# Will your poodle ever overeat on kibble?



## Newmum (Jan 2, 2014)

Ember is now 7 months old, oversized mini already at 16" but just 12lbs. Her spine and ribs are felt a little too easily so I took her to the vet who agreed that even for a poodle puppy she was too thin. Although she also said she would rather see her too thin than too fat. I currently feed Ember Simpsons 80/20. See ingredients and feeding guidelines here if interested 80/20 Mixed (Chicken,Fish,Turkey) I have upped her daily allowance to 150g which is enough for a 10kg/22lb active dog. She still finishes it and looks for more. I keep reading that poodles won't overeat and only get overweight due to tasty but fatty titbits! But I feel like Ember would eat the whole bag if I put it down! I know she's still growing and I don't want her to be hungry but I don't want to feed her too much and her to get fat for me to realise more than 150g is too much. Plus I feel like 150grams should be plenty as its a high quality grain free food. Should I be feeding her more until she leaves some in the bowl or is she a rare PIGGY POODLE?


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## CharismaticMillie (Jun 16, 2010)

All of mine except for one are piggy poodles!


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## Poodlebeguiled (May 27, 2013)

I've heard that Poodles don't tend to be over eaters, but that's not an absolute by any means. I've seen over weight ones. Mine don't tend to over do it at all. They're all bound to be different. So, my advice would be to feed your pup a little more...maybe another meal or just a little more at meal time or save some of her extra for training rewards. Then just watch her weight. If she seems to be getting too pudgy, cut back a tad. With my Jose` who would eat until he killed himself, it's a constant regulating thing for me. He goes up and down a couple pounds easily.


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## eusty (Jan 5, 2014)

Both ours don't overeat on kibble (guess you mean dried food?)

The have a bowl out which they can help themselves to, but generally they wait to be fed 'properly' (raw chicken tonight :act-up and only pick at it if they are particularly hungry.

I'm not sure of their weight but the vet is happy with them and they 'look' right


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## MollyMuiMa (Oct 13, 2012)

Molly doesn't overeat, but I had to stop giving her/sharing with her, my lunch and dinner as she started to get 'pudgey' because I'm a carbs addict! I noticed too, that once she left the puppy stage at about a year old, she ate less.
Even now that I'm careful about letting her have table food, and she only gets about a 1/2 cup food a day, (1/4 cup of it is kibble) she often leaves a bite or two in her dish! (her kibble is left out to free feed)


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## lily cd re (Jul 23, 2012)

No overeating here! We free feed Blue Buffalo large breed chicken and rice.  Both dogs weigh very consistent from check to check. We also don't give table scraps very often (only very special occasions like dog birthday or title celebrations).

Our vet, who is a poodle person, thinks the only way poodles get fat is if they eat a lot of junky people food. As to Peeves I think he is always a little surprised that he doesn't get fat with a free feeding routine.


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## AutisticDogLover (Nov 25, 2012)

My poodle(though a standard) would probably eat a big bag of dogfood if she ever got ahold of one... and then look for more....

I think her gluttony probably has something to do with when she was little she had to be fed rice/chicken/pumpkin for a few months because every kibble we tried gave her the runs and that combination didn't. THANK GOODNESS she's ok with Wellness kibble....

she will sneak food every chance she gets, I very much hope she grows out of it....

She's at a healthy weight and is fed 2 cups a day(though the cups are a bit over flowing.... so more like 2 and 1/4) and she's about #50


We free-feed our papillons


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## Newmum (Jan 2, 2014)

Thank you everyone! I'll see how Ember does on the increased amount for a while before maybe changing it again. I think it will be easier to know for sure when she's fully grown as the right amount will leave her close to the same weight every month. As she's still young I guess it's better for her growing bones and joints that she's a little lighter as long as she's not super hungry. Ember would probably say I'm stingy as she doesn't get table scraps just kibble, dog treats, yoghurt and cheese cubes for training.

