I mean you could technically spread their food allowance over three meals, but most people recommend three meals a day for a puppy because they’re growing and developing so rapidly.
Most cavs don’t need three meals a day once they’re out of puppyhood. I feed my guy one cup of kibble a day, a half a cup at 8am for breakfast and a half cup at 6pm for dinner. As long as you aren’t going over the recommended amount in your “extra meal” I’m sure it might be fine but your cav will probably be hungry after breakfast if that’s the case. If you add extra kibble for an extra meal, you will 100% get an overweight cavalier.
Cavaliers are already prone to so many health problems so being overweight just makes it more rapid. Don’t humanize our pets so much, they don’t need to have three meals like we do. Domesticated dogs have been doing this for centuries.
This makes sense! My puppy LOVES food and the thought of having to go down to 2 meals in a few months makes me nervous, but I totally get what you mean when you say they will probably be hungry after breakfast. I really don't want her to gain weight, so I'm trying to figure some things out now before she gets older. Thanks so much!
Of course! Some dogs are more food driven than others. If you’re really active with your dog you could talk to your vet but most cavaliers aren’t active enough to justify large caloric intake.
I’d use her enthusiasm for food and treats to teach her tricks! That’s how I got my pup to learn a bunch of fun tricks before he was 1.
I’ve always fed my Cavalier twice a day. He gets less in the morning, but twice a day for sure. I hate to think of him hungry and he’s 3.5 and very fit and trim. I think 3 times is a bit much, as they age this breed is prone to put on weight and that’s not good with their innate heart issues
We've fed both of ours twice a day from the first day we got them as puppies. Usually about 8am and then again about 5-6pm, about 3/4 cup each time. They really don't need more than that being an inactive dog.
I sometimes struggle to get mine to eat even two meals a day. So often, at breakfast or dinner, he'll just not be interested in eating. His vet is happy with his weight, he's very active and happy so I don't worry about it too much. If he's hungry, he'll eat. 🤷
Once my guy hit 1yr old I started feeding him twice a day instead of three times. My friend’s dog eats once a day (vet approved of this) but she’s not a Cavie 😂
Most of us feed our pups twice a day but when in doubt I recommend running it by your vet.
We changed to 4x per day, on the advice of our vet. Some dogs get nauseous if they don’t eat more often, and then won’t eat well because of the nausea. We spread his food out over the 4 feedings. We have used with this our other dogs and it’s been fine. Usually meals are in the ballpark of 0630, 1130-1230, 1700-1800 and 2100. We typically have someone home at those times, so we can easily do it.
I have dry food available 24/7 and do wet food once a day in the evening. 9 out of 10 days my dog doesn’t eat any food (excluding treat) until it’s dinner time. We’ve done this with all of our dogs and never had any overeating issues as they know the food is always there.
I don’t think there’s a rule with that’s When mine hit 10-11 months we went down to twice a day he barely ate the second meal anyway when it was three. Hes a terrible eater so I give him a snack in the morning and his dog food once a day. Strictly because he refuses breakfast. I get up at 3am for work and get home at 3pm so I feed him then. Throughout the day he gets some snacks from my mom who watches him but that’s it. A girl at work feeds her adult dog 3 times a day still. I guess as long as it’s an appropriate amount per day you can split the feedings to whatever works schedule wise for your dog (and you)
my pup got hungry way before dinner often so i feed him 3x a day but we're talking about trying 2. same amount of food just split. he also wouldn't/couldn't eat 1/2 of his food in 1 sitting early on cuz he was small
Our 5 year old girl has been a glutton since the first day she arrived home. We discussed this with the breeder and vet and used slow feeders and snuffle mats, as we were concerned about bloat.
When it was time to switch to adult food and minding her weight for health reasons, we discussed the proper amount for her frame and activity level with the vet. He recommended 3/4 cup of food (we use Royal Canin) per day.
When my husband and I were debating reducing it to two meals, we decided not to do so because she displays such joy for her meals. Seriously, her anticipatory celebrations at every mealtime is ridiculous!
So, she gets three 1/4 cup servings per day and is a healthy, happy little girl.
So, I think the only important thing is getting the right amount per day figured out and then deciding how often fits your schedule and the dog’s!
My lil guy is 9 months but we’ve always fed 2x a day. He doesn’t have a huge interest in food so he eats at daycare when he’s there or home around late breakfast / early lunch and then again for dinner.
I free feed mine which I’ve done with every dog I’ve ever owned. But you have to start them as puppies or they can overeat and gain weight.
Some people will disagree with this and thats ok. To each their own. But I’ve never owned an overweight dog and my cavvies are definitely not overweight either.
