Do you follow the bag instructions?

Fran101

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#1
I am feeding Fromm Large breed puppy (I just like the ingredients list, not that I think he's a large breed puppy) and I've heard everything from "feed what's on the bag!" to cut that amount in half etc..
what do you guys think?

The bag says 3 cups per day. Which would round off to about 1 cup per meal..sound about right?
 

*blackrose

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#2
I'd start with what's on the bag, then adjust to what your pup's body tells you.

I feed Chloe half of what is on the bag, or else she'd be a tub of lard. I didn't even look at the bag when I decided feeding amounts for the three munchkins, but since I've worked at a boarding kennel for so long I just thought, "This is what I would feed a dog of this size...", fed that to them, and went from there. The only one we had to adjust was Gracie, as we were trying to get her to loose weight then had to even her out when she got to the weight we wanted.
 

Shai

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#3
I'd start with what's on the bag, then adjust to what your pup's body tells you.
This. It's a starting place.

When the pups were on kibble for a year, Web ate pretty much the recommended amount, Kim ate slightly less, and Mira ate at least double.

It varies.

Cookie's the only one on kibble now. Her recommended feeding rate is about 4cups/day IIRC. She eats 5-6cups/day. She does not carry any extra weight whatsoever.
 

Southpaw

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#5
I started there, but they're always too high, for us. My dog gets liquid diarrhea when she's fed too much. Took me a really long time to realize that lol, I assumed she would just gain weight if fed too much.

Most bags of food say a dog Juno's size should get 3 cups a day. I feed her roughly just under 2.5 cups. So yeah, it's a good starting place and then you can adjust as necessary.
 

Toller_08

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#6
None of my dogs eat kibble anymore, and when they did I never really looked at the recommended feeding amounts closely. But I just went to check out a couple of bags sitting here at the store of what the Dobermans ate and they ate less than the recommended amount.

The food Keira was eating recommends about 3 cups for a dog of her size, and she only ate 2 cups. The food Ripley was eating recommends 4 cups and he ate about 3 cups. So each needed about a cup less than was recommended.

As puppies though, Ripley and Keira both ate way more than what the bags recommended. For a while Ripley was eating like 7 cups a day and still not keeping weight, while the bag recommended that he should have been getting half of that.

So it definitely depends on the dog, and puppies need more calories than adult dogs too. So I'd start with what the bag says and go from there. You can usually tell pretty quickly whether they need less or more. :)
 
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#7
Oh god no. I've never followed the bag instructions exactly in my life.

I usually start out with the recommended amount from the weight range one lower than what my dog/puppy actually weighs. If that makes sense. And often I end up even reducing that if it seems like an excessive amount of food. Then just pay attention to their body weight and adjust as needed.
 

monkeys23

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#9
When they were on kibble, Lily ate way less than recommended and Scout a cup or so more than recommended.
 

Lyzelle

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#10
When they were on kibble, Lily ate way less than recommended and Scout a cup or so more than recommended.
Ditto on the less.

On crappier foods....he ate more though. But there was never a time when he was active, healthy, and on a good food that he ever ate more than 3 cups a day.

I couldn't imagine giving an Aussie pup 3 cups a day. That sounds crazy. Then again, Goose ate around 5 cups a day on TOTW. So. I have noooo idea.

Only note I have about the Large Breed Puppy food is check the CAL/PHOS levels. I can't remember them off the top of my head at the moment. I'm too busy trying to enjoy this coffee in peace without Zane screaming at me.
 

Saeleofu

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#11
I don't check feeding amount anymore because I know my dogs and I know my dog food. Right now I have no idea where my dogs stand compared to the recommended amounts, I just go by their condition. But for a new dog and a new food, it's certainly a good starting place. Watch his body condition - if he gets chunky, cut it back. If he gets too thin, give him more. You're going to have to adjust it as he ages, anyway.
 

Moth

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#13
Never followed the bag instructions...

...I'd start by asking the breeder how much,how often, and what kind of food and adjust from there.
 

Fran101

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#14
Thanks guys! Breeder feeds raw.. I'm raw every other day (tiny freezer space.) so the kibble is kind of a wild-card and I'll have to figure out how much.

let's just hope he doesn't turn his nose up at kibble lol
 

Xandra

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#15
I think 3 cups a day for a what... 10 week old pup? sounds like a lot. Like, my 98 lb dog eats about 3 cups a day, of a lesser quality kibble than what you're feeding.
 

JacksonsMom

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#16
Definitely less than recommended. Most foods recommend Jackson (16lbs) to be eating 1 1/4 - 1 1/2 cups of food per day! He would be SO fat. But of course the bag recommendations are for unaltered dogs as well and not including treats, chews, etc.

So yeah typically he gets between 1/2 cup per day and 2/3 cup per day depending. On the Fromm grain inclusives, I give him a bit more, because it's less kcals and he seems more hungry. When he was eating Acana grain-free though, he would get 1/2 cup per day usually. Of course he also gets a bit of wet food mixed in, a few chews per day, a bully stick sometimes, training treats, etc. But I also just play it by ear ... in the summer if he's done a lot of swimming and had a LOT of activity in a day, sometimes he can eat as much as 3/4 cup per day.
 

SaraB

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#17
Last time I fed kibble, the bag recommended 4-5 cups per day for Classic and he was eating 12. So ya, it's a starting place but be prepared to adjust accordingly!
 

stardogs

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#18
I always start dogs or pups new to me on what the bag recommends and then keep a close eye on weight and adjust accordingly.

Mine are on Fromm adult gold and all of them eat less than what the bag recommends, except Aeri who is spot on.
 

Maxy24

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#19
I don't think I've ever read the recommended amounts on the bag. I don't know how we picked how much to feed at the start...I might have asked Chaz, I don't remember.
 
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#20
Oh god no. I've never followed the bag instructions exactly in my life.

I usually start out with the recommended amount from the weight range one lower than what my dog/puppy actually weighs. If that makes sense. And often I end up even reducing that if it seems like an excessive amount of food. Then just pay attention to their body weight and adjust as needed.
^This is usually what I recommend customers do.
 

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