I'm glad I'm not alone with my piggy poodle


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## Lou (Sep 22, 2012)

My 2 are extremely picky eaters. 
Apollo is a bit better than Lou... But they both forget to eat, I have to encourage them "eat your food baby!" And they like their food!! , (better than others I've tried) and they do eat enough, but JUST enough... They'd never eat more than they can hold.... I have to watch for the opposite=them not eating enough. I'm always on it, so they can maintain their weight (I think they are in a perfect weight now but can't lose any weight) about 56-60lbs 26" or a bit taller (haven't measured in a long time, and they just turned 2)

I hear that most poodles are picky eaters, but I'm sure there are many that will eat anything and tons of it 


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## marialydia (Nov 23, 2013)

It so depends on the individual. Hecuba, who is 15, is and always has been a foodie. What she gets is never enough according to her and if food were freely available I believe she would eat until she was a blimp. She is now on a very restricted diet (home cooked) as her triglycerides are through the roof and she has Cushing's. I got her as a rescue at age 8 and have no idea what she ate before, but she was very pudgy when she came to me at 6.2 kg. Now she is a good weight, 5kg. 

Jupiter on the other hand is picky. He likes his food but once in a while doesn't eat it all. He scrounges less than Hecuba. 

You might want to check how many calories that 150 grams has if you haven't already. There are really good websites to calculate caloric needs. Here is one:

Metabolic Energy Requirements For Dogs

It says it's for cocker spaniels, but it's the same as the official calculation I've used. For example, Jupiter, who is 12 years old and not so very active anymore, is 7 kg and eats 100 g of Wellness small breed, (or other Wellness) plus a bit of Hecuba's food to get pills down, plus snacks. I estimate that he is getting about 435 calories per day, and he is very slim. He just had surgery, to remove a lipoma, and the vet agrees I should give him more.


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## Indiana (Sep 11, 2011)

Oh man my two eat every single thing they can get their paws on! Including kibble yes, but also tomatoes from the garden and apples from the tree. Oh and my weigela shrub. The ONLY things Maddy doesn't like are bagels, limes and eggs. Indy likes even those things! And wine oh my goodness I have to guard my glass very closely or that mooch licks it.


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## robby69 (Apr 29, 2012)

Our spoos have always been free feeders and grazers. They might go a day or two without eating much, then the whole bowl would be gone. Our last 2 spoos stayed within 3-4lbs of their adult weight their entire life with food available to them around the clock.

Don't ask me what happens when we open the crisper drawer in the frig where we keep the cheese and lunch meats. They hear the drawer being pulled out and come running, just like Pavlov's dogs. :act-up:


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## Indiana (Sep 11, 2011)

I should have clarified, they ate the tomatoes and apples last year when they were ripe (not ripe yet this year). They were both 62 lbs in the winter, the little pudgers, but now they get so much exercise in the summer weather that they've both lost some weight and look much better. Maddy still looks a little chubby but way better than she was, and Indy is positively lean. I still feed them 2 cups each of good quality kibble per day plus some chicken but they would eat far, far more than that if I let them.


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## Newmum (Jan 2, 2014)

marialydia said:


> It so depends on the individual. Hecuba, who is 15, is and always has been a foodie. What she gets is never enough according to her and if food were freely available I believe she would eat until she was a blimp. She is now on a very restricted diet (home cooked) as her triglycerides are through the roof and she has Cushing's. I got her as a rescue at age 8 and have no idea what she ate before, but she was very pudgy when she came to me at 6.2 kg. Now she is a good weight, 5kg.
> 
> Jupiter on the other hand is picky. He likes his food but once in a while doesn't eat it all. He scrounges less than Hecuba.
> 
> ...


Thanks for the link, very interesting as I hadn't been able to find a calculator for growing puppies just an adult one. I have emailed Simpsons to try and find out their calorie count as its not information I can see on their site anywhere. If they don't get back to me would it be pretty safe to assume it is very similar in calories to Orijen adult as the ingredients are similar and Analytical information and feeding guide is pretty much the same:

*Orijen*
Crude protein (min.) 38 %
Crude fat (min.) 18 %
Crude ash (max.) 8 %
Fibre (max.) 5 %
Calcium (min/max) 1.3 % Phosphorus (min/max) 1 %
*Simpsons 80/20 mixed*
Protein: 38% 
Oil: 18% 
Ash: 10.5%
Fibre: 3% 
Calcium: 2.01% Phosphorous: 1.62% Omega 6: 2.53% Omega 3: 1.93%

*Simpsons feeding guide:*
5-10kg less active 75-115, active 100-150

*Orijen feeding guide*
5-10kg less active 60-120, active 90-150
3980 kcal/kg (478 kcal per 250ml/120g cup)

Hopefully Simpsons will get back to me and let me know their calorie information but if not it looks like it should be around the same calories as Orijen, right?


