Is it better to feed a dog twice a day or just all the food at once?

Question

I feed my shih tzu Life's Abundance dog food. He's 7 1/2 months old and he weighs 11 pounds. The reason I am wondering is because right now I feed him twice a day...but he never starts eating right when i feed him so his food sits out for a long time before he eats it...and he doesn't eat the whole amount at once when he does finally eat...

Answer 1

I would feed your little pup twice a day but smaller amts. They should be able to eat whatever you feed them within 10 minutes. Whatever he doesn't eat, then pick it up and either store it or toss. Never leave any sort of canned or packaged foods out...only dry food.
They have tiny, tiny, tiny tummies at only 7 1/2 months...so that's why he doesn't jump in right away.
He sounds adorable. keep up the great work with your "fur-kid". Blessings, Patti

Answer 2

Dogs were designed by nature to eat every four to five days so once daily is fine physically. However, some of the larger breeds are prone to stomach contortion associated with bloating and many believe that multiple daily feedings can lessen the chances of this happening. In addition, just because it won't hurt the dog doesn't mean that the dog likes eating once a day. It is probably nicer to feed twice a day, just, in general, not necessary.

Most dogs will not over eat. If your pup is thriving, then the lesser amount is the correct amount. Food should always be picked up after a reasonable amount of time (for training purposes). I got a smile when I read the details. I changed my dogs from once a day to twice a day feedings with the result that they ate 90% of their food at the time of their normal feeding and just picked at the second feeding. Eventually, I went back to once a day since there was no point in continuing the experiment.

Answer 3

Twice a day is better. Dog that are fed a huge amount of food once a day are prone to bloat, a condition that can actually twist the stomach and cause death in a matter of hours. as long as your pet has normal stools and is not wasting away he should be fine. If you're really concerned you should talk to your vet. My new pup, who is about 4 months doesn't eat much either, I just give her the food twice a day and let her eat is as she wants. If that's a problem, like if you have other pets you can time feed her. put the food down for a specific period of time like a 1/2 hour and then pick it up and put it down again that night for 1/2 hour. he will learn that those are his only times to eat and eat more readily in most cases. It's best to talk to your vet though in any case cause there could be something else going on that you don't know about. Good Luck!

Answer 4

Its your dog and you are entitled to put it on whatever feeding schedule you'd like and I'm sure you are plenty responsible enough to realize if its causing any adverse effects and put him back on a schedule right? lol Next time you have a few days off try putting just a little in all through out the day. So say he gets four cups a day divide it up into 8 half cup parts and put it in his bowl every hour and a half. Then when he goes to eat the food try to distract him and that might force him to come back to it later. It would be really time consuming but its the only way I can think of getting him use to eating through out the the day rather than all at once.

Answer 5

The idea behind feeding twice a day is that your dog will eat smaller meals and not have a really full stomach, which in some breeds can lead to troubles. Also to keep thier blood sugar at a more even keel. Just like us, their is a jump after they eat.

So she is doing that already, she is eatting in smaller amounts throughout the day.

Some advantages of keeping her on the two meals it that if she were to be off her feed you would see sooner, because you know now when her food is generally done.

Also in very hot weather, it is actually going to keep her food fresher to feed her twice.

But really, in your example, it really doesn't matter that much.

The only reason i would move to once a day is if she is having troubles finishing her second helping before it is time to go to bed.

Answer 6

I feed twice a day, the food is left down for 15 minutes then picked up. I put the leftover food in the fridge and the dog gets nothing to eat until his next mealtime. Leaving food out all the time tends to make a dog picky and if he eats constantly he poops that way too.

Answer 7

It's better to feed 2-3 times a day. Think of it this way... how would your stomach feel if you only ate breakfast. Also, talk to your vet about when are good times and about the food your feeding, maybe the dog doesn't touch it right away because there is something he doesn't like about it.

Answer 8

Definitely twice a day. Talk to your vet about how much food you should really be giving the dog. Most people overfeed their dogs. If he's not eating the food right away, take it back up from him and wait until his next scheduled eating time. He will soon learn to eat enough food, and it will help develop a better relationship between you two. :)

Answer 9

It is best to feed your dog twice a day. If he doesnt eat right away, so what. If when he DOES eat, he doesnt eat it all, so what. Twice a day. Better for the stomach and digestive system. We have a Great Dane and I wouldnt feed her on any other type of schedule.

Answer 10

It really doesn't matter, big breeds generally fed once a day small breeds twice. If you only have one dog and that's it's eating habits, I would just free feed the dog, unless you are feeding wet dog or your dog starts getting fat.