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Old December 30th, 2009, 08:52 PM
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Feeding dogs one meal or two per day?

I'm sure this has been discussed before - but I couldn't find it - too many posts to go through!

Is is best to feed once or twice per day? I'm currently feeding twice per day but have been told that once a day for adults dogs is preferable.

Any comments?
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Old December 30th, 2009, 09:06 PM
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I feed Tucker a small meal in the morning and a little more at night, I had a dog bloat once and found it was better to feed two meals and have just kept doing this with Tucker..I figure just to feed them once at night must make them hungry during the day.
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Old December 30th, 2009, 09:06 PM
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Our dogs (past and present) have always done better on two meals than on one. It seems to be easier on the tummy and better for their energy levels to have the food spread out over multiple meals.

Did the person who told you that one meal was preferable say why they thought that?
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Old December 30th, 2009, 09:12 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by doggy lover View Post
I had a dog bloat once and found it was better to feed two meals
that is exactly why I would never feed only once a day. My guys get 2 meals , and if I was working from home , they would get 3.
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Old December 30th, 2009, 09:17 PM
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We always fed ours two until fairly recently...we're doing one meal a day now, and it's working well for us.
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Old December 30th, 2009, 09:47 PM
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only one, in the evening but he does get table scraps.
I tried a couple times to do 2 feedings, but he just goes into guard mode with the cats and guarded it all day , and wouldn't eat his morning meal until dinner time
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Old December 30th, 2009, 09:50 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by hazelrunpack View Post
Our dogs (past and present) have always done better on two meals than on one. It seems to be easier on the tummy and better for their energy levels to have the food spread out over multiple meals.

Did the person who told you that one meal was preferable say why they thought that?
No, Hazel, they didn't say why and I wasn't quick enough to press further at the time.

The "easier on the tummy", mentioned by a couple of posters has sold me on staying with two meals per day - Bobby's digestion is whacky at the best of times so I'm not going to change his schedule for anything!

I do find it interesting, though, to hear both sides..
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Old December 31st, 2009, 01:59 AM
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JanM, I also have heard a few times that it is ideal to feeds adult dogs once a day, although I have never really researched it before or bothered to look into it...

I always do 2 meals a day for my smaller (and senior) dogs. Although one is lighter (more of a snack) then the other. I feed raw and usually give a meal in the morning that is about 75% of their total daily requirement, and then around 25% in the evening.

For my bigger girl, who is also younger (at 2 years old), I sometimes will do one meal a day and then just give her a bone or something to chew on in the evening.

I also have read in several places, some people fast their dogs one day a week. Personally, I have not done this, although I do find some days my dogs just don't seem too hungry and seem to naturally "fast" themselves by eating very little in a day. Then the next day they eat normally.
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Old January 3rd, 2010, 11:44 PM
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I feed twice a day for different reasons.

The Minpins being a toy breed do much better eating twice to keep their blood sugar and energy requirements regulated. I actually give one dog(Petie) an extra feed (3) before bed, because if he isn't fed late in the evening he is sick, retches, and shakes..not wanting to eat at all in the morning. The other two just get a small glob of food so they don't feel cheated....

The Dane and the Bullmastiff both are fed twice as well. Two smaller meals are better for them as they are breeds dispositioned for gastric tortions or bloat, and since having a dog die from that before....I will take every precaution. Seeing that feeding time for the dogs is one of the high points of their day...why not make two instead of one?
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Old January 4th, 2010, 12:02 AM
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Baxter and Bentley were fed twice a day as pups. Once they got to be about 11 months old, they no longer wanted to eat in the morning. I tried cutting their portions back to keep the two feedings but they didn't want the morning feed, so they just get one meal a day now around 6:30 in the evening.
They rarely get any cookies or treats other than a bully stick and maybe 2 cookies each on the weekends, so they're not getting any junk either.

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