ShihTzu Pup-How Much is Too Much?

[Susan Bacon]

You'd think I'd be able to figure this out on my own, but I'm starting to wonder if I'm overfeeding Panda, our 17-week old Shih Tzu. He's getting Nutro Natural for Puppies, and it states on the back of the bag that his age should be getting between 1-1/8 to 1-7/8 cups per day, divided into three servings. He also gets treats throughout the day for doing his business outside, so I ration him to 1-1/8 cups.

Still, every time I fill his bowl it seems like soooo much food! He's a big bruiser, almost 8 lbs already, and he would eat all day if I let him, so he always finishes his bowl with gusto-and quickly! He is expanding quite rapidly and having (ahem) substantial bowel movements several times a day.

Is Nutro suggesting I feed more in order to use more product? I suspect so. Beans (our older pup) was never a problem because he walks away when he is full. I don't want to set Panda up for a weight problem, but want to give him a sufficient amount of calories too. Any comments/suggestions from small breed owners? THanks! Susan

[Rebekah Hartman]

Try this link - I've compared this calculator with other resources on the internet, and it seems to be as accurate as anything. http://www.naturapet.com/display.php?d=profil e-wiz&animal=Puppy

Every few pounds of weight gain (I have a large breed), I recalculate Samson's food portions, and he's gained weight at what appears to be a perfect rate to keep up with his growth. It's from the Innova website, so just pick any one of their foods as the food you feed (you won't be paying attention to that part).
-Make sure you select "Puppies" at the top where it says "Calculate for".
-Enter his current weight and how big he'll probably be full grown.
-Under how much of their food they recommend, it tells you a calorie range. Find out how many calories per cup (should be on the Nutro bag) his food has and calculate accordingly (it will be more than the amount of Innova you'd feed because Nutro has more fillers).

For example, if the calories per day are 550 and his food has 390 kcal/cup, you'd need to feed just over 1-1/3 c per day. You have to subtract treats from this amount. I've started using kibble as often as possible for treats (you can shake kibble in a bag with some grated cheese, so it gets coated). The treat factor may be trickier for you with a smaller dog, but you can figure it out!

[Hee Yung Lee]

I would also take into consideration his energy level. I feed Bogart slightly more than what is suggested on the back of our Solid Gold bag because his energy level is probably above average.

[Rebekah Hartman]

On the Natura website, it lists calorie amounts for different activity levels, so make sure you scroll down after getting the results.

[Susan Bacon]

Great info! Thanks very much!!!

[Amber]

Sally used to do the same thing after I adopted her from the shelter! She would eat her food really really fast (I suspect because she was crated with another small dog at the shelter who would make her wait to eat until after he was done eating his food). A couple hours later, I would feed my poodle, Precious, and Sally would try to eat all of her food, too! lol... A couple of months of eating in her crate alone and Sally has realized that she can eat at her own pace!

As for Panda, are you feeding Panda and Beans together? Have you watched them, if so? Is Beans making Panda wait to eat until Beans is done or something to that effect? I know that was Sally's problem. I have never fed Sally the amount on the back of the bag of Science Diet(that's the food that the shelter was feeding her...I'm in the process of switching to Nutro). If I fed the recommended amount on the back of the bag, she would be more overweight than she already is! lol...

You do know that are several different types of Natural Choice, right? What kind is Panda on? Small Bites, Lamb and Rice, etc?? Maybe the type he is on isn't working for him and that's why he's eating so much? I don't know...just a suggestion. I don't know too much in the way of dog food.