# I feel horrible as I have been under-feeding my puppy!



## Naturelover (Nov 30, 2013)

Well it looks like I took things a bit too literally in my attempt to do everything perfectly for our new pup. I have only been feeding him 1/3 c kibble a day (+ some treats). I think I misunderstood the amounts people said with regards to 1/3 x 3 meals a day etc.... also didn't realize from what the breeder said that the 1/4-1/3 cup a day was only for the first few days!! The acana bag had no instructions on it and I kind of heard that well those instructions are always too much anyway.

So I e-mailed the breeder and it turns out I should have been feeding him more like 3/4 - 1 cup a day of kibble in the last 1.5 weeks and I haven't been! Maybe that explains why he was so food motivated.  I have been weighing him and I noticed that his growth really dropped off. He is just about 4 lbs now at almost 11 weeks old. I could also feel his ribs more but it is so hard to see on these fuzzy guys. I feel so awful, he has been hungry, snarfing up every treat and kibble, and I have been limiting his food/treats thinking I was being responsible. I thought maybe it was bad to let them eat as much as they want, that you have to feed a certain amount to get the right growth rate or something... anyway I am now feeling HORRIBLE and I'm afraid I've caused him some harm or malnutrition or something.  But he will definitely be getting a lot more to eat now. Oh man. After all my research who would think this would be the thing I would totally screw up?


----------



## Pucks104 (Aug 16, 2012)

He will be ok. You have realized your mistake and have corrected it. There is so much to think about when your pup first comes home it is understandable that a new owner could get things confused. Breathe deeply and move forward!


----------



## misstray (Feb 6, 2011)

All you can do is move forward. Good thing you realized it sooner rather than later. If it was me, I'm sure I'd be feeling horrible about it all too. Poor little guy, but what can you do...what's done is done and I'm sure he'll bounce back fine.


----------



## Naturelover (Nov 30, 2013)

Well, he certainly appreciated his big jackpot dinner meal. And is now playing up a storm. I'm just worried it might stunt his development or his joints or his brain or something like that! I have been so caught up with every aspect of puppy rearing that I didn't even think very much about the simple things like how much kibble to pour in the bowl. The easiest part!


----------



## Colbie (Feb 9, 2013)

I'm sure he will be fine. We all make mistakes. Food amount is so variable anyway it is hard to know the exact amount.


----------



## Naturelover (Nov 30, 2013)

Thanks guys, man I am so glad the forum is here!! Now I agree with all the members who say they don't know what they would do without it! I don't have any human kids and I can only imagine how much crazier one would get if I am already like this over my puppy...


----------



## morriscsps (Aug 17, 2010)

It is easier to put on the weight than to take it off. Don't worry about it. You will soon find something else to feel guilty about.


----------



## gelbergirl (Jun 9, 2007)

I used to mush up a bit of cottage cheese in Henry's lunch when he was a wee one. You could do that for a couple of weeks.
All will be well.


----------



## whimsy (Apr 3, 2010)

Aww..don't beat yourself up about it. He will be just fine


----------



## Naturelover (Nov 30, 2013)

So puppy is happily munching 1/3 cup of kibble per meal now! Which is what I was giving him per day, before. I guess it is normal for their tummies to be quite big after they eat? His belly feels positively rotund, post meal. I have been trying not to have him playing too much but I do training during his meals to slow him down a bit and just to make the most of the opportunity. He is also drinking more water, I guess because the kibble is dry?


----------



## Naturelover (Nov 30, 2013)

Man I am having a rough couple of days with puppy parenthood over here. I have been slowly trying to clip his nails, just so he gets used to it and to keep them short. I have experience with bird nails. I managed to get all his front ones while he was just relaxing with me and he didn't seem to mind much. I tried to get a back one today and I quicked him.... he wiggled and I couldn't see as well as I thought. It doesn't help that he has black nails. That little yelp won't soon be forgotten. Fortunately I have qwik stop on hand, but sigh, I am feeling like a failure today, quicking his nail, leaving him for an hour in his crate with him screaming, 2 potty accidents after a good start in the morning where he went to the right place on his own, and trying to catch up on the food intake.

