one of the most common questions asked
in dog care is about diet specifically
how much and how often they should eat
the answer to these questions depends on
various factors such as the dog's age
activity levels type of food and health
in this animal wise video we focus on
how many times a day a dog should eat
which takes into consideration all of
these factors
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in general the frequency with which a
dog should eat is greater when they are
a puppy decreasing as they grow until
eight weeks of age puppies should feed
on their mother's milk so we should not
adopt them before they are weaned
separating them prematurely from mother
and siblings can harm socialization and
lead to future behavioral problems from
the third or fourth week we can start
introducing small amounts of solid food
so that the puppies can become
habituated this is as well as not
instead of breast them if the puppy is
to be given dry feed its best to soften
it with a little water after six weeks
of life we can give the dog solid food
about four times a day allowing them to
continue feeding on their mother's milk
most often winning continues when the
mother refuses to feed her little ones
puppies two to three months of age
should either be weaned or be in the
weaning period requiring solid food
about 4 to 5 times a day the final
number of servings will depend on the
breed of each dog since smaller toy dogs
will need much less than those of large
or giant signs when puppies are 3 to 6
months of age they are already
accustomed to solid food and we can
reduce daily rations to 3 times a day as
their development slows after 6 months
and up to their first year of life the
ideal is two servings per day it's
essential that changes to the dog's
feeding schedule occur progressively
their digestive system needs to become
accustomed gradually for this reason we
need to offer more daily rations and
reduce them with a passage of time not
all breeds reach adulthood at the same
time generally a dog is considered an
adult between one and one and a half
years of age there are some very large
breeds which may take between 2 and 3
years of age in any case once the dog
reaches adulthood the portion should be
reduced to one or two times a day the
final decision will depend on the needs
of our individual dog some will prefer
to eat in one go others split it into
two sittings if you want to change the
dog's food it's important we also do
this gradually we should offer a mixture
of both old and new gradually
withdrawing the old food until only the
new one is left once the dog reaches old
age we will have to set the frequency of
feedings according to the state of
health and particular needs
it's more likely for older dogs to
suffer health problems many of which
require medication or its prevent them
from moving with the previous agility
veterinarian visits are even more
important at this time and they can best
indicate the dogs feeding schedule
according to their clinical picture some
dogs may also prefer to eat smaller more
frequent portions do to reduce states of
health not all dogs need to have a
schedule some are able to ration the
food themselves so we can leave their
bowl with food for most of the day meal
schedules are most recommended for dogs
with a tendency to overeat if we do not
control portions for them they may
develop obesity or other health problems
additionally we need to use these
schedules when we offer our dog a
homemade diet since food can spoil if
left out and not kept in the
refrigerator
in short the most important thing we
need to do is identify our dog's needs
and meet them as best as possible does
your dog have any odd eating habits if
so share them with us in the comments if
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and fascinating videos to come we'll see
you next time
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you