How many times a day feed a puppy

A puppy in the house is joy, fun, commotion ... But in addition to positive emotions, the appearance of the baby raises some questions and one of the first - how and how many times a day to feed the puppy. Naturally, you need to take into account the age of the dog, its size and other aspects. We will understand.

What to feed a puppy - dry food or natural food?

Perhaps this is one of the first dilemmas - choose dry rations or feeding with natural food. By the way, veterinarians still do not have a common opinion, which is the best option. You can take into account the opinion of the doctor, the breeder, where the baby was purchased, and evaluate all the pros and cons of both types of feeding. The positive aspects of production rations include the following:

most dogs eat dry food , even those that are picky;
manufacturers produce different product lines, and there is an opportunity, you can choose a more suitable one, even if the dog has any diseases or he suffers from food allergies;
determine the size of the portion and measure it is very simple;
dry food can be stored for a long time without a refrigerator, so they can be purchased in bulk, this is especially important if the pet is large or several;
do not spend time on cooking;
ready-made dry rations are the cleanest type of feeding, when neither a doggie nor things around it get dirty;
high-quality feed as balanced as possible and contain everything you need, so additional supplementation and fertilizing is not required.

Despite the large number of advantages, there are some disadvantages of this type of feeding:

the composition of feed is known only to manufacturers;
high-quality food is quite expensive;
cheap rations are affordable, but their composition is not perfect, they contain more vegetable components, artificial additives, flavor enhancers, flavors, etc. are allowed.

When choosing, you should not focus on the well-known brand and advertising, it is best to listen to the advice of a veterinarian and a breeder. Rations consisting of natural products also have advantages:

the owner knows exactly what his puppy is eating;
there is confidence in the freshness of the cooked dish;
There are no various additives in the diet - preservatives, dyes, etc .;
dog gets natural protein and fiber.

Before you give preference to this type of feeding, the owners must take into account the negative nuances:

food will have to be cooked, if not every day, then every other day for sure;
food is stored for a short time and only in the refrigerator;
everything that the dog has not eaten is thrown away;
if a pet eats a stale food that has been standing in a bowl for a long time, then you should expect signs of poisoning, so it is important to ensure that the pet eats everything at once;
puppies do not always eat carefully, so not only the pet's face can be smeared in the porridge, but also all around the feeding place;
it is difficult to balance and dose the daily portion;
with natural feeding, the pet will periodically need vitamin and mineral supplements.

Another caveat - to transfer a pet from natural food to dry food is not difficult, but during the reverse process there may be difficulties - the pet may go on a hunger strike.

Useful article: how many times a day to feed an adult dog .

How many times a day do you need to feed a puppy

The smaller the baby, the more often it has to be fed. For example, a month-old baby should be given food 6-7 times a day, and from 10-12 months it is recommended to transfer it to an adult mode - 2 meals a day. The ideal time for the first feeding - from 6 to 8 in the morning, the last - from 19 to 22 hours. And the smaller the puppy, the earlier it needs to be given food in the morning and later in the evening. This will allow him in a good-natured mood to go to bed and not experience strong hunger in the morning while waiting for food.

In determining the feeding schedule, the individual characteristics of the breed and the doggie are taken into account, but, on average, it includes the following:

from one to two months - six to seven times a day with an interval of 3 hours between feedings;
from 2 to 4 months - five times feeding, the interval is extended to 4 hours;
from 4 months to six months - four meals a day (one each - in the morning and evening, and 2 days);
from six months to 10 months - three meals a day (one day feeding is removed);
from 10 months up to one year old - two meals a day - morning and evening. In small breeds, the transfer to an adult diet occurs a little earlier, in large and giant ones, a little later.

Experts do not recommend changing the number of feedings, if the baby is not ready for this. Usually the puppies themselves ignore one of the feedings, which is a signal to cancel. If the pet expects and shows with his whole appearance that he is hungry, do not deprive him of food.

See also:

Features of natural feeding

If in the case of dry rations everything is more or less clear, then with natural feeding there may be questions. What can be included in the diet of a small pet, and what should be avoided? Puppy menu from 1 to 3 months should include the following products:

cottage cheese (it is recommended to cook it yourself, adding calcium chloride);
milk and whey;
low-fat dairy products - varenets, ryazhenka, kefir, yogurt;
milk pots - buckwheat, oats;
pieces of boiled meat - beef, veal, lamb, rabbit;
stewed or raw vegetables, fruits - zucchini, carrots, apple, pear.

First of all, food for small puppies should be brought to a mushy state and over time include pieces of food in it. Porridge, vegetable stew can be seasoned with butter, vegetable oil. From 3 months they begin to give the pet raw meat, although it is recommended for some breeds from the first days. So that the baby does not become infected with helminths, the meat should be frozen in the freezer, and thawed and scalded with boiling water before serving.

From 4 months in the diet you can include boiled eggs, a small amount of sour cream, sea fish. Chicken is an allergen, so you can try to give it to your pet for half a year, but be sure to monitor its condition. At the same time, you can give the dog offal, but only in boiled form.

From six months to 9 months, the diet does not change too much, it must also be balanced and include all the necessary components. The main products are meat, offal - they make up at least 50% of the total diet.

Proper feeding is a guarantee of pet's health and longevity, and this issue should be approached with the utmost seriousness. A puppy should receive high-quality food and be sure to comply with the regime.