It gets easier right?? I really thought I had a knack for animal stuff and that the dog was going to be a bit easier for me than this! I think the lack of sleep is not helping either...

I am going to take him to visit my boyfriend's work now, for his birthday, and hopefully I will get to enjoy people going ga-ga over him and him being happy after I feel like I have been torturing him. :\


----------



## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

Awww, you're doing fine. Everyone makes a mistake here and there. YOu caught your mistake, and have corrected it as far as the food is concerned. Now just don't go overboard in the other direction out of guilt. 

I told you about my less-than-successful nail experience, so you have my total sympathy there. Potty accidents will happen, just do your best to keep them to a minimum, and when they DO happen, shrug your shoulders and move on!


----------



## Pucks104 (Aug 16, 2012)

Naturelover said:


> Man I am having a rough couple of days with puppy parenthood over here. I have been slowly trying to clip his nails, just so he gets used to it and to keep them short. I have experience with bird nails. I managed to get all his front ones while he was just relaxing with me and he didn't seem to mind much. I tried to get a back one today and I quicked him.... he wiggled and I couldn't see as well as I thought. It doesn't help that he has black nails. That little yelp won't soon be forgotten. Fortunately I have qwik stop on hand, but sigh, I am feeling like a failure today, quicking his nail, leaving him for an hour in his crate with him screaming, 2 potty accidents after a good start in the morning where he went to the right place on his own, and trying to catch up on the food intake.
> 
> It gets easier right?? I really thought I had a knack for animal stuff and that the dog was going to be a bit easier for me than this! I think the lack of sleep is not helping either...
> 
> It will get easier. Baby puppies take so much work, balanced, of course, by so much sweetness, cuddliness, and puppy breath! There was a thread some time ago where many forum members commented on having "what was I thinking moments" when their pups were young, squirmy, peeing, pooping, biting little fuzzballs! It will get easier!


----------



## Naturelover (Nov 30, 2013)

Heh, well, maybe I did over-do it out of guilt... today was also the day of the first official butt-bath... the stuff of legends. It could have been from increasing his food so much, or also from the chicken and squash baby food I tried smearing in his Kong. He just couldn't really figure out what to do with the kong when it had kibble or soaked/frozen kibble/beef liver in it. So we will go back to an average but not crazy amount of kibble and reduce treats and baby food... hopefully get his tummy settled again! I was thinking of trying filling & freezing the Kongs with just some canned wet puppy food in it instead.... I really need to find something long-lasting for him to focus on when I am out of the house.

Still, we had a nice visit with my boyfriend's co-workers. He loved all the guys, and had his first time walking on gravel and peeing outside. He also got to walk through the parking lot in the rain on leash/harness and get his feet in some puddles. He was only really stopped in his tracks by a man with fluorescent yellow sneakers! Maybe instead of Ugg boots fluorescent footwear should be on Dr. Sophia Yin's puppy socialization checklist!

Thanks all for the support.


----------



## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

Naturelover said:


> Heh, well, maybe I did over-do it out of guilt... today was also the day of the first official butt-bath... the stuff of legends. It could have been from increasing his food so much, or also from the chicken and squash baby food I tried smearing in his Kong. He just couldn't really figure out what to do with the kong when it had kibble or soaked/frozen kibble/beef liver in it. So we will go back to an average but not crazy amount of kibble and reduce treats and baby food... hopefully get his tummy settled again! I was thinking of trying filling & freezing the Kongs with just some canned wet puppy food in it instead.... I really need to find something long-lasting for him to focus on when I am out of the house.
> 
> Still, we had a nice visit with my boyfriend's co-workers. He loved all the guys, and had his first time walking on gravel and peeing outside. He also got to walk through the parking lot in the rain on leash/harness and get his feet in some puddles. He was only really stopped in his tracks by a man with fluorescent yellow sneakers! Maybe instead of Ugg boots fluorescent footwear should be on Dr. Sophia Yin's puppy socialization checklist!
> 
> Thanks all for the support.


