# confused with food amount?



## asuk (Jan 6, 2017)

Hello

Milo is 12.5 weeks and weighs almost 5 lbs. 

Right now, he gets 1/2 cup of turkey & salmon kibble (as per bag) and its free feeding from 7am-5pm. he doesnt usually finish it, maybe eats 80% of it. He then gets raw for dinner. I usually eyeball it, and roughly 2 tbsp of beef/chicken/organ/bone/muscle meat pattie with 1 tsp of lamb & venison tripe mixed with it. He licks his ball clean, he eats at 5pm.

Around 8.30pm, he goes to his bowl, sniffing around. I put some dry kibble in it. he doesnt eat it unless he is desperate. He likes it with a bit of water. well he ate 1/4 cup of the dry kibble.

I am utterly confused, i dont want to overfeed him. I can still feel his ribs and see his waist but i worry if he continues down this road, he will be overweight.

I used the dogfood advisor calculator to roughly see how much food a 5lbs dog should be eating and its only 50g, but since he is a puppy, i am going with about 60g, he eats probably approx 3/4 cup to 1 cup of food daily. (raw and the kibble)

is he eating too much? activity wise, its pretty typical of a puppy. we are not bringing him for long walks/hikes yet. his general day consist of training, some brain games, chew toys and playing fetch inside the house. he goes out for sniff and stroll daily and socialization. overall, "normal" puppy. 

is there a growth spurt for puppies around this time?

thanks and sorry for the long post.


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## MollyMuiMa (Oct 13, 2012)

I think what you are doing is fine! As Milo gets older, his appetite will probably get smaller......right now he IS a growing boy! He sounds like he is self regulating fairly well and I would just continue to do what you are doing! A night time snack to prevent hunger pukes is ok too! Just keep feeling that rib cage! hahaha!!!
My Molly (also a mini) at 5 years old , moderate energy level, and 13lbs., eats approx. 3ozs of raw and 1/3 c. of kibble, and of course 'treats', daily. Even at that small amount, if I don't make sure she gets exercise, she will gain weight! Every dog is individual in it's food intake!


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## lily cd re (Jul 23, 2012)

I agree with Molly. As long as you are feeding quality food and not giving too much of anything like hot dogs or cheese for training (which puppies generally don't need) it sounds like you are doing fine with his food. If he leaves a little over that tells you he is getting enough. Most poodles are pretty much not gluttons and will self regulate their food intake. Lily has done so well enough to weigh +/- her weight of 36.5 pounds for years through free feeding kibble to now eating home cooked. She occasionally declines a meal these days and I never worry unless she refuses for more than 2 meals in a row. 

My vet is a poodle person and he has always maintained that poodles don't get fat unless you give them too much people food.


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## Beautiful Blue (Apr 24, 2017)

Through the years I have tried to stick to the recommended amounts on the package chart - for whatever age and size my puppy or later, dog might be. What do I know? I figure they know more about such things than the average pet owner. 

I try to factor in whether my particular dog gets a lot of exercise, or is more sedentary. And that can vary from season to season and due to other circumstances. When I give treats, I give tiny amounts of something that smells good - and basically no human food or scraps - so not much caloric value coming from treats.

When I was taking care of my son's miniature poodle as well as my two spoo females for about 1 year due to his employment out of state...I did notice I was "fattening up" the little guy after about 3 months. !! Grandma! Maybe he ate some leftovers of the 2 big girls.

They were all over 7 at that time...7, 8, and 10...so I switched to a kibble for older dogs and with time they were all looking fit and trim again. So I am not sure that dogs wont overeat - even poodles - because I have seen waaaaayyyyy too many who are overweight.

My vet's office is very good about allowing you to come in and weigh your dog if you have reason to think they are losing or gaining inappropriately. I also have a baby scale that weighs up to 40 lbs. I think it is good that you are keeping an eye on his weight but he IS a puppy. And growth spurts definitely happen ...10 weeks to 2 years off and on.

Your practice of placing dry kibble in his bowl for evening is a good one in my opinion. If he is very hungry he will eat it. If he needs it he will eat it, and yet he shouldn't over eat since, as you say, he's not really crazy about it.


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