber/low calorie diet
(Prescription W/D) which probably explains the (what you consider to be)
large quantity of food consumed (diet is due to colitis which I discussed
 here a long time ago). I was (obviously, I thought) not recommending a
specific amount of food someone else should feed their dog(s); I was
trying to discuss feeding methodology.  I think I am capable of judging
how much is a large amount o food for *my* dog; you are welcome tojudge
for *your* dogs.

]I feed my adults 2 meals / day, and my puppies 3 meals per day.  If
]they don't eat what is put in front of them, it is taken away and they
]get it back the next meal.  Since I feed multiple dogs inside, this
]allows me to make certain how much and how quickly each dog eats.  If
]I have normally good eater who picks at his food, I begin to watch
]closely for other signs of problems.  Usually, it is nothing serious,

Nothing precludes me from doing this, and as a reasonably intelligent dog
owner, I do.

]but once in a while I have detected some problem earlier than I would
]have otherwise.  Also, eating regularly helps in housebreaking.  My 6
]month old is now trained to the point that he has two bowel movements
]per day.  One at about 7:00 AM (on our morning walk) and one at about
]:30 PM (our evening walk.)

Same with my dog...I explained separately to someone else that as the
thread had strayed off puppy feeding to dog feeding in general, I was
discussing the concept of free feeding for adults.  I did not make that
clear, and most of your points are well-taken for the original poster
regarding puppy feeding.

]If you have a "normal" eater or one who is not overly picky, they
]should eat all you put down in front of them.  If they are leaving
]food, they may be overfed.  A good rule of thumb is to feed them 2/3
]of what they would eat if fed by free choice.  Obviously, this does
]not apply to dogs that are working very hard every day.  They may need
]all the calories you can get into them.

DO you _always_ clean your plate?  I mean every single meal?  I don't.
I don't expect my dog to, either.  If he had a particualarly exertive
evening the night before, often he'd rather sleep.  When he feels like it,
as I noted often around noon, he eats.  I do the same thing.Dogs and
other animals I have owned and observed have moods and sometimes feel
like doing one thing over another.  Your dogs may be different.  Then,
they may have no choice and have wisely learned they damn well better eat
when the bowl is full, or they'll just have to wait.

'they may be overfed."  I think I am in a position to judge whether my dog
is overfed.  I read extensively on dog subjects, I stay in contact with
two vets, discuss dogs every chance I get, have a couple of degrees in
biology--in short, not a total idiot who has fed his dog to gargantuan
proportions.


]A regular feeding and elimination schedule is especially useful if you
]travel with your dogs.  This can save you lots of hassle as you go
]down the road with your canine friends.
]
]--
]Terry Hull  -  terry@eece.ksu.edu

Very true, but not mutually exclusive with what I do.
(yeah, I realize I am probably being a bit too sensitive here--it is
 one of my demons)

bws
--
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bws20@amail.amdahl.com      the human heart holds hidden treasures,
brian wesley simmons          in secret kept, in silence sealed
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