I was afraid of that. . You may want to make changes more slowly in the future. As far as the Kong is concerned, some dogs LOVE them... Kodi never had much interest, no matter what I put inside it. I ended up scraping all sorts of stuff out of Kongs on a regular basis. Honestly, I think they are a better tool for larger breed puppies. With Kodi, we found that just giving him a nice cookie as we went out the door was enough. ( we use Plato organic chicken jerky made in the US exclusively for this). They are largish chunks, so keep them busy for a couple of minutes. We found that Kodi just went in his crate and slept most of the time until we returned. (Still does)


----------



## Lalla (Jul 30, 2013)

Cuba's never been much interested in Kongs, nor has my Coton, Tycho; poor you, Naturelover, you do seem to have been having a rough ride; I think it's called 'new puppy ownership' and suspect that you are probably more up front than some about things that you've talked about. I get terrible guilt when I underfeed my dogs but it's because they just won't eat some days; or only one small meal. I've given up beating myself over the head about so many things! Hang in there. The first few months, as others have said, are tougher than people often expect. You sound to me as if you are doing a great job, just being honest with the rest of us about the difficult bits.


----------



## Naturelover (Nov 30, 2013)

Heh, I am still loving having him and I don't regret it for a minute. Today has been great so far. He slept through the night and his tummy seems better. Every day is different and he is changing each day too! The grooming is going better too, I am doing as Pucks104 suggested and alternating strokes with the brush when he is relaxed. We will get there but it sure is interesting how much more guilty I feel about the mistakes than I expected! I am used to working with animals that I think don't have as rich an emotional life as dogs, or at least don't convey it in such a human-understandable format.


----------



## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

They do have an amazing way of twining themselves around out hearts, don't they?


----------



## Naturelover (Nov 30, 2013)

The result of tens of thousands of years of domestication & selective breeding!


----------



## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

Naturelover said:


> The result of tens of thousands of years of domestication & selective breeding!


Actually, do some reading&#8230; there is a lot of evidence that they self-selected and evolved along WITH humans, rather than being domesticated BY humans. It is very possible that we wouldn't be "human" as we know it, without the co-evolution of our canine partners!

Knowing you, I think you would be fascinated by the lectures here:

http://caninescience.info

It streamed live and free last June, and although a subscription is now about $100, it's still well worth it. The conference was in Seattle last year, this year I'm thrilled that it is in Rhode Island! I'm all signed up to attend in person. Three days of AMAZING lectures, if last year was any indication.


----------



## jsmith2615 (Feb 9, 2014)

Don't worry all will be fine!!!! I wish I could skip a few meals myself!!! Lol All will be fine


----------



## Naturelover (Nov 30, 2013)

Thanks, that looks very interesting indeed. I recently watched the second episode of Cosmos and they open with a wonderful piece about dogs and our co-evolution. They said that in many senses dogs were domesticating us, too...
Given my recent experiences, I don't doubt it!


----------



## Lalla (Jul 30, 2013)

krandall said:


> Actually, do some reading&#8230; there is a lot of evidence that they self-selected and evolved along WITH humans, rather than being domesticated BY humans. It is very possible that we wouldn't be "human" as we know it, without the co-evolution of our canine partners!
> 
> Knowing you, I think you would be fascinated by the lectures here:
> 
> ...


Are you referring to Raymond Coppinger's work, Karen? REALLY interesting. Still disputed by some, but it seems so plausible to me. Here's a link to his book on Amazon.com; it's a totally gripping read:

Dogs: A Startling New Understanding of Canine Origin, Behavior & Evolution: Raymond Coppinger, Lorna Coppinger: 9780684855301: Amazon.com: Books

My husband is an evolutionary biologist and thinks Coppinger's hypothesis is a fascinatingly likely alternative to the idea that we were the domesticators here.


----------



## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

Lalla said:


> Are you referring to Raymond Coppinger's work, Karen? REALLY interesting. Still disputed by some, but it seems so plausible to me. Here's a link to his book on Amazon.com; it's a totally gripping read:
> 
> Dogs: A Startling New Understanding of Canine Origin, Behavior & Evolution: Raymond Coppinger, Lorna Coppinger: 9780684855301: Amazon.com: Books
> 
> My husband is an evolutionary biologist and thinks Coppinger's hypothesis is a fascinatingly likely alternative to the idea that we were the domesticators here.


Yes, I am talking about Ray Coppinger's work.  I am really excited to be able to hear him in person in June!


----------

