German Shepherd dog

I am curious how much everyone feeds and what? I have seven dogs from ages 8 months to 9  years and have heard variances of people feeding from only two cups a day up to three or four cups twice a day. Each of my dogs get something different and it seems like I am always trying to figure out just the right amount to keep them not too thin and not too fat. I feed raw to my dogs occassionally, but they mostly get kibble. I feed Canidae All Life Stages and Eagle Pack Holistic Select kibbles, both the chicken and the Anchovy/Salmon varieties. Just curious what others are doing...

My two oldest only get about 2c a day.  My middle GSD gets about 3-4 cups a day.  My very active and hard working 2 year old must have a super fast metabolism - she usually needs about 6 cups a day, sometimes more.  She also gets a scoop of K9 Superfuel supplement.  I can't say I notice a diffence in her on it, but I have a big bucket of it that I'm not going to waste :P

So unfortunately there's never really a set amount of food.   I am always feeling my dogs ribs, hips and along their back to make sure they are the right weight, and then increasing or decreasing the food accordingly.  I'm feeding Taste of the Wild High Prarie right now.

Fortunately my youngest is a PIG and will inhale anything I put in front of her!  If she was a picky eater I'd be in trouble!

One of my older girls was a picky eater, and was always skinny.  She was spayed a couple years ago and since then tends to get chubby on very little food, and is very excited to eat every day.  The other one that eats very little is also spayed so that must have something to do with it.

When Star was about 6-7 months old, she was getting 5 cups of premium grade puppy kibble a day. I took her to a handling class, and the instructor said she looked too skinny The instructor was also a breeder of golden retrievers, with many years of experience, so I trusted her judgement.

So, I upped her food to SIX CUPS A DAY!

She stayed at this amount until shortly after her first heat at 12 months, when I noticed her gaining weight. At that point, I gradually cut her food back, then switched to adult kibble (less fat, less protein, fewer calories.) She now gets slightly more than my adult male GSD, maybe about 3 1/2 cups a day, while he gets 3 cups.

It ALL DEPENDS ON THE DOG. Each one is different in their needs. Just watch their 'figure', check how much flesh is on their ribs every now and then, and you'll be able to tell if they're getting what they need.

My 80 plus pound male eats about 4 cups per day in order to maintain his weight.  I recently switched him to a grain free product, was on Eukanuba performance before.  And he picked up some weight, eating a bit less of the grain free stuff.  Taste of the Wild.  My older girl is eating about 2 cups per day, but would really like to eat about 10 cups and weigh 100 pounds!  Then my younger girl eats about 2 1/2 to 3 cups per day, if she's doing a lot of training, ie: herding especially I'll bump her up to 3 cups per day.  She too would eat more than that too.  I've never really gone by what the bag says, I go by what the dogs look like and what they are doing.  ie:  couch potatoes don't get any extras! 

GSDFanatic-I have one picky eater too. I keep a container of low salt beef broth in the fridge and pour a little over the food a few minutes before feeding to let it soak in. Works like a charm and I don't put in more than a quarter cup or so at a time. I get the kind that is like a pourable box with a spout.

Just a real quick and easy fix for a picky eater.

Dawgs

Two cups for all of my adults over three years old...the younger ones get more up to three and four with raw meats everyother day....on those days the raw meat is three choices in a dish two time a day...and an Ester C per day.

I have no picky eaters and no spay or neutered ones...I add olive oil and  garlic and  Missing Link to all the females every day.

Year old to 2year old get omega caps, garlic , olive oil  and vit. ester c and the raw meat every other day.

I use Chicken Soup with additional salmon oil and apple cider vinegar.  I feed my 4 year old retired male (back problem) who is house master but not allowed full throttle exercise, only on leash, 4 measuring cups a day (2 cups 2 X a day), and he stays lean. 

I feed my 7 mo old female who has full tilt exercise and ball chasing 2 X a day in a large field as well as training, only 1 measured cup 2 X a day and, at club, everyone tells me she is still too fat!  She is such an easy keeper I don't know how I could feed her less as she will eat everything in sight when she feels hungry...rubber, wood, fencing, you name it...and she is the high drive dog.  Go figure.  She must have this incredibly efficient metabolism.

spunky my 14 month old gsd can polish off 5 cups a day sometimes but other times eats maybe 4. fluffy is probably eating about 4. spunky is still getting the too skinny comments, although her ribs can be neither seen, or felt. i thought you should be able to feel a dog's ribs at the right weight, but her side feels squishy like a pillow.......and everybody says she is too skinny. fluffy is almost the same size and a much lighter built dog. i would guess she is about 20 pounds lighter, but nobody ever says she is too skinny, probably cuz i have her in a modified continental clip which is growing out pretty good and makes her look bigger.

I changed Chaos's food and he has put on 8 lbs. in not much time at all.  People are commenting on how great he is looking.  He eats about 5 cups a day if he eats it all!

Personally, I'm a believer in feeding a dog as much food as they want to eat.

If you're feeding the right thing - they will remain fit and trim

I don't believe obesity is CAUSED by eating too much -  although eating a lot is often one of the RESULTS of obesity and metabolic syndrome.

In my opinion, obesity is caused by more than one thing but the leading cause is sterilization coupled with a  poor diet (and the definiition of a poor diet is basically one too high in carbohydrates.)

I HATE to think of a dog being hungry all the time!

My dogs have ALWAYS been fed as much as they want - and none have ever been fat.

If money is an issue, fewer dogs is the answer, restricting calories.

Unlike what most people think - a lot of exercise doesn't necessarily keep a dog lean (it DOES increase appetite)

Hi protein and fat diets - very low in carbs - that is what keeps a (hormonally normal) dog lean.