Kynan Posted May 18, 2011 Share Posted May 18, 2011 How much are you feeding and how often? Large sloppy poos can be a sign of over feeding. The feeding guides on the packets seem to recommend too much based on my experience. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leelaa17 Posted May 18, 2011 Author Share Posted May 18, 2011 How much are you feeding and how often? Large sloppy poos can be a sign of over feeding. The feeding guides on the packets seem to recommend too much based on my experience. oh really? goodness, well I am feeding her say about 3 cups of food, twice a day? *cringe* oh s**t you're going to tell me Im feeding her too much arent you?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kynan Posted May 18, 2011 Share Posted May 18, 2011 also, I got her from a BYB - yes I know, I'm extremely naughty - got her before I started reading this forum so much!! so I don't know whether the breeder will be much help - he always recommended fresh meat every now and again for thre pups... but as I said before, I have started her on Royal Canin and I will see how it goes Royal Canin is good. You are doing the right thing by mixing it with her old food. Over a week gradually increase the amount of RC and decrease the Supercoat. You will most likely find that you will end up feeding less volume of RC to maintain Jenna's weight and get smaller poos compared to the amount of Supercoat you have been feeding. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kynan Posted May 18, 2011 Share Posted May 18, 2011 (edited) How much are you feeding and how often? Large sloppy poos can be a sign of over feeding. The feeding guides on the packets seem to recommend too much based on my experience. oh really? goodness, well I am feeding her say about 3 cups of food, twice a day? *cringe* oh s**t you're going to tell me Im feeding her too much arent you?? :D Yes! I would start by halving that and see how she goes. Keep an eye on her ribs and waist to make sure she doesn't get too skinny. She should have a nice trim waist that dips in at the sides when viewed from above and you should be able to feel her ribs easily but not see them. Hope that makes sense. Weight guide link Congratulations Leelaa you seem like a very caring person that loves your dogs and is open to learning what's best for them Edited May 18, 2011 by Kynan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
persephone Posted May 18, 2011 Share Posted May 18, 2011 I don't know whether the breeder will be much help - he always recommended fresh meat every now and again for thre pups... Sounds good to me ;) I can't remember if you have ever considered feeding her a raw diet? anyway-- have a read of THIS THREAD Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leelaa17 Posted May 18, 2011 Author Share Posted May 18, 2011 Thank you very much guys. I do care very much about what's best for them, I love them both so very very much. With Jenna's weight, her sides do dip in quite nicely and i can feel her ribs but can't see them. She has a nice shape - I always thought she was too thin!!! lol And I haven't actually considered feeding her on a solely raw diet - they do get mince and all sorts of chicken quite often though! They love it! Thank you again for your help - I will let you know how she goes!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fatsofatsoman Posted May 19, 2011 Share Posted May 19, 2011 How much are you feeding and how often? Large sloppy poos can be a sign of over feeding. The feeding guides on the packets seem to recommend too much based on my experience. oh really? goodness, well I am feeding her say about 3 cups of food, twice a day? *cringe* oh s**t you're going to tell me Im feeding her too much arent you?? I have a growing lab and I've never fed him 6 cups a day - he's at around 3 cups at 11mths. I use Eukanuba so possibly amounts can differ but I'd suggest 6 is quite a bit too much. The most he's ever been fed is 4 cups a day. We were told by quite a few people to not use Supercoat - but then we were new at it and took their word for it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leelaa17 Posted May 19, 2011 Author Share Posted May 19, 2011 How much are you feeding and how often? Large sloppy poos can be a sign of over feeding. The feeding guides on the packets seem to recommend too much based on my experience. oh really? goodness, well I am feeding her say about 3 cups of food, twice a day? *cringe* oh s**t you're going to tell me Im feeding her too much arent you?? I have a growing lab and I've never fed him 6 cups a day - he's at around 3 cups at 11mths. I use Eukanuba so possibly amounts can differ but I'd suggest 6 is quite a bit too much. The most he's ever been fed is 4 cups a day. We were told by quite a few people to not use Supercoat - but then we were new at it and took their word for it. Fair enough, I will definitely lessen the amount I feed her. I've heard mixed things about supercoat - I've heard that it USED to be really good but then they changed the ingredients and it went to s**t... but I have also heard that it is still a good dog food?? So I don't know.. The thing is, I am not rich, I can't afford $100 a week on dog food alone... I mean, I will if I have to but I would prefer not to have to spend a ridiculous amount of money on something that will do the same, or a similar job than something much cheaper, if that makes sense! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aussielover Posted May 19, 2011 Share Posted May 19, 2011 (edited) OMG 6 cups a day is way too much. I don't even think a working german shepherd would get that much! You can generally feed less of a premium food compared with a crap food. Which is what I found when Mindy was on PAL (yuck). Funnily enough, she actually had better poos on pal than on Advance, but she has since changed back to advance and her poo is normal. Though she is on a raw diet now because of her allergies and her poos are great now- small and she only goes twice a day. I only ever gave her a maximum of two cups of dry food a day (plus bones) and she does a lot of exercise and work. I'd say it is a matter of finding the right brand/diet for your dog. I don't know aboutu feeding GSD's but 6 cups is way too much- never go by what it says on the packet, it is always excessive. Additionally, 3 cups at one time is quite alot- I am sure you know that GSDs are prone to bloat and GDV- which is where the stomach expands and twists and it can be fatal. I would be inclined to give her smaller meals- but then again i am totally paranoid!!! Edited May 19, 2011 by aussielover Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sas Posted May 19, 2011 Share Posted May 19, 2011 (edited) How much are you feeding and how often? Large sloppy poos can be a sign of over feeding. The feeding guides on the packets seem to recommend too much based on my experience. oh really? goodness, well I am feeding her say about 3 cups of food, twice a day? *cringe* oh s**t you're going to tell me Im feeding her too much arent you?? If you're feeding too much your dog will be fat....each dog is different and has different needs....what it says on the pack is a guide. If your dogs isn't doing well on this kibble then you might want to look at adding a digestive enzyme or switching foods. It is fine to go to an adult food, even Giant Breed pups can be raised on Adult kibbles granted the protein/phos/calc is appropriate. You don't have to spend a fortunate on Kibble, some dogs don't actually do well on Premimum kibbles, some do fantastic on Bonnie and Optimum....put/keep your dog on whatever it does best on. I have personaly heard a lot of people say Supercoat gives their dogs the runs and some people rave about it......like any other feed some dogs do well and others don't. Edited May 19, 2011 by MEH Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sas Posted May 19, 2011 Share Posted May 19, 2011 OMG 6 cups a day is way too much. I don't even think a working german shepherd would get that much! You don't know that, the dog could be active/nervy/fast metab/digestion issues/underlaying problem. If the dog is fat then yes it's too much food. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leelaa17 Posted May 19, 2011 Author Share Posted May 19, 2011 OMG 6 cups a day is way too much. I don't even think a working german shepherd would get that much! You can generally feed less of a premium food compared with a crap food. Which is what I found when Mindy was on PAL (yuck). Funnily enough, she actually had better poos on pal than on Advance, but she has since changed back to advance and her poo is normal. Though she is on a raw diet now because of her allergies and her poos are great now- small and she only goes twice a day. I only ever gave her a maximum of two cups of dry food a day (plus bones) and she does a lot of exercise and work. I'd say it is a matter of finding the right brand/diet for your dog. I don't know aboutu feeding GSD's but 6 cups is way too much- never go by what it says on the packet, it is always excessive. Additionally, 3 cups at one time is quite alot- I am sure you know that GSDs are prone to bloat and GDV- which is where the stomach expands and twists and it can be fatal. I would be inclined to give her smaller meals- but then again i am totally paranoid!!! I know - I am extremely paranoid as well!!! And I am terrified of bloat - I didn't realise feeding too much also gave them bloat? I thought it was more about exercising excessively right before or after they eat because of the large intakes of breath they take? Just to note, neither jenna nor max scoffs their food - they are incredibly slow eaters! but thank you for your advice! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leelaa17 Posted May 19, 2011 Author Share Posted May 19, 2011 OMG 6 cups a day is way too much. I don't even think a working german shepherd would get that much! You don't know that, the dog could be active/nervy/fast metab/digestion issues/underlaying problem. If the dog is fat then yes it's too much food. thanks for your advice MEH. jenna is excrutiatingly active!! she never ever stops - and she is DEFINITELY not fat... I am thinking of whether or not I have a photo of her I can post... as I said earlier, I am constantly paranoid that she is UNDERWEIGHT because of her body shape! But my vet has constantly told me she is a good weight... She isn't a large dog, she is 8 months and she absolutely wouldn't be over 25kg... shes quite small. Thanks, once again, for everyones advice - I will definitely stop feeding her so much and see if that helps with her poos! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leema Posted May 19, 2011 Share Posted May 19, 2011 Leelaa - firstly, I think you've been great looking for advice here and actually responding to it. Slightly sloppy poos are not normal, and I hope that perhaps changing her diet can help her have more solid stools. The thing with dogs is that different dogs do better on different foods, and that's just the way it is. I have a foster greyhound, "Rowdy", here who I was feeding Advance dry food. This dry food has done very well for the foster greys I've had before and after, but it just didn't agree with Rowdy. Initially I thought it was just the stress of changing house and environments and that it would settle down. It was only when the foster program let me run out of dry food and I had to feed him my food that I saw a massive change. Rowdy went from a farty dog with smelly, loose stools to lovely poos almost