3 Meals or 2??

[luluq]

Hi Rottie Experts,

Wonder if you could help once again. I still have my baby "Jason" (who will be 6 months on October 1st) on three meals a day. He has never been a finicky eater and will eat just about anything you put down anytime you do. He has been fed premium dry dog food sometimes mixed with canned.
The thing is that he is now about 24 inches tall and is weighing about 78 lbs. Is it time to cut back to 2 meals a day (or should I have done this already)? Like I said, if I put it down for him, he will eat it. I am quite aware of not stressing the joints while they are growing, but I am not sure if he is fine or not.
Your input will be appreciated.
Thanks,

Lourdes
Miami, Florida

"TCM-Quintela's Dark Secret"

[trackermom]

While I am no expert, now sounds like a good time for you to bring him down to 2 meals a day. A way to make sure he is a healthy weight for him is to stand over him, you should see a tuck behind his rib cage, you should also be able to feel his ribs through a thin layer of fat.. Using that method should help you keep him at a healthy weight for him and determine the quantity of food he consumes on a daily basis.

[Judi W]

Mine have always been at two meals a day by that age.

[spidey]

I'm a bit confused. The amount you feed over the course of a day shouldn't change unless the dog's weight needs adjusting up or down, you simply divide the day's rations out over the number of meals you feed. If you're now feeding, for example, one cup three times a day, and your dog's weight is fine, then switching to two meals a day will mean one and one half cups twice a day, he's still getting three cups a day, regardless of whether you divide that three cups into two meals or six. I seriously doubt that you need to cut out a third of what your dog's eating, unless you're radically overfeeding him.

That said, there's no reason not to switch to two meals a day (although I usually feel that the more meals, the better - many small meals is preferable to one big meal, and the only reason to change from three meals to two is owner convenience, it's not for the dog's sake), but don't cut the amount of food the dog gets over a day unless he's overweight (as a general rule if you can feel his ribs easily, he's at a good weight).

[trackermom]

Nothing to be confused about, The reason that I stated what I did was as a side note to help him keep his pup at a healthy weight and regulate the food as they pup goes through its growth stages and is not directly proportionate to the changing of the timing of meals...

Originally Posted by spidey

I'm a bit confused. The amount you feed over the course of a day shouldn't change unless the dog's weight needs adjusting up or down, you simply divide the day's rations out over the number of meals you feed. If you're now feeding, for example, one cup three times a day, and your dog's weight is fine, then switching to two meals a day will mean one and one half cups twice a day, he's still getting three cups a day, regardless of whether you divide that three cups into two meals or six. I seriously doubt that you need to cut out a third of what your dog's eating, unless you're radically overfeeding him.

That said, there's no reason not to switch to two meals a day (although I usually feel that the more meals, the better - many small meals is preferable to one big meal, and the only reason to change from three meals to two is owner convenience, it's not for the dog's sake), but don't cut the amount of food the dog gets over a day unless he's overweight (as a general rule if you can feel his ribs easily, he's at a good weight).

[JaniceH]

I had Teazle on 2 meals at 6 months. No problems at all.

[groupieindenial]

I think its just preference. I have my guy on 3 times a day. I figure his body will absorb more nutrients, rather than flushing out what it doesn't need/use if fed bigger quantities fewer times in a day. It's been proven (with humans at least) that eating small portions, but more frequesntly throughout the day keeps your energy levels up, your less hungry and the body burns cals more effeciently.

[brunie's mom]

[quote=luluq]Hi Rottie Experts,

Wonder if you could help once again. I still have my baby "Jason" (who will be 6 months on October 1st) on three meals a day. He has never been a finicky eater and will eat just about anything you put down anytime you do. He has been fed premium dry dog food sometimes mixed with canned.
The thing is that he is now about 24 inches tall and is weighing about 78 lbs.

Lourdes

First of all what type of food are you feeding?
A pup that is not even 6 months old and almost 80 lbs....is HUGE!!! How much is he eating per day????
Unless he comes from oversized out of proportion lines....I'm guessing that he is heavy.

You can cut him back to 2 meals now....usually most pups start lacking interest in the lunch meal around this time.

My pup Baxter just turned 6 months last week and he has been eating 2 meals for a couple of weeks now.
At this age you should be able to feel ribs easily...you do not want a pudgy puppy..nice slow, easy growth is best.

Gina

[ktandgable]

At 6 mths how many cups a day are you feeding him? Our 5 mth old eats about 5 cups a day...but that's what our vet told us to do...based on his weight and age. It just seems like a lot to me.

