Dogs - better to feed once or twice a day?

kerilli

kerilli

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I've fed my lot (pack of jrts) once a day for yonks, but am wondering whether it would be better for them if i divided their feed into two and fed them morning and evening. would this be better for their systems? any advice welcome, thankyou.
 
Hmm I don't know! Our old girl used to be fed just once in the evening but when we got the pups and we started cutting back their meal times we decided to stick at 2 (breakfast and dinner). No idea why probably us humanising them!
 
Dogs are individuals. Some will eat twice a day, some will not. Mine will often not want any food before 3pm, so sometimes they only get one meal a day. Other days they will happily eat two meals.

Sorry, doesn't really answer your question. If they are currently happy and healthy then I wouldn't change what you are doing.
 
I'm not an expert but one feed a day is probably more natural for dogs so should be fine. I have always fed mine twice a day but only because I walk him before work which i imagine builds up an early appetite.....and i would feel guilty getting back home and munching my breakfast and him just watching.....
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Mine have adlib access. We have fed all our dogs like that for 25 years and not one of them has become greedy or overweight.

Dog biscuit bowl always has food and they regulate themselves. Both dogs eat 3 small meals a day, first thing, then again around mid morning and then again before they go to bed at night.

People are always really surprised but I suppose dogs scavenge by nature and will go to find food if they are hungry. I really dont know why it works given the number of spaniels we have had over the years and their reputation for being complete pigs but all of them have been perfect weight.

In the past our working dogs were fed once a day in the early evening as that fitted in with their routines plus they were kennelled so there was never an opportunity for them to actually fight over food.
 
Once a day is usually considered more natural Kerilli as dogs would naturally make one large kill a day and "fill up". However, I think most domestic dogs benefit from two meals a day just for the sake of interest and breaking up the day. Working dogs are probably better off with one. Ours have always had two meals, with breakfast being much smaller - I guess around 1/3 of the day's food quota. Like yours, mine is a pig and would eat round the clock given the choice - but that's Labs for you!
 
I've always been told twice a day and by people I trust/admire in the dog workd. Therefore I do.

Something to do with the body regulating etc as some dogs have problems with bile when fed only once a day.
 
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thanks everyone. ad lib not an option, as my old one is an utter pig and i have to work to keep her waistline under control!
thankyou.

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That's what we said when it was suggested by our vet!
With lurchers, Border Terriers and Bassets, not to mention the odd foxhound pups, none of those are delicate eaters but bassets are also known for getting - and sometimes dying from choke so we wanted to stop the rushing and to and bolting of food at normal mealtimes (which was at night. He said give it a week, if it's not working, go back to once a day so nothing ventured, nothing gained.
We got through a whole 20 kg bag in two days! They were always at it, thought all their birthdays had come at once and they all resembled balls! Halfway through the next bag everything stopped eating and they just slept for the whole day. When they were eventually mobile again they would walk out past the bowl (it's a huge ex-school egg poacher base which could do 40 eggs at a time to give you some idea!
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) and not look at it even though it was still full, then come back indoors and go back to sleep. Once they realised it was always there, they paced themselves, even the greedy bassets and now they top up two or three times a day. They've never been fitter or looked better before and they're as trim as you would want, you wouldn't want them thinner IMV; they're just healthy dogs.
The initial 'OMG food! didn't last long, there is a limit to how much even the greediest dog can eat and now, with 12 dogs about most of the time (4 go home with son at night but still tuck in to our food here!) we only use 2 and a bit 20kg bags of complete a week so it's not excessive by any means and I make sure they clear the bowl before adding more too.
Could be worth a try, even for just a week; I know how sceptical we were but we wouldn't dream of going back to regulated meals for them now, it really suits them - although the first week was a bit traumatic with a 'oh, what have we done?' moment! Best thing we've ever done for our dogs we think.
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I feed my guys once a day in the morning as quite often they will not eat at night as the just want to sleep. (apart from my lab who would eat all day everyday given the chance) I used to feed twice a day but am finding this suits them much better and they are doing great from it
 
as Lizzlebell says they are all individuals, see what works best for yours. My shortlegged jack has a breakfast and a tea but she gets collitis and has to have small portions. my parents old lab just had one meal at tea time.
 
Mine and their predecessor get twice a day, all those before that (including one that shared their name with the poster before me
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) once a day.

Depends on the dog, my mother is wild for humanising dogs and thinks 24 hours is too long a gap between feeds.
 
Ours are feed twice a day, I think our Spinone would go bang if given free rein over a feed bowl, they are renowned for there abilaty to extract every bit out goodness out of their food, the collie and JRT would have coped when younger i think with free feeding.
 
I feed my lurcher almost every time I walk past the fridge so sometimes that's six times a day but it's the only way to keep his weight on. Each time it's a chicken thigh, bowl of mince, couple of sausages etc.

My family dogs (black lab, lurcher and yorkie) get a token feed at breakfast and their proper food at dinner. The poor lab spends all day sitting by his bowl waiting for dinner, he clearly thinks he's starved
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.
 
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I

My family dogs (black lab, lurcher and yorkie) get a token feed at breakfast and their proper food at dinner. The poor lab spends all day sitting by his bowl waiting for dinner, he clearly thinks he's starved
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.

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Trust me - ALL Labradors are convinced they're starved!!
 
Yes, don't labs have a faulty gene meaning they can't register when their stomach is full? I think the other dogs would adapt quite well to adlib food but the lab would become obese which would affect his elbow dysplasia.
 
Beau (Lab)would definitely eat all day if allowed!
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Mind you, so would Jess, who is a collie x, but Skye (also collie x) is really only into 1 meal a day and not at all bothered about food. She is not even in to treats as rewards.

I feed twice a day but Skye only has a token breakfast as she does not really want it, but I don't want her to be left out when the other 2 have something.

My feelings are that dogs, like us humans, are all different in their food needs,metabolism etc, and we feed according to need.
 
Henry is permanently hungry and would be back to his fatty lumpkin ways pdq if given ad lib food I think! He is fed twice a day, just through force of habit as our lab was fed twice a day too. Suits him though so I'm not planning to change.
 
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