How much to feed my puppy is a frequent question that is asked. The answer is in your hands.
So, first off, pups do best being fed 2-3 times a day. Remember also that when a pup eats they often have to go outside for a nature break within 5 minutes, so that will help you with predicting and house training much more quickly.
Next is that the guidelines on bags of food are just that-rough guidelines. I like to recommend feeding enough food so we can feel the ribs and still have some cushion present, thus they are not too skinny. Pups grow fast and suddenly can get pretty thin seemingly overnight. So as they get more “ribby” bump the food amount up by about 25% and see if the weight starts to go back on that dog. Weekly adjustments are often needed.
Third is how to tell if you are overfeeding. If you are feeding too much food to a pup they often will not get overweight but start to have soft stools. Pups will eat as much as you give them but how to regulate the overall amount is the idea of feeding for solid stools. If you do that you are not over feeding. If they are soft, reduce the amount fed and see if the corresponding solid number 2 occurs during the nature break.
As to water I have that available all day.
Written by: Dr. Tim
U.P. Veterinarian & Developer of Dr. Tim’s Dog & Cat Food
