# Suddenly wants soo much more food!



## Kassandra (Jun 6, 2012)

Hey everyone! Haven't been on here in quite a while but I've got a question or two.

Little bit of an update: Me and Charlie just moved to Alberta as I am now attending pre-vet here. My dad took Remi because they totally love eachother and I wanted her to be able to hunt and do her thing in the fall and be happy with him as she always is. They don't seem to miss each other at all which is awesome.

Anyways, since I moved here (about 2 weeks now) Charlie seems so much hungrier. Before I was having a tough time getting her to eat what she needed to to maintain a healthy weight. Before we moved here she was eating 2.5 cups a day which maintained her weight perfectly. Now she is begging for more food after she finishes each meal and is eating 4 cups. I'm giving her the extra food as I figure she MUST be hungry as she has never begged for more kibble in her life and she is approaching 3 years old now. 

I thought that with warmer weather dogs ate less? Home on average it was 20/23 degrees this summer and here it has been upwards of 30 so far. She is coping with the heat very well I may add. Drinking tons and sleeping in front of the fan when she gets too warm. 

She was at the new vet just yesterday to get acquainted with them and they can't get over how healthy and fit she is so there's nothing wrong in terms of health. She had blood work taken too as they wanted it. 

I guess my question is: Should I keep giving her the 4 cups she wants or should I cut her back to her regular portions? Again, she has never been one to beg for food so I am a little confused with this new attitude!


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## Shamrockmommy (Sep 10, 2009)

I would watch her weight/body condition and go from there. It may be that she's nervous and using more energy that way. My dog is about her size and only gets 2 cups a day otherwise she turns into a toad  BUT winter time I increase the food and anytime she's being more active. 
Hope this helps


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## Kassandra (Jun 6, 2012)

Yep thats what I was thinking. If she gets a little fat then I will definitely cut down. Was just wondering if anyone has a theory on why she's doing this.
Definitely not nervous.. she is SO at home. Adjusted 100x easier than I thought she would


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## NutroGeoff (May 15, 2013)

That is strange. I definitely have found that dogs do tend to eat less in the summer or warmer climates. I do definitely recommend watching your dogs weight as well but other than that I don't see any issues with giving your dog a bit more.


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## 1605 (May 27, 2009)

Kassandra said:


> Hey everyone! Haven't been on here in quite a while but I've got a question or two.
> 
> Little bit of an update: Me and Charlie just moved to Alberta as I am now attending pre-vet here. My dad took Remi because they totally love eachother and I wanted her to be able to hunt and do her thing in the fall and be happy with him as she always is. They don't seem to miss each other at all which is awesome.
> 
> ...


Four cups seems like an awful lot of food, even with a higher energy output. IMHO the food is not giving her enough calories & protein. When this happened with our #1 GSP we switched to a better food that was higher protein/fat/calories. Of course when we got the "new guy" two years ago, this food fit right in with his energy level.

JMHO,


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## Kassandra (Jun 6, 2012)

I've been looking at different foods for her but its very tough. No chicken as she has allergies and no wheat/corn/rice as she does best on a food without. This food was perfect for her back home. No idea why the change. I'm looking into a few different brands but to no avail. 

She is currently on Go! Sensitivity + Shine Duck formula, and has been for a year now and is looking and feeling better than she ever has, just suddenly turned into a chow hound.


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## Celt (Dec 27, 2010)

I had one bitch who would turn into a ravenous hound every summer (live in the desert with many 100+ days), easily doubled her eating and would lose weight if not fed more. She started this just after turning 2, never did find a reason why.


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## Sapphire-Light (Aug 8, 2010)

Maybe a larger kibble can make her fell fuller? 

Or you can try puppy food since it has more protein and fat she would feel better?


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## Kassandra (Jun 6, 2012)

Celt said:


> I had one bitch who would turn into a ravenous hound every summer (live in the desert with many 100+ days), easily doubled her eating and would lose weight if not fed more. She started this just after turning 2, never did find a reason why.


Funny.. Charlie is now 2 (well almost 3, 3 in dec.) maybe some dogs are just weird?? I don't see anything different about her and the vet didn't suspect anything. Maybe just the change of surroundings? Not sure either.

As far as puppy food.. No can do. Have looked into so many of them, and just normal foods but can't find anything that she does well on like she does the go. She's still doing awesome on go (usually if there's a problem it develops in a few days after switching to a food) so I don't think it's a problem really.

I guess I'll just watch her weight and see how it goes!!


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## NutroGeoff (May 15, 2013)

As long as she is doing well on the food you are feeding, I would say stick with it. Especially with the fact that she does have sensitivites. I know how difficult it can be to find a food that works for your dog.


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## Kassandra (Jun 6, 2012)

Yeah tell me about it! Lol, I cut her back to 3 1/2 cups and she seems to be doing really well on it here. I wonder if the heat is doing it? As in, she doesn't get any more exercise than she had been getting BUT it is hotter here in general so that might calculate into more calories burned? I have no idea about this crap I just have weird random theories.


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## NutroGeoff (May 15, 2013)

I mean that does seem pretty possible. Since she is going to be working harder in a different climate she may be burning calories quicker.


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## mayayoung (May 24, 2015)

have you changed her food since moving to alberta? if you have, maybe she just likes this food a lot more. If she is begging for more food and you have the money to spare, maybe instead of adding more kibble, you can add some canned food? i've heard canned food is good for dogs that need to cut down on their eating, because it makes them feel fuller without adding extra calories. Canned food generally has more protein anyways, which makes it healthy. I like Wellness Core food, both wet and dry, but just as a topper the Wellness core 95% meat is great.


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