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Post by akinito on Jun 5, 2006 19:57:31 GMT -5
Hi folks! Greetings from West Windsor, NJ! And here's how Ringo greets yah:[img src="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v497/akinito/ringomyspace.jpg[/"]
this was taken last year...his nails needed trimmin!
Ringo turned 2 yrs last week and we've noticed that he doesn't finish his food right away (lately). His routine is this: bkfst at 6am (1 1/2 cup of Evo), 20-30 min walk at around 7am >in w/c he poops twice and they're healthy stools, too! no loose stools. He has dinner at 5p w/ 1 cup of evo and then poop once after an hour. My observation is this: sometimes he won't finish his bkfst (like only eats 1/4 of it; i'll put it away for dinner; but he still poops twice in the morning. then he'll finish the rest for dinner and then routinely poops later on. I have a feeling that he can eat less since he is 2yrs old already...am I right? My goal is this: save $$, feed less like only once. poop less. go out less, as in walk him only in the morning. you see, we've never tried letting him poop inside the fenced yard because of the fear of him still wanting to eat his feces. So I don't mind walking him in the morning...it's the 2nd trip that I want to omit. Do you think that if I just feed him in the morning...he won't poop at night? He loves hanging out in the yard with us, now with the great weather...and he just loves rolling in the grass and chasing the birds and poor baby rabbits! so wadyathink?
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Post by akinito on Jun 5, 2006 20:07:54 GMT -5
oops sorry!! seems i forgot how to post a pic!! here goes: beware of " D CLAW "
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Post by Laura on Jun 6, 2006 22:24:35 GMT -5
If he's refusing to eat breakfast, that may be his way of self regulating, he's telling you if he's hungry or not. Maybe go to a once a day feed, but go easy on cutting back the amount he gets, at two, you can go by his body shape to determine if it's enough (look for the "tuck" of the waist), if he looks and feels right, then he's being fed enough.
The only problem I might be concerned with feeding only once a day is the probability for bloat, smaller more frequent meals may stave it off.
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Post by Nicole on Jun 7, 2006 5:40:45 GMT -5
Just an FYI but Sunny, who is the worlds biggest food hound, does not like to eat at 6:00 am. He will stand there looking at it for an eternity and then force himself slowly. So I try to feed breakfast later in the day to the extent that I can...sometimes at 11:00 or even 2 or 3 PM or whenever I can get home from class to feed him. And I give him a second meal in the evening at 6:30 or a bit later depending on what time he has eaten and he chows down both meals.
So it may just be that it is too early. I would try to stick to two meals for bloat like Laura said and try to feed a bit later if you can and see if that makes a difference.
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Post by willow on Jun 7, 2006 8:40:09 GMT -5
I agree with Laura and Nicki. I would stick to 2 meals a day, but maybe just feed less in the morning or later, if you can feed him later.
Like Nicki said, my female Aussie, Kara, does not want to eat before 8 a.m....she likes to "sleep in", ;D but Buddy, my male BC wants to eat as soon as he wakes up, which is 6 a.m., and I know it is because that is the routine he got used to from living on a farm in his former life.
I actually think pooping twice a day, no matter how many meals they eat is quite normal for most dogs, and of course, kibble fed dogs, even if it doesn't contain grain, still has other stuff as fillers, like fruits/vegs, which is going to make them go more, so I would not try for once a day. Even my raw fed dogs go twice a day.
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Post by akinito on Jun 8, 2006 7:10:18 GMT -5
Thank you all for your feedback Ok..2x day feeding it is and we started feeding him less qty. My husband and i work full time. He wakes up at 6am and feeds Ringo ever since .. that's his routine in the morning. Then I walk him (Ringo-not the hubby )an hour later after the kids go to school. Then prepare for work (that includes a few min on-line time ;D). In the afternoon, my 12yr old feeds him, then the other daughter walks him later on. We do have a sked..and so far no one really complains. Everyone helps out. I guess I am the only (secretly) complains ..because I would like the convenience of him having more freedom in the yard. o well...i guess i'll wait till he gets way older - hopefully, he'll totally have no interest in his terd. Thank you again
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Post by sibemom on Jun 8, 2006 9:23:14 GMT -5
You know I still don't know if there is ANY way of stopping a dog from eating their own poop or that of others, except feeding them a raw diet. Willow started this after I switched her to IAMS, even though that food was great for her digestion she started eating poop not something she was prone to doing before Well since I tried raw feeding her MANY MANY TIMES with no luck I thought OH BROTHER here we go again well then I switched her to this dog food from PMI called Exclusive and now YOU KNOW WHAT? She has not touched her poop AT ALL ;D She would never snack on Brody's just her own but now it's not a worry anymore ;D and her digestion is GREAT no puking, no explosive poop, and HER COAT IS SO SHINNEY. No I am not suggesting you switch to this food, but I am suggesting you THINK about a raw diet. Brody is on half and half and he NEVER trys to eat poop. So it's a thought plus he probably won't poop as much
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Post by willow on Jun 8, 2006 16:36:10 GMT -5
Sibemom is right...the only way to completely stop a dog from eating its own or another dogs feces is by feeding completely raw.
Kara had this habit when I got her and I tried every commercial food (or so it seems) on the market and she still did it. When I switched to all raw, she quit. The times I tried feeding her part kibble, part raw, she went back to eating her poo on the days she got the kibble!
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Post by akinito on Jun 9, 2006 7:06:22 GMT -5
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Post by willow on Jun 9, 2006 8:14:46 GMT -5
Feeding raw is not a lot of owners "kind of thing", but IMO, we do what is best for our dogs, even if it is not one of our favorite things to do. It come with the territory, as they say, and feeding raw is one of them, because it is certainly "the dogs kind of thing". As far as not wanting to step in poo in the yard....another thing about feeding raw....if the dog goes in the yard after you have already cleaned up, which happens here now and then, when I am out working in the yard I have the cleanup tool close by and watch for it and pick it up right away. My husband otoh, who has never cleaned up poo in his life, I don't think, does not watch and will some times step in it, BUT it does not squish all over your shoes and get in the tred of your sneakers etc. like with dogs who are fed kibble. ...and it sure is nice that I don't have to follow Kara around to try to pick up as soon as she goes or take her out of the yard when she has to go, which makes life a lot easier!
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