# Transition from 3 to 2 feedings a day



## Suliko (Sep 17, 2011)

Good morning my fellow V owners! THAT day has come 

My little cutie V girl Pacsirta just turned 6 months. Where did the time fly?!  I would like to start the transition to feeding her twice a day instead of three times a day. Since it has been million years when our oldest V Sophie was 6 months old, I can't recall how we did the transition with her. All I know, she survived and is doing great! 
Pacsirta is a bit differently built. She actually shows her ribs a lot, especially between mealtimes when her belly is empty. I wonder if feeding her twice a day would make her lose weight. Currently we feed three cups of kibble a day (and some bones, cottage cheese, ground meat) - one cup each mealtime. I wonder, should I divide the three cups basically into half and feed her 1.5 cups twice a day? Could so much food at once upset her stomach? Or maybe I should stick to feeding her three times a day few more months until she grows older? She has grown into a very beautiful, active puppy with lots of drive, and she burns loads of energy during the day. I think, at night, she might lift some weights - so much muscle! Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!


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## harrigab (Aug 21, 2011)

Suliko said:


> Good morning my fellow V owners! THAT day has come
> 
> My little cutie V girl Pacsirta just turned 6 months. Where did the time fly?!  I would like to start the transition to feeding her twice a day instead of three times a day. Since it has been million years when our oldest V Sophie was 6 months old, I can't recall how we did the transition with her. All I know, she survived and is doing great!
> Pacsirta is a bit differently built. She actually shows her ribs a lot, especially between mealtimes when her belly is empty. I wonder if feeding her twice a day would make her lose weight. Currently we feed three cups of kibble a day (and some bones, cottage cheese, ground meat) - one cup each mealtime. _*I wonder, should I divide the three cups basically into half and feed her 1.5 cups twice a day?*_ Could so much food at once upset her stomach? Or maybe I should stick to feeding her three times a day few more months until she grows older? She has grown into a very beautiful, active puppy with lots of drive, and she burns loads of energy during the day. I think, at night, she might lift some weights - so much muscle! Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!


that's what I did with Ruby, although I think I started when she was about 4 months old.


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## hotmischief (Mar 11, 2012)

Suliko,

I was chatting to a V owner who is a vet, as another week and Boris will be 6 months and I will be cutting it down to 2 meals also.

She said to do it slowly - reducing the lunch time meal and adding to the other two meals. She said that quite often Vs tummy can't cope with that middle meal just being divide between the other two in one straight go and that they will often start vomitting it up. We had this when we went from 4 to 3.


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## mswhipple (Mar 7, 2011)

A lot depends on the calorie content of the particular food you use, naturally. One thing my Vet told me, though, which is important, is this -- You never want to feed really large meals, due to the risk of bloat. When transitioning to the slightly larger meals, be sure to restrict her activity (playfulness) for about 45 minutes after the meal. This reduces the risk of a full stomach flipping over and causing bloat. 

Willie never gets more than one cup at any given meal, and even then, I make him rest for 30 to 45 minutes after he eats. Of course, he hates this, but he'll live. (That's the whole point, isn't it?!)


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## mswhipple (Mar 7, 2011)

Hey! I just wanted to add a note to all of our new puppy owners. In case you are not familiar with it, please educate yourself about bloat in dogs. It is nothing to fool around with. It is deadly! I've personally known of a few cases, and only one of the dogs survived. His owners are still paying down their credit card bill for his surgery. Bloat doesn't just make your dog sick. It kills.


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## born36 (Jun 28, 2011)

mswhipple said:


> Hey! I just wanted to add a note to all of our new puppy owners. In case you are not familiar with it, please educate yourself about bloat in dogs. It is nothing to fool around with. It is deadly! I've personally known of a few cases, and only one of the dogs survived. His owners are still paying down their credit card bill for his surgery. Bloat doesn't just make your dog sick. It kills.


That is why at 14 months old we still feed Mac three meals a day.


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## SkyyMax (Apr 5, 2012)

Max was on 3 meals per day up until about 2 months ago (he is 6 month old). 
He just stopped eating the mid-day meal.
We feed our dogs twice a day, 1 hour after we take a walk (to prevent bloat).


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## Suliko (Sep 17, 2011)

Thank you EVERYONE for all the great advice! *Mswhipple*, great point you bring up about the bloat. That was actually my main concern. 
I think, we'll just continue feeding her the same way as we have and, if her metabolism slows down as she grows, reduce the amount of lunch as we see fits best.

I think she's gonna be a big girl!


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