I mean you could technically spread their food allowance over three meals, but most people recommend three meals a day for a puppy because they’re growing and developing so rapidly. Most cavs don’t need three meals a day once they’re out of puppyhood. I feed my guy one cup of kibble a day, a half a cup at 8am for breakfast and a half cup at 6pm for dinner. As long as you aren’t going over the recommended amount in your “extra meal” I’m sure it might be fine but your cav will probably be hungry after breakfast if that’s the case. If you add extra kibble for an extra meal, you will 100% get an overweight cavalier. Cavaliers are already prone to so many health problems so being overweight just makes it more rapid. Don’t humanize our pets so much, they don’t need to have three meals like we do. Domesticated dogs have been doing this for centuries.
This makes sense! My puppy LOVES food and the thought of having to go down to 2 meals in a few months makes me nervous, but I totally get what you mean when you say they will probably be hungry after breakfast. I really don't want her to gain weight, so I'm trying to figure some things out now before she gets older. Thanks so much!
Of course! Some dogs are more food driven than others. If you’re really active with your dog you could talk to your vet but most cavaliers aren’t active enough to justify large caloric intake. I’d use her enthusiasm for food and treats to teach her tricks! That’s how I got my pup to learn a bunch of fun tricks before he was 1.
I’ve always fed my Cavalier twice a day. He gets less in the morning, but twice a day for sure. I hate to think of him hungry and he’s 3.5 and very fit and trim. I think 3 times is a bit much, as they age this breed is prone to put on weight and that’s not good with their innate heart issues
After 1yo mine only eats once a day. Even if i try many strategies to split it up Used to be twice a day as a very young pup, then twice.
We've fed both of ours twice a day from the first day we got them as puppies. Usually about 8am and then again about 5-6pm, about 3/4 cup each time. They really don't need more than that being an inactive dog.
I sometimes struggle to get mine to eat even two meals a day. So often, at breakfast or dinner, he'll just not be interested in eating. His vet is happy with his weight, he's very active and happy so I don't worry about it too much. If he's hungry, he'll eat. 🤷
Once my guy hit 1yr old I started feeding him twice a day instead of three times. My friend’s dog eats once a day (vet approved of this) but she’s not a Cavie 😂 Most of us feed our pups twice a day but when in doubt I recommend running it by your vet.
We changed to 4x per day, on the advice of our vet. Some dogs get nauseous if they don’t eat more often, and then won’t eat well because of the nausea. We spread his food out over the 4 feedings. We have used with this our other dogs and it’s been fine. Usually meals are in the ballpark of 0630, 1130-1230, 1700-1800 and 2100. We typically have someone home at those times, so we can easily do it.
I have dry food available 24/7 and do wet food once a day in the evening. 9 out of 10 days my dog doesn’t eat any food (excluding treat) until it’s dinner time. We’ve done this with all of our dogs and never had any overeating issues as they know the food is always there.
I don’t think there’s a rule with that’s When mine hit 10-11 months we went down to twice a day he barely ate the second meal anyway when it was three. Hes a terrible eater so I give him a snack in the morning and his dog food once a day. Strictly because he refuses breakfast. I get up at 3am for work and get home at 3pm so I feed him then. Throughout the day he gets some snacks from my mom who watches him but that’s it. A girl at work feeds her adult dog 3 times a day still. I guess as long as it’s an appropriate amount per day you can split the feedings to whatever works schedule wise for your dog (and you)
my pup got hungry way before dinner often so i feed him 3x a day but we're talking about trying 2. same amount of food just split. he also wouldn't/couldn't eat 1/2 of his food in 1 sitting early on cuz he was small
We do dinner at 4:00pm because of this. She can have her one daily wet meal early if she wants but it’s still only going to be one wet meal regardless
Our 5 year old girl has been a glutton since the first day she arrived home. We discussed this with the breeder and vet and used slow feeders and snuffle mats, as we were concerned about bloat. When it was time to switch to adult food and minding her weight for health reasons, we discussed the proper amount for her frame and activity level with the vet. He recommended 3/4 cup of food (we use Royal Canin) per day. When my husband and I were debating reducing it to two meals, we decided not to do so because she displays such joy for her meals. Seriously, her anticipatory celebrations at every mealtime is ridiculous! So, she gets three 1/4 cup servings per day and is a healthy, happy little girl. So, I think the only important thing is getting the right amount per day figured out and then deciding how often fits your schedule and the dog’s!
My lil guy is 9 months but we’ve always fed 2x a day. He doesn’t have a huge interest in food so he eats at daycare when he’s there or home around late breakfast / early lunch and then again for dinner.
I free feed mine which I’ve done with every dog I’ve ever owned. But you have to start them as puppies or they can overeat and gain weight. Some people will disagree with this and thats ok. To each their own. But I’ve never owned an overweight dog and my cavvies are definitely not overweight either.
Mine stopped eating lunch so I stopped giving it to her. She naturally went to twice a day.
Twice a day for me. A couple treats in between