I have two dogs - Ike and Sam. The vet says Ike needs to gain some weight and Sam needs to lose some so she suggested to change my free feeding approach and start feeding them two or three times a day so I can regulate who gets what. Apparently, Sam was being a hog and Ike was left with nothing. (I do need to say - Ike is a wimp - he's far too submissive to Sam and Sam IS a bully, I admit it) so.. it wasn't working!
The vet says 3 cups a day for Skinny Minnie Ike and 2 cups a day for Chunky Monkey Sam.
Now, if you've ever been on a diet or knew someone who was, you recognize the pissy "I'm hungry" grump-ass behavior while you get used to the new 'diet'. I was feeding the dogs twice a day (breakfast and dinner and they get a few treats in between) until Sam started to exhibit that 'behavior' ... I full-on recognized it because I've been on Weight Watchers for years. He was hungry and it showed. He was begging, he was nipping and growling at Ike, he was sitting in front of the food container, looking longingly at the dog bowls, sitting by the treat cabinet. It was pathetic.
So, I switched to three feedings a day and while Sam is still hungry, he's in a better mood but he still sits by the food container just to show how much of a drama king he truly is. They have learned to tell time because if I'm not in the kitchen making their breakfast at 6, lunch at 11 and their dinner at 4, I'm gently reminded that I have a job to do. I get nose pokes, barks, whines and paw slaps until I get up and head to the kitchen!
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