# 1 Meal ok?



## hcrowder (Dec 26, 2013)

Hi Everyone, 

Penny has been fed raw since she was 10 weeks old. She is now 7 months. Until about 2 weeks ago she was eating between 1300-1500g a day split over 2-3 meals. She was always offered three but sometimes chose not to eat in the morning. 

In the last couple weeks she has been eating a lot less (600-800g). She has also been really picky about eating, not eating breakfast at all, and barely eating around 3pm. She then eats her main meal of the day around 8pm. 

She gets a ton of exercise, off lead so she can run when she wants and rest when she needs to. She weighs about 21kg. She has never been too skinny or over weight.

So my questions are these:

1 - Is it fine to feed her one meal a day, only the evening meal?
2 - Should I be worried about the massive shift in the amount that she is eating?

THANKS.


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## dextersmom (Oct 29, 2013)

I'm interested in this too! Dexter usually one eats once a day, around 8 pm as well. We could never get him to eat the three meals a day as a pup either though. My concern is just bloat - it's recommended to feed multiple meals instead of just one large one. I know it's not all that common in V's but it totally scares me (and our new pup is a Weim, so she'll warrant the extra worry). 

I would think maybe the change in her eating sounds like she could be coming into heat, but 7 months sounds a little early? When did her mom have her first heat? Seeing as how Dex is a boy, I'm clueless about heat cycles though


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## dextersmom (Oct 29, 2013)

Also, Dex's growth REALLY slowed down after about 6-7 months. So maybe she's just needing less food now that she's not growing as rapidly?


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## hcrowder (Dec 26, 2013)

Penny's Mom went into her first heat at one year but her sister, from the same litter, started a month ago. At first I thought it was her first heat but the vet said she isn't showing any other signs. I am really hoping she waits 2 weeks to start as I will be on summer vacation then but it would be just like my stubborn little girl to start right now.


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## organicthoughts (Oct 9, 2012)

Yes, one meal is fine. In fact it might even be better as some people don't think it is healthy for a dog to constantly be digesting. Gives the digestive system a rest.


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## MCD (May 4, 2013)

Dharma gets fed 2 cups of kibble in the early morning and then another 2 cups of kibble in the early evening/late afternoon. She gets one boiled chicken thigh in her food in the morning feeding. It is gone. She will often leave food in her afternoon feeding though. It is really up to her if she wants to eat or not. She is 1 year old and it depends on how much exercise she has had too.


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## einspänner (Sep 8, 2012)

I agree with OT. One meal is fine. I started at 5.5 months with one a day and my girl has done well with that. 

There is a point where dogs need less food or at least less food proportionally to their weight than they did as puppies. I'm too new at this to know when that normally occurs, but what is normal doesn't matter so much. So long as her body condition, energy level, health, and stools are all good, then you can be confident it's working for her. The new amounts are within 2-4% of her body weight, so not worryingly low at all.


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