what do you think?

[welshlibranr]

have a puppy, she is fed on dry food only, no scraps or human food whatsoever, and very few treats!........only the odd low fat one for good behaviour, is this the right way to go?...she seems happy and satisfied, she's growing and very healthy, but my OH thinks that maybe she is missing out!.......I don't see that this is a problem!......she's doing fine!....

[craft1948]

My dog only gets dry food, plus a dentistix and the occasional pigs ear..........he never gets any of my food.

[RATTER15]

I disagree with the dried food but that's another issue. It sounds like you are doing just fine, I think we all sneak a little bit of something naughty in occasionally though. Relax and enjoy your little bundle of trouble lol :-)

[Andyvon]

You are doing the right thing Welsh.

My dogs only had one meal of dog meat and biscuits at the same time each day (just before I made my meal at 5pm). They did have a bowl of dry biscuits always available for if they got peckish through the day though. Other than that very few treats - and no human food! It's bad enough for us! She'll stay healthy and happy that way.

[welshlibranr]

thanks both, y ilyshe seems really happy with her food, and never begs at the table, which our previous little guy did all the time, but that was down to a family member finger feeding him at mealtimes!......

[RATTER15]

One meal a day is definitely not enough for a puppy!!

[Andyvon]

Mine never begged either Welsh as it wasn't something I ever did. I occasionally gave my dogs a treat such as a piece of cheese but it wasn't often.

I believe that plenty of dry food is good for a dog's teeth and breath. Possibly others who know more than me about dogs will disagree but human food, choccy treats etc tend to result in a dog having bad teeth and bad breath.

[Andyvon]

You're right Ratter. Puppies need small meals about three times a day. I only had two puppies but I bought special puppy food for them. Older dogs need just one meal a day with dry stuff down to pick at.

[RATTER15]

Mine just get raw human grade meat and bones, the bones will clean their teeth and they also get an apple a day to help, they get treats but the treats are made by us from natural raw ingredients and no additives. Its OK, i'm not going to attempt to persuade you from a dried diet, what we feed takes a lot of time, work, effort and research to get the diet right for your dog.

[welshlibranr]

Callie is fed 3 times a day, she isn't greedy, never finishes it all in one go, it takes her time to get through it all, when I give her a treat it's a small peice of cheese and that's it!......

[Carakeel]

Andyvon is right, a puppy should get three small meals a day. But how many an adult dog gets also depends on the breed. Our adult and nearly adult Irish Wolfhounds are fed twice a day, as this helps to prevent them from getting bloat, which can be a big problem with giant breeds. And as ratter says, they do get supplements and "treats" that I make, i.e. liver treats, silk/ satin balls etc. If you are training your puppy, then using treats can be a great help, but try not to buy them. Making them ensures that you can have chemical free, colourant free, healthy treats. Enjoy your puppy!

[welshlibranr]

thanks Carakeel, am feeding her 3 small meals a day, and only giving natural treats while training, she's doing quite well so far, has already grasped the sit command with or without a treat, and she's only 13 weeks old!.........

[islasmum]

Have you got a photo of Callie up yet welsh? My 3 adult dogs get one main (dry) meal in the afternoon - I kept the youngest on 2 meals a day up until she was about one, when I felt that most of her growing was done, but she stayed on the food the breeder had fed her for quite a while. I usually feed them about 4.30 pm so they are comfortable to settle down in bed around 10.45 - 11pm. They get a Bonio each in the morning, and last thing at night, they are allowed small dog biscuits as a treat, but not often - no more than 3 a day. This may not be ideal for everyone, but all three dogs are fit, healthy (apart from senility in the oldest dog!) and also nice and slim! (Wish I could do it for myself!) I also get bones from the butcher for them to have a good chew on, but that is a real treat for them. If we've left some vegetables from our meal such as broccoli, I'll give them that in their dinner too. I expect you know the forbidden foods - no chocolate, raisins, grapes, there are plenty of sites on the internet that tell you about that. I hope that you are really enjoying Callie, she sounds like she has a lovely, caring home with you!

[welshlibranr]

she's fine thanks islasmum, growing like a little mushroom!.....still can't upload a photo, tried so many times, always worked in the past!..don't know what's wrong!.......will keep trying!....

[welshlibranr]

Islasmum, there is a pic of Callie on Animals and Nature now thanks to Trim, I messed it up again!.....but bless Trim, he came to my aid and she is there now, have a peek.......

[islasmum]

I've seen her picture - she looks gorgeous!