Hi Kelly, When I first started I didn't have the right formula to begin with...I had 6 methods which all said something a little different...so I just let them eat till they were full...I had always free fed before anyway so that made sense to me. After a bit of time they started gettin a little porky so I started weighing and measuring and cutting back a bit until now everyone is right where I want them...it seems that 3% of their ideal weight worked very well for my guys...but now that they are at ideal weight I can be a little more flexible. I think it is so important to watch your dog...and weigh them...you can tell fairly soon if they are losing or gaining and adjust according to what they need. I think every dog is so different with calorie intake needs...just like us. If I ate like my skinny best friend who can put anything and everything in her mouth in large quantities I would weigh well over 1000 lbs!!!! We have different metabolisims...i think dogs do too! Hugs In Him, Deanna
And the Corey Crew: Wife to my best friend: Mark-ie Pooh...married 29 years 6/27/10 Mom to 4 Children: Andrea 26, Jimmy 22, Baxter 19 and Molly 11 Grandma to 4: Lori, Evelyn Rose, Jack and Cameron Mom to Fur babies: Nugget (MiniPoodle)www.dogster.com/dogs/1085245, Shuai-Li (Shih Tzu)www.dogster.com/dogs/1129251, Bella-Rose (Pomeranian)http://www.dogster.com/dogs/1136706 Mouse (Chihuahua)www.dogster.com/dogs/1005934, Myrtle May (Chihuahua) and Caleb (Rott/chow mix)www.dogster.com/dogs/988612 Mom to feathered kids: Stella (Blue and Gold Macaw) and Stanley (Double Yellow Headed Amazon) and the curtain climber: Miles www.catster.com/cats/895000 ________________________________ From: Kelly <[email protected]> To: [email protected] Sent: Sat, August 21, 2010 5:23:27 AM Subject: Re: [Chihuahuas] Raw diet [1 Attachment] [Attachment(s) from Kelly included below] On Fri, Aug 20, 2010 at 8:45 PM, Darcy Jacobs <[email protected]> wrote: > > >i think i was replying to what kelly said...its hard for me to tell with all >the >cropping lol... someone said they wouldnt feed3% of "their" weight as pups so >i >wanted to say its 3% of adult ideal weight not actual weight of a pup... > I've found that small dogs usually need more than 3% - by that I mean more than 3% of their ideal adult weight. While a large dog might eat more like 2% of their ideal adult weight, 4-5% of the ideal adult weight might be more appropriate for smaller dogs. Personally if I were transitioning a dog over, I'd start with 4% and adjust from there. When my girls were puppies I aimed for around 10% of current weight and/or just let them eat as much as they wanted as long as it didn't seem like a ridiculously huge amount. Here is Moo as a puppy eating raw. She had no problem with smaller bones. -- Kelly