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## marialydia (Nov 23, 2013)

Hi Newmum, yes, I think your assumptions are pretty sound...According to the caloric needs chart puppies need more (building muscle and bone and all that). You might just try adding another 10-15 grams for a few days and see the result. And add in a few high quality treats for another 30 calories or so. 

In any case the guidelines are only that and you need to trust your judgement. Hecuba for example is eating a home -cooked diet with BalanceIt added. BalanceIt gave very strict directions for how many grams of chicken, potato, and oil (and what kind) to use and warned the user not to deviate. It was just too much food for Hecuba to eat at once-- she couldn't finish it. (and she is a foodie!!) First I reduced the total amount, and after a few months I started reducing the potato and adding green vegetables (frozen kale, usually) and recently lowfat yogurt. It seems to be doing her some good. And she is looking for treats later, which more in line with her character.


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## Poodle Lover (Mar 24, 2008)

"Will your poodle overeat kibble?" - In a word no. They won't even eat dry kibble. . I. Feed mine raw in the morning, home cooked at night. I occasionally mix a little kibble with home cooked, usually when I am running low on the home made.


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## hopetocurl (Jan 8, 2014)

Reading this thread makes me feel a little better. Willow eats but just enough. so, I would say she's self regulating...however, she seems to be VERY interested in anything that I am eating. So, of course, I share... this morning she tried a tiny bit of banana. She loved it. I am free feeding her kibble...but we're in puppy training (sit, down, come, roll over, shake... and housebreaking, so she gets lots of treats otherwise.)


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## Carley's Mom (Oct 30, 2011)

Carley's breeder free feeds all her dogs and no one was over weight.


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## reginaanna217 (Jan 16, 2014)

My Rex will not overeat on kibble. I personally can't get him to eat enough. he is a toy poodle though and they generally do eat less than the other poodle sizes.


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## Suddenly (Aug 8, 2013)

Brandon will never over eat his kibble. I now just started giving him 2oz of Primal Raw Goats Milk over his kibble and tripe morning and night, and now he wipes his bowl clean. Loves the Raw Goats Milk. Anyone else that give their poodles Raw Goats Milk?


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## lily cd re (Jul 23, 2012)

By raw, I am guessing you mean unpasteurized on the goat's milk. Speaking as a microbiology professor, if so, I would be concerned about infectious agents in the milk. I would never consume any unpasteurized dairy product or store bought fruit juice, nor would I feed such things to my dogs. The only raw juice we consume is that which I make myself for immediate consumption from very well washed organic fruits.

Here are a couple of references. The first is from the World Health Organization and the second is from the British Columbia, CA public health agency.


http://whqlibdoc.who.int/monograph/WHO_MONO_48_(p11).pdf

http://www.bccdc.ca/NR/rdonlyres/3A2C5D87-5615-4B4B-9279-F28BE80E7764/0/RawMilkPathogens.pdf


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## Newmum (Jan 2, 2014)

reginaanna217 said:


> My Rex will not overeat on kibble. I personally can't get him to eat enough. he is a toy poodle though and they generally do eat less than the other poodle sizes.


This is why I was worried that I wasn't feeding Ember enough, I see a lot of 'picky poodle' threads its just good to know from other posts I'm not alone with my piggy poodle


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## Spooluvr (Feb 5, 2012)

Oh boy my Charlie's nickname is Hoover. Every walk I have to say its not a buffet Charlie. I wouldn't dare free feed him he would keep eating. My last dog wasn't a good eater Charlie doesn't have that problem.


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## Tiffany (Feb 13, 2014)

Man I wish my dog would eat he's the pickiest, I changed his kibble 3 times before settling on something that he won't starve himself with. 

He doesn't eat enough.. 

The guideline says about 1 cup a day for a dog his size, he skips breakfast and lunch most days but eats his dinner. I worry about him... 


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## georgiapeach (Oct 9, 2009)

My previous poodle, Potsie, an overgrown toy, was an enthusiastic eater and I had to measure his food carefully. My current toy, Sunny, is an extremely picky eater and doesn't eat enough. I've had to institute tough love with him. When he's hungry enough, he eats. I feed twice daily, so he gets two opportunities.


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## lily cd re (Jul 23, 2012)

Lily is a grazer and thankfully so is Peeves, we free feed. If you don't also have a gluttonous eater you might try that. Measure out a full day's portion in the morning and just leave it and see what happens.


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