# Puppy question!



## ahobson (Feb 24, 2014)

I've been feeding my 2 dogs raw for about a month now. I have a 3 year old GSD mix that is about 50lbs, and an 18 week old alaskan malamute that is closing in on 50lbs. My GSD seems to do fine no matter what, she pretends she wants to eat when the puppy does, but will just sit by her food, happy she got it, but not wanting to eat it because she is full. (Which is whatever, I put it back in the fridge for later or give it to the puppy) The puppy on the other hand, has had a few tummy upsets that I've been tweaking her diet ratios for. My MAIN questions is, how do I know that I am feeding her enough? I think she would eat everything in the world if it was in front of her. I've read the 2% of ideal adult weight(2lbs-ish) is generally how to judge it, but she just always seems to want more. I'm feeding her 2-4 lbs a day. She is extremely stubborn and will nip at my butt if I am in the kitchen to get my attention because she wants food.. How do I know if she needs more, or if she just wants it because I'm there and she knows thats where the food is? 
Also - any suggestions where to get good deals on bulk in the Seattle area?

Thanks
Alisha


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## Gally (Jan 28, 2012)

Some dogs would eat until they explode. I would pick one amount and stick with it for at least a week. You can afjust a little for activity level each day but a 2lb difference is huge and is probably the cause of her indigestion. After a week you should be able to see if she is growing well and how her waistline is doing. I would feed based on her growth and physical shape not by how much she begs for food. My dog would easily eat 5lbs a dsy if I let him but he only needs about 0.5lbs a day.


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## Liz (Sep 27, 2010)

2 lbs? How big do you expect her to get? 

In Seattle there is a raw feeding co-op called Wazzu-Or you can find them on Yahoo, you can also get good prices from Plymouth Poultry. You set up a cash on pick up account and they email you a price list. I get almost everything through them. We feed 8-10 pounds per day.


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## ahobson (Feb 24, 2014)

Vets have been telling us since we got her at 7 weeks she will be near 100lbs. Not sure if one of her parents was a "giant malamute" or what. (She was taken from her mom at 3 or 4 weeks, not sure how big the dad was.) I weighed her this morning and she was 49 at 18 weeks. The only reason I was feeding more, was because places were also saying "up to 10% of their current weight" for puppies. It can get quite confusing. Her indigestion was due to me not even thinking to check for enhancements in the chicken I was buying (I don't ever think to pay attention to that) As soon as I switched the type of chicken, she's been doing great, with some mess ups on my end for bone to meat ratios. Or if she got into something lol. I think on average its usually around 3 lbs split throughout the day. She looks great, her coat is great, her waistline is great from what we can tell, shes still quite fluffy; by touch she seems perfect. But since it hasnt been very long since I switched them, I wanted to make sure I knew who to listen to on how much to feed.  

Thank you for those, I made a yahoo account and submitted a request to join last night. I will look into the other today


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## doggiedad (Jan 23, 2011)

when my dog was a pup i fed him 1 cup in the am, 1 cup noonish and 1 cup
in the pm. he had snack and training treats. starting at 9 months old my dog 
was fed him 1 cup in the am and 1 cup in the pm. he continued to have a snack
and training treats.


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## Herzo (Feb 5, 2011)

doggiedad said:


> when my dog was a pup i fed him 1 cup in the am, 1 cup noonish and 1 cup
> in the pm. he had snack and training treats. starting at 9 months old my dog
> was fed him 1 cup in the am and 1 cup in the pm. he continued to have a snack
> and training treats.


Well this is very helpful. But I just was wondering how in the world you were able to tell how much a cup full of chicken legs is? How about pork ribs, how many to a cup?


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## doggiedad (Jan 23, 2011)

wait, one of us is missing something here and i think it's me. lol. i thought the OP
was switching to kibble. 

if i wanted to know how much a cup of chicken leg is i would cut it up and put it in a
cup.



doggiedad said:


> when my dog was a pup i fed him 1 cup in the am, 1 cup noonish and 1 cup
> in the pm. he had snack and training treats. starting at 9 months old my dog
> was fed him 1 cup in the am and 1 cup in the pm. he continued to have a snack
> and training treats.





Herzo said:


> Well this is very helpful. But I just was wondering how in the world you were able to tell how much a cup full of chicken legs is? How about pork ribs, how many to a cup?


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## MollyWoppy (Mar 19, 2010)

Another thing, off topic I'm sorry, but I noticed you said they'd taken the pup from her mother at 4 weeks. Why so young? Please make sure you socialise that pup with every dog and human you possibly can. Get her out to experience everything in the world you can. I don't know too much about the mental implications of separating a puppy from it's mother way too young, but I adopted a pup that was separated from his mother at 5 weeks. I got him at 12 weeks and even though I tried to socialise as much as I possibly could, I've still got a neurotic, anxious, dog aggressive, severe resource guarding one year old. Not saying it's going to happen to your pup of course as mine did have a bad start to life, combined with probable bad gene's according to the vet/behaviourist. Another thing, don't let her get her way (eg the bum nipping), don't stand for it, set boundaries and redirect her onto something else.


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## ahobson (Feb 24, 2014)

Thank you guys!  She is already doing better about the whining and asking for more. She still only bugs me, but she knows I am the bringer of all things 99% of the time. lol. 

All I knew about why they had taken her so young is that the house was abusive and the mother wasn't taking care of them. Or so I was told anyhow. It was the first thing I told the vet at her 8 week checkup, they were very happy we had another older dog at home for her. Our older dog had total anxiety, this pup, not so much, and our other dog is doing so much better now. They are complete opposites as babies. She is doing great though and SHE is actually teaching my GSD a lot.


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## ahobson (Feb 24, 2014)

ALSO - What are your guys' thoughts on chicken backs(when paired with boneless meats)?


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## Herzo (Feb 5, 2011)

doggiedad said:


> wait, one of us is missing something here and i think it's me. lol. i thought the OP
> was switching to kibble.
> 
> if i wanted to know how much a cup of chicken leg is i would cut it up and put it in a
> cup.


Alrighty then, just checkin :wink: mind just get them whole.


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## Herzo (Feb 5, 2011)

ahobson said:


> ALSO - What are your guys' thoughts on chicken backs(when paired with boneless meats)?


I think it is just fine. I also like to feed liver and other organs with the bone meals.


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## Sgrecco (Jan 29, 2014)

The backs are great! You need to make sure you are incorporating muscle, bone and organ meats in the diet.


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## ahobson (Feb 24, 2014)

Thanks guys. I am introducing organs still, my 3 year old isn't too fond of them. I was just asking because another group I joined told me no way on the backs and made it seem like I was trying to deprive my dogs of the things they need. I don't think I'll be visiting them much anymore.
I think my first bulk will be chicken backs and legs and beef heart. Organs are similar in price at stores so I'll get them as needed as well as any beef and pork that go on sale


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## Liz (Sep 27, 2010)

We feed duck back or chicken backs with organ, heart or lung as these are richer meats. Dogs love it and do great.


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