1 meal a day

I was told to feed my puppy a few times a day but i have just been putting all his food in the bowl mixed with wet stuff in the morning and he eats abit of it then goes back to his food threwout the day

Thats ok to do ?

Dogs do well with routine. It's best to feed him three (or four) times a day at specific times rather than leave him to it.

As Tara says try to get him used to a routine , if the age is correct in your avatar then 4 meals a day at the moment

Agree with above advice.. I used to leave Steffs food down and she would go back to it when she wanted and she became a realllyy fussy eater and just stopped eating any of her food at all.. She now gets 2 feeds a day and scoffs them both down

I dont think hes 8 weeks yet.when i asked the guy when i picked him up last week is he 8 weeks i thought he ignored me but my mate who i was with said heard him say hes 6 to 7 weeks old meaning hes just over 6 weeks if thats true that makes him 8 weeks on wednesday or thursday

He'll need four meals a day then. Try to do them at specific times

At this age we fed darcy 4 times a day, 8am, 12 noon,4pm,8pm, we then reduced to 3 meals a day at about 6 months, and now at 9 1/2 months she's fed twice a day, shes thrived, hope this helps

3/4 meals a day would be ideal for a pup of his age. He's young, so he won't be able to absorb all the nutrients from just one meal per day. Also, feeding such a large amount at once could lead to intestinal problems such as bloat, which can be serious. It's best to separate it into portions throughout the day.

Another advantage of feeding several times a day is, you can teach him the "wait " ( a couple of seconds is enough ) command rather than letting him just dive in. This has a couple of benefits. Being allowed to eat when you decide helps establish his place in the pack. You can also use this time to touch him briefly while he is eating so as to avoid him becoming food posessive.

Eleanor wrote:3/4 meals a day would be ideal for a pup of his age. He's young, so he won't be able to absorb all the nutrients from just one meal per day. Also, feeding such a large amount at once could lead to intestinal problems such as bloat, which can be serious. It's best to separate it into portions throughout the day.

aye but hes not eating all his food in one go,hes not even eating a quartar of it,i just put food in his bowl and he eats small bits threwout the day untill its finished,so hes getting all he needs threw out the day anytime he wants.

Not a good idea. For a start it will be difficult to house train him as there won't be a structure to his food passing through.

It can also promote fussiness, and if you're using wet food as well as dry you run the risk of food poisoning!

staffyforever wrote:

Eleanor wrote:3/4 meals a day would be ideal for a pup of his age. He's young, so he won't be able to absorb all the nutrients from just one meal per day. Also, feeding such a large amount at once could lead to intestinal problems such as bloat, which can be serious. It's best to separate it into portions throughout the day.

aye but hes not eating all his food in one go,hes not even eating a quartar of it,i just put food in his bowl and he eats small bits threwout the day untill its finished,so hes getting all he needs threw out the day anytime he wants.

He's just being fussy. A healthy dog won't starve. Leave the food out for 10 minutes, and if he doesn't finish his meal, pick the bowl up and leave it until next meal time. Eventually he'll learn he has to eat to get his food, not just pick at it whenever he chooses.

staffyforever wrote:

Eleanor wrote:3/4 meals a day would be ideal for a pup of his age. He's young, so he won't be able to absorb all the nutrients from just one meal per day. Also, feeding such a large amount at once could lead to intestinal problems such as bloat, which can be serious. It's best to separate it into portions throughout the day.

aye but hes not eating all his food in one go,hes not even eating a quartar of it,i just put food in his bowl and he eats small bits threwout the day untill its finished,so hes getting all he needs threw out the day anytime he wants.

I understand why you'd think that, but that leaves the risk of the food getting stale and/or attracting flies, which is the last thing you want inside your young pup. If flies lay their eggs on his food and he eats it, that could mean a hefty vets bill!

There's the issue of nutrients as well. If he's only picking the bits he wants throughout the day, there's no telling if he's actually getting the correct essential nutrients from his diet, which could inhibit his growth and development.

He also most likely isn't getting enough routine to his diet, so his digestive system will be working at irregular times. It really is a lot better if his meal is split into regular portions at designated times during the day.

its always bad to just let a dog graze food all day long not just for the suggestions above. in addition to the above posts you will get so much more out of a dog with structured feeding and training at the same time. instead of just one feed you will be seen as a provider 4 times a day and that has a great phsycological impact on the dog and how it reacts to you. always get him to do a task for food even if its just a simple sit command as it will reinforce getting good things for doing what he's told.
I subscribe to the nothing in life is free with my two and although they aint perfect its helped no end with the training.

A pup that age needs 4 meals a day till 12 weeks old.

You will probably find feeding strict feeding times promotes a dog who is much more likely to eat their meals.

At 8 weeks old, a puppy really needs 4 meals a day. Not a huge amount, because his tummy is still small. Can you tell us what food (and how much) you are putting down for Brox to eat throughout the day?

The food will go off and most likely become covered in fly eggs and maggots in the summer. It will also encourage bad toileting routines as the food won't be going through at the same time everyday then he will just poo anytime of the day.

Tbh you sound a little like you can't be bothered remembering to feed 4 times a day.