I have a 7 month old male pup and he doesn't eat much. Most days he'll barely finish one bowl of food? Does he not like the food? Are there any tricks to get him to finish his food.
How large is the one bowl of food? IS your pup underweight? Lethargic? What did the vet say at his most recent exam? How are his stools? Sorry for the 3rd degree, but these answers will better help us figure out if there is a problem or your pup is only eating what he needs, not what you think he should be eating.
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Susan
**Boxers... not just dogs, they're an adventure!
Its about a 2 1/2 cup bowl. He's not lethargic and he poops like 4 times a day. He might be a little under weight but not i'm not totally sure. I took him to the vet about a 1 1/2 months ago and he didnt say anything about him being thin.
My boy is 7 months also....he eats about 4 cups a day of "Evo" kibble. 2 in the AM, 2 in the the PM. I mix vanilla probiotic yogurt sometimes--it's sweet and good for them. We went through a very picky time for a while, b4 I changed him to Evo. He cannot get enough RAW if you are into it. He also enjoys any cooked meal, organic chicken broth, brown rice and pumpkin puree and boiled ground beef is an easy, cheap favorite. Oranges and apples, peanut butter--all BIG hits!!! Sprinkled cheese, eggs--
It's kinda fun when you finally find things there into--But hard when they self fast Trial and error. Hope this helps!
If your boy is eating 2.5 cups per day, of a quality food, and is not terribly underweight, then I would have to think this is enough food for him and he is self limiting his intake, not being picky. Working at the lcinic we endlessly have cases of owners who aren't happy if their pets aren't eating everything they giv ethem, but more often than not, their pets are fat, even morbidly obese. We have a saying that owners are killing their pets with love (food). As long as there are no health issues, and your dog is not overly skinny (the last rib or two should show a bit when they are active) there is not a problem with how much they are eating. Each dog has it's own caloric needs, as do individual people.
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Susan
**Boxers... not just dogs, they're an adventure!
8 months is a typical gangley phase regardless. As long as he is eating on some level, you are also giving him healthy treats and/or additions to his food, and his stool is firm - then all should be okay :)
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*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* Christina Ghimenti PawPrint Boxers
Daisy has funny eating habits also. She is 7 1/2 mos old. I give her Wolf Cub kibble mixed with Canadae Canned lamb chicken and fish. She gets 1 cup of kibble and 1/2 can twice a day. Occasionally she will want to be fed again but not often ( I have notice it's when she is going to have a growth spurt) I then will feed her anywhere between 1/2 - 1 cup of just plain kibble. She tends to only eat half a bowl when I first put it down, then wants to go outside then comes in and finishes it with in 15 minutes. Then I pick up her bowl. She established this pattern since she was about 4 months old. It works for us. I too thought maybe she was on the thin side but I asked the vet and he said she looks ok and if she was leaving anything in her dish ( and she does a tiny bit) then she is eating enough.