overnight. I feed my dog a raw diet (aiming for approximately 80% meat, 10% offal, and 10% bone) and this suited Rowdy a lot better. His poos were nice and not smelly (the smell was getting to me more than the consistency). With my dogs, I can always tell when I do feed them dry food (for example, when I go away, etc). Their stools get softer and smellier. On a raw diet, they are quite small, quite compact, quite dry, and they disintegrate into nothing in my garden in a couple of days. I also find it more cost effective. I only have small dogs, but they cost me about 10c-60c in food a day. That being said, I know plenty of dogs that get the trots from offal content of raw food, so that's not always a winner either. And I probably just made your diet choices all the harder. :D Yes, feeding large meals all at once can be linked to bloat. Smaller meals are better. The fact that your dogs are slow eaters is good, and that you're conscious of exercise is good too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
persephone Posted May 19, 2011 Share Posted May 19, 2011 our pups get some supercoat puppy and heaps of meaty bones . leelaa- if too much grainy food gets into the gut - it just has to go straight on .... things like meat/bones don't absorb as much moisture/swell in the stomach- and are digested at a slower rate .Faeces are usually MUCH smaller and firmer ... and produced less often. IMO ,You can overfeed without a dog getting fat .. if it is unable to properly digest/utilise what you are feeding it .. it won't get fat . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leelaa17 Posted May 19, 2011 Author Share Posted May 19, 2011 Leelaa - firstly, I think you've been great looking for advice here and actually responding to it. Slightly sloppy poos are not normal, and I hope that perhaps changing her diet can help her have more solid stools. The thing with dogs is that different dogs do better on different foods, and that's just the way it is. I have a foster greyhound, "Rowdy", here who I was feeding Advance dry food. This dry food has done very well for the foster greys I've had before and after, but it just didn't agree with Rowdy. Initially I thought it was just the stress of changing house and environments and that it would settle down. It was only when the foster program let me run out of dry food and I had to feed him my food that I saw a massive change. Rowdy went from a farty dog with smelly, loose stools to lovely poos almost overnight. I feed my dog a raw diet (aiming for approximately 80% meat, 10% offal, and 10% bone) and this suited Rowdy a lot better. His poos were nice and not smelly (the smell was getting to me more than the consistency). With my dogs, I can always tell when I do feed them dry food (for example, when I go away, etc). Their stools get softer and smellier. On a raw diet, they are quite small, quite compact, quite dry, and they disintegrate into nothing in my garden in a couple of days. I also find it more cost effective. I only have small dogs, but they cost me about 10c-60c in food a day. That being said, I know plenty of dogs that get the trots from offal content of raw food, so that's not always a winner either. And I probably just made your diet choices all the harder. :D Yes, feeding large meals all at once can be linked to bloat. Smaller meals are better. The fact that your dogs are slow eaters is good, and that you're conscious of exercise is good too. Haha! You did make it harder but that's ok - the more choices the better I guess!! Thank you for your advice! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heidley Posted May 19, 2011 Share Posted May 19, 2011 Agree Pers, large sloopy stools can indicate malabsorbtion, meaning the dog simply can't process it all Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leelaa17 Posted May 19, 2011 Author Share Posted May 19, 2011 our pups get some supercoat puppy and heaps of meaty bones . leelaa- if too much grainy food gets into the gut - it just has to go straight on .... things like meat/bones don't absorb as much moisture/swell in the stomach- and are digested at a slower rate .Faeces are usually MUCH smaller and firmer ... and produced less often. IMO ,You can overfeed without a dog getting fat .. if it is unable to properly digest/utilise what you are feeding it .. it won't get fat . I might try her on a more meaty diet as well and see how that goes. Thanks persephone Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aussielover Posted May 19, 2011 Share Posted May 19, 2011 Does she get many bones? Bones certainly harden the poo. Has she been vet checked for this problem? If you're feeding 6 cups of food a day and she still looks lean, I would also be worried there is a digestion problem. This is a lovely topic btw lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leelaa17 Posted May 19, 2011 Author Share Posted May 19, 2011 Does she get many bones? Bones certainly harden the poo. Has she been vet checked for this problem? If you're feeding 6 cups of food a day and she still looks lean, I would also be worried there is a digestion problem. This is a lovely topic btw lol hahaha sorry! it was the only place I could think of to get quick answers. she hasn't been vet checked because In didn't think it was worthy of a vet check?? Should I take her? because I will if it is a seriously problem. I'm actually really worried now. Shes been acting so normal that I didn't think it was a problem!! And she does get bones but not very often, the only reason that is is because I forget to get them!! lol There could well be a digestion problem because she definitely is very lean, not overweight in the slightest. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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