[BellaScarlett]

Little Bella is 10.5 weeks, a Scotch collie. I'm feeding Victor kibble. Trying to follow the recommended feeding allowance, but this little girl always stands by her bowl, looking for more.

She's about 8 pounds.

How much do you think she should have? When she first came, I had the bowl down with food most of the time. Did I train her to overeat?

 

[Buzzu2]

Hello:
How many times a day is she fed? Many puppies will eat until they burst,
I would say feed her the recommended amount, 3-4 times a day

 

[Schnauzaluv]

Are you following a puppy allowance food guideline? Puppies eat more food than adults (depending on adult size I guess) since they are actively growing. Once they are done growing, they don't need as much.

I wouldn't worry about teaching her to overeat, but I might start feeding her at specific times and removing the bowl when she is done with her meal. She is so young, she will catch on really quick that she is to finish what's in her bowl and breaking up the meals into 3 or 4 should help keep her blood sugar up and satisfied.

I started feeding my pup with food puzzle games like snuffle mats and wobble dispensers. I find it helps him slow down while eating (and actually chew!), but also seems to satisfy him better since he's not just inhaling before the food sets in the stomach. I did start with puzzle games when he was really young, maybe 12 weeks, but it's really helpful for when they transition to adult amounts. The reduction to 2 meals a day helps too with that.

 

[BellaScarlett]

Yep, following the guidelines, plus a little more. I have been taking up the bowl after each meal, she finishes every morsel and looks at me for more.

 

[Buzzu2]

Yep, following the guidelines, plus a little more. I have been taking up the bowl after each meal, she finishes every morsel and looks at me for more.

Out of curiosity, has her stool been checked for parasites recently, and when was she de-wormed?

 

[Curls]

I wonder if she is legitimately hungry and not just greedy. She sounds just like one of my puppies that came to me underweight. My understanding is that Scotch Collie females are supposed to mature between 35 and 70 pounds. I have no experience with collie puppies, but that's pretty much the same weight range as a standard poodle. All my poodle puppies have been heavier than 8 pounds at 10 weeks. I would try increasing her daily ration and spreading it over four meals. She's at a peak growth period right now, so she's going to need a lot of calories. Based on what I remember of my puppies, I'm guessing she might be capable of eating three cups a day right now. My boys went up to 5 cups a day for brief periods during the growth spurts between 4-6 months. These periods didn't last longer than a few days, but the boys were voracious eaters at peak growth spurt. As adults they dropped back to three-four cups.

 

[Shadowfox]

My latest was eating more than the back.of the bag when she was actively growing. At the beginning I was pretty strict about not feeding her more than the bag amount. But when she started standing by the bin and crying, I called the breeder. Who was vaguely horrified since there had been a miscommunication in our feeding amounts. Turns out that her dogs/pups are typically big eaters (more than the bag recommenations) when young.So I adjusted to feeding her depending on how hungry she seemed for.kibble and her body condition. No joke, she was eating almost 3 cups a day and her collar had to be let out twice during a 2 week period with a particularly big growth spurt. Then she dropped down how much she was eating and her growth wasn't so dramatic. Until the next growth spurt. Now that she is mostly done growing, she eats less than the recommended amount to keep the right weight. Which may change when she is skeletally mature enough to be in sport classes.

All.of this to demonstrate that I do believe you need to feed according to your dog, their age, and their body condition and keeping in mind most vets recommend a little more for puppies. If she were mine and there were no parasites, I'd try adding a 1/4 cup more and see if that keeps her from always asking for more food.

 

[Totus Dog]

Since the puppy is burning a lot of energy constantly for growing and developing it needs more calories and nutrients than an adult dog. Instead of overloading or refilling their bowl in one go divide their meal into 3 to 4 times a day.

 

[JoanneF]

Remember guidelines are just guidelines.

A food driven dog is great though, you know exactly what motivates her and that helps a lot with training.

 

[BellaScarlett]

Out of curiosity, has her stool been checked for parasites recently, and when was she de-wormed?

We just got her through giardiasis. I'm thinking her appetite may have something to do with that and being the smallest of the litter. She is feeling good now, poop is perfect, so she wants to chow down.

 

[Buzzu2]

We just got her through giardiasis. I'm thinking her appetite may have something to do with that and being the smallest of the litter. She is feeling good now, poop is perfect, so she wants to chow down.

I suggest getting her checked again, since Giardia is very hard to completely eradicate. Parasites have an enormous appetite.
She might also have a fast metabolism. ie: my 45lb Border Collie/Lab cross eats as much as my 65lb Golden and is still trim and lean. @JoanneF reminded me of this a while ago.

 

[Curls]

We just got her through giardiasis. I'm thinking her appetite may have something to do with that and being the smallest of the litter. She is feeling good now, poop is perfect, so she wants to chow down.

Oh yeah, if she had a parasite infestation and missed some meals due to competition from bigger siblings, then she is definitely trying to make up for a calorie deficit. I'd give her an extra half cup at every meal.

 

[BigBlackDog]

Pictures are worth 1000 words! Do you have photos you could post?

My dog's food bag suggested feeding 3-4 cups a day at that age (remember, you feed based on expected adult weight, not on current puppy age/weight). But when she was growing fast she got all the way up to nearly 8 1/2 cups a day for several months!

Obviously you'll want to have her tested again to make sure she's clear of giardia and/or other worms. But before and after that I would just go by her appearance and actions...if she acts really hungry she probably is.

 

[Curls]

What is her body condition like? It's pretty normal for puppies to pork up in preparation for a growth spurt, lose their love handles during the spurt, and then start eating again in preparation for the next spurt. I like to monitor fat cushion over the backbone and especially the hip bones. When a dog is in good condition you should be able to feel the hip bones, but they shouldn't feel sharp. There should be a slight dip with a slight fat cushion between the the hip bones. A deep bony dip between the hips with no padding over the spine is too thin. A deep fat cushion instead of a dip, along with hips you can barely feel, means a dog is on the pudgy side. I'd let it go for a couple weeks in a puppy, as the next growth spurt will probably take off some of that fat cover. I would cut the rations of an adult dog that has reached that level of padding.