How much food for a 9-week old pup?

N

nsecrist

New member
Hi,

I just brought home a new Chocolate Pointing Lab puppy - she is almost 9 weeks now.

I am feeding Purina Pro Plan Large-Breed Puppy Food. The back of the bag is somewhat confusing........I am guessing she will be about 60-70 lbs when fully mature.

How much should I be feeding her? I am currently using about 2 cups per day. 3 feedings per day at about 2/3 cup per feeding.

Does this sound high or low? Most of the time, she is able to eat all I put down for her pretty quickly.....

Is 3 feedings a day the best for a young puppy? If so, how long should I continue with 3 feedings per day?

Lots of questions - Any thoughts?

Thanks

Nate
 
What does your puppy weigh now? 2 cups seems a little low for how lab puppies grow but if she is a small pup then it may be fine. A very active pup can burn a lot of energy and you may need to adjust. When I read the Purina guidelines I think they are a little low on feed. I fed a slightly higher calorie feed to my GWP pup. I think he started at 2 1/2 cups and we were up to 3 and 3 1/2 after a month or two at home. Up the feed when you can see the pup grow from day to day. If she looks thin give her more, if she looks rolly cut back for a few days. Since you are feeding a good quality puppy food then she shouldn't grow too fast or get fat.
I personally think it is hard to just say "For the next month the pup should get 3 cups". What they need changes all the time depending on growth and activity.

I liked 3 feedings a day but I often did 2 meals and 1/3rd of the feed for training each day. It is easy to train 'come' and 'sit' with food in your hand. I went to 2 feedings at about 5 or 6 months. No more 'treats' for training after that.

I'm no expert at all but my dog is 11 months old now, hard as a brick and healthy as can be.

Tim
 
My black lab is going to turn 3 this February and went through the same thing not that long ago. She is right around 70 pounds. We fed her three times a day for a year as that is what a couple books that I read had stated to do. I believe at one point we were up to 4 cups a day as she had a lot of time out of her kennel. The bag should have recommendations on it as to how much. I would use that as a guideline and adjust from there like TimJ mentioned.
 
Base the feedings upon what she weighs right now. Not what she will weigh when full grown.It is okay to feed 3 times a day when they are young. Typically I find that puppies if not under competition will not overeat. But I would stick to what the bag says for the weight of your puppy right now. I have a 43 pound golden and she eats 2 cups per day as an adult. 1 cup in the morning and one at night. It is all based on the quality of food.Cheap food with fillers you need to feed more. Quality food like what you are feeding and she shouldn't need as much.
 
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