[spidey]

Originally Posted by trackermom

Nothing to be confused about, The reason that I stated what I did was as a side note to help him keep his pup at a healthy weight and regulate the food as they pup goes through its growth stages and is not directly proportionate to the changing of the timing of meals...

It wasn't your post that confused me, it was the original post, which seemed to talk about weight and stressing the joints as if the poster was asking if s/he should cut out that extra meal's percentage of the day's rations, rather than just dividing the same amount over fewer meals. I could be misinterpreting, of course, but I know more than one person has thought that cutting out a meal meant cutting out the food that was in that meal too, and then been surprised when their dog started losing weight. At six months, I suspect this puppy still needs those calories.

[luluq]

Thank you all for your input. You guys are right, 2 or 3 will not matter if the total amount is the same.
No, Jason does not come from oversized lines, but he is my first male rottie and I am not quite sure what to expect. I can stand behind him and still see a slight tuck behind his ribs, but he is beginning to look a little pudgy.
I would be interested to know how many cups you guys feed a day at 6 months. I guess he is getting about 5 cups per day, but yes, we are guilty of that horrible sin of giving him sometimes table scraps mixed with his meal. Not a heck of a lot, just a little. You should see him do cartwheels in the air when he sees (and smells) me cooking ground (extra lean, with no artificial anything!) beef or chicken. This dog loves food !! I know a lot of you think this is not right, however, sometimes I think even though his food is a great food, this adds to whatever the food has in a low percentage. I'll probably catch hell from most of you. Let me have it if you want to.
Thanks,
Lourdes

[Troy]

As he grows older leaner is preferred to pudgy.

My boy is 120 lbs and eats roughly 2 1/2 to 3 cups a day (broken into two meals), He's eating Innova however, which has better nutrient content than a lot of cheaper foods.

He just turned 10 on September 8th. The vet told me he believes keeping his weight right on target has been one key to his longevity.

[brunie's mom]

Originally Posted by luluq

Thank you all for your input. You guys are right, 2 or 3 will not matter if the total amount is the same.
No, Jason does not come from oversized lines, but he is my first male rottie and I am not quite sure what to expect. I can stand behind him and still see a slight tuck behind his ribs, but he is beginning to look a little pudgy.
I would be interested to know how many cups you guys feed a day at 6 months. I guess he is getting about 5 cups per day, but yes, we are guilty of that horrible sin of giving him sometimes table scraps mixed with his meal. Not a heck of a lot, just a little. You should see him do cartwheels in the air when he sees (and smells) me cooking ground (extra lean, with no artificial anything!) beef or chicken. This dog loves food !! I know a lot of you think this is not right, however, sometimes I think even though his food is a great food, this adds to whatever the food has in a low percentage. I'll probably catch hell from most of you. Let me have it if you want to.
Thanks,
Lourdes

You still have not told us what food you are feeding!!! The amount and the brand of the food make a difference. If you are feeding Innova or Canidae or something similar...then 5 cups plus canned food, plus table scraps...is TOO MUCH FOOD for a 6 month old pup.

Most Rottweilers LOVE food....I think only Labs enjoy their food as much. They could eat till they bust , and they are constantly hungry.

There is nothing wrong with giving good people food...and I don't think there is anyone that would tell you not to here. The problem is that he is getting too much food and growing too quickly. It is better to have a lean puppy , then a pudgy puppy. You will have less problems with Pano, etc.

My pup Baxter is just over 6 months old...he eats Canidae. He gets 2 cups a.m., 2 cups p.m. If I have some good table scraps or tripe or raw chicken necks....then I either eliminate one meal or cut the kibble to one cup.
He is 69 lbs. now...and looking great...a hint of rib and lots of energy.

It could be that your pup is an early bloomer and his weight and growth will slow down soon also or he could grow into a fat dog.

Gina

[SonnyRott]

Wow! You guess he is getting 5 cups per day (could it be more), plus extras? At 6 months it is reasonable to say the pup should be 60 lbs (give or take a few).

My dog eats twice a day. No more than 2 cups per meal. Less if he is eating extras and training treats.

Any yes, for the most part, Rotts will act like they are STARVING TO DEATH!!

[spidey]

Like Gina, I also feel that there's nothing at all wrong with feeding some people food (as long as it's appropriate for dogs, like meat and veggies), you just have to make sure that you adjust the amount of kibble you feed accordingly, the same way you have to adjust the kibble for the calories you feed as training treats. Here is a good weight chart (notice that the ideal weight is probably much leaner than most people think) - learn how your dog should look and adjust the food accordingly.