Hey again
Dallas is now 4 months (akita) and he's eating Blue Buffalo large puppy food. How much should we be feeding him? Right now, he's getting 1 cup @ 6:45am, 1/2 cup @ 12:30pm and another 1 cup @ 5:30pm. At first i thought it was enough but when we add it all up, he's only getting 1/4 cup more now than what he was getting when we brought him home @ 10 weeks. Here is what the mfg. states... For puppies that will be over 100 lbs at maturity, betwenn 3-5 months, they should get between 4 and 5.25 cups per day. Am i grossly underfeeding him?

Blue Buffalo - All Natural Chicken and Brown Rice Puppy Food

Your thoughts are most appreciated
Phillip

Manufacturers feeding guidelines are just that. Guidelines. They aren't absolutes, just suggestions.

The bigger questions are:

How is your puppies weight? Is he thin as a rail, or does he have the correct amount of flesh on him for his bone structure?

Is he ravenous at meal time, wolfing his food down like he's starving, and anxiously searching for more?

What is his activity level? Is he happy and energetic, or does he lay around like he's too tired to lift his head?

If he's energetic, doesn't look like a starving refugee, and is hungry without attacking his food like he hasn't eaten in days, he's probably getting enough food. But if he's thin, ravenous, and doesn't seem to have the energy to get up and play, he needs more.

You are probably giving him the right amount but like pdw1731 said, if he gets lots of exercise, give him a 1/2 cup more. I suggest just feeding him 1 cup (1 1/2 if he is very active) in the morning and 1 1/2 cups at night. But thats just me.

just give him small amount of food then if they are still hungry give small amount of food

I have an Akita, 5 months old and 50 lbs. He is eating Blue Buffalo Large Puppy Food. Right now, we are feeding him twice a day, 6:30 and 5:30, where he gets 2 cups. He snarfs it down, which causes concern about bloat. We got some advice to soak his food, which increases the size of it obviously. The problem now is that with the soft food going in, soft stool is coming out. Honestly, we have had problems since day one with his stool being soft and mushy or formed yet still soft. The best stool he's ever had was the one right after his neutering surgery. Should i not let his food soak as long? should i not add as much water?

Another question, i've always heard that adding a raw egg helps improve the shininess of a dogs coat....myth?

funny, i am a man in search of a firm stool. what has the world come to?

I'd cut the amount of water in half, and don't let it soak until the food is soft and mushy. Or, if soaking the food isn't slowing him down, I'd skip the water completely. Do try to curtail any roughhousing for about an hour after he eats.

As for the egg, yes egg will help grow a shiny coat. You'll probably hear about raw egg white binding with biotin and causing biotin deficiency. Not to worry. While raw egg white does bind biotin, there is more than enough biotin in the yolk to counteract the raw egg white. The bigger concern is salmonella and e-coli, both of which can usually be found in raw egg. If that concerns you, scramble the egg and cook it until it sets up, but is still moist.

You mentioned from day one you had concernes/ problems with soft stools. Did you change his food type/ brand etc when you got him, or did you continue feeding what the breeder began him on?

Have you tried an alternative brand of food source or even considered a BARF diet.

Just wondering if the soft stool could be a slight allergic or intolerance to an ingredient in the brand food you are using, just an alternative thought anyway.

We kept our Akita on what the breeder was using for some months before we began switching his food around, and did find that some brands just did not cut it, and did cause soft/ runny stools, we kept on persisting until we found a diet that worked for him.

As far as the ammounts go, we fed Kato around the same as you are your dog now, and never considered it gross underfeeding. We actually had to keep him on the lighter side anyway as he had suffered from rapid bone growth causing twisting and weakness in his hock. But in saying we keep him on the lighter side, he is still far from skinny, just a healthy lean dog.

Originally Posted by jv17

just give him small amount of food then if they are still hungry give small amount of food

Good idea I also do that to Brian our family youngest dog...he tend to eat all the time and like after an hour he is hungry...but now he is in normal eating...he 4 months old now and like to sleep always...

Originally Posted by vetgroomer

Is he ravenous at meal time, wolfing his food down like he's starving, and anxiously searching for more?

What is his activity level? Is he happy and energetic, or does he lay around like he's too tired to lift his head?

My God yes, he tears thru his food at meal time and looks for more. We give him treat throughout the day but nothing substantial enough to call a meal. We are going to bump him up about another 3/4 cup @ each meal (2x/day) and see how that works. Will fully soaking his kibble so it expands then topping it off with some dry kibble to keep his stool somewhat firm help in any of your experiences?

He is happy when we are inside (although he paces near the door if the heat inside is on but the weather out is bad). Otherwise, he lays on the deck to stay cool or runs around in the backyard...happily digging his way to China