Fromm Puppy Gold— how much should he eat?

[Joeturbo26]

Just a quick question (who am I kidding, my questions are never "quick" lol) that I can't really find a definitive answer on, and I know that it can be a range....but,

Rico is PICKY! I quickly learned this, when I tried feeding him his "first food", diamond naturals, and he much preferred the Fromm Puppy Gold when I tested the waters and offered him a few kibbles to taste and he ate it all up.

Since then, I stopped diamond naturals cold turkey and went straight to fromm, I am very thankful he had no stomach issues and he has had his consistent 3 bowel movements per day like clockwork.

Here's the issue/question:

He was 5lbs and right around 8/9 weeks at the time of switching, the vet stressed the importance of him eating meals as he felt he was slightly underweight. He recommended vetoquinol nutri cal gel, three times a day, preceding his meals to fortify and stimulate his appetite. I fed 1/2 cup of food 3x a day and he rarely ate more than just around 1/4 cup of it.

I started to worry he wasn't eating enough and began to try moistening his food (hated it), homemade chicken stock (hated it).... And then a few pieces of Stella & Chewys toppers into it...LOVED IT! Success! He ate 1/2 cup that day no problem!

Now as the days go on, he's, again, eating less and less... Back to roughly 1/4 cup at a meal mostly a little less rarely a little more.

Now he's 10 weeks old... He gained 1.5 pounds—he's a chunky 6.5 pounder LOL. He has a vet visit tomorrow for round 2 vaccines...

I've mostly read a puppy his breed/age/weight should be eating a total of 1—1 1/2 cups per day total. He's maxing out at 3/4 cup total.

Is this enough? What is the total recommended amount he should be eating per day of the Fromm puppy gold (1 cup according to them)...

What do you think, and if it's not enough, any suggestions?

Here's a new photo to thank you in advance for your input!

 

[davidh]

First off, he is a doll, so precious. OK, back to the food. At this age 1/3 to 1/2 cup three times a day sould be enough. Some are very picky eater. You can add a little Feta cheese to his food to help him eat. The Stella and Chewys is a good add in too. I like to gauge the amount by their poop, if their poop is soft, back down the amount a little, if their poop is hard, feed little more, plus make sure they get plenty of water too. Some people will say restrict water after a certain hour to help with potty training. That is a myth and not healthy. I'm not saying you do this, just throwing it out there.

 

[Joeturbo26]

First off, he is a doll, so precious. OK, back to the food. At this age 1/3 to 1/2 cup three times a day sould be enough. Some are very picky eater. You can add a little Feta cheese to his food to help him eat. The Stella and Chewys is a good add in too. I like to gauge the amount by their poop, if their poop is soft, back down the amount a little, if their poop is hard, feed little more, plus make sure they get plenty of water too. Some people will say restrict water after a certain hour to help with potty training. That is a myth and not healthy. I'm not saying you do this, just throwing it out there.

Feta cheese. Yum. Lol

 

[2bullymama]

First off, he is a doll, so precious. OK, back to the food. At this age 1/3 to 1/2 cup three times a day sould be enough. Some are very picky eater. You can add a little Feta cheese to his food to help him eat. The Stella and Chewys is a good add in too. I like to gauge the amount by their poop, if their poop is soft, back down the amount a little, if their poop is hard, feed little more, plus make sure they get plenty of water too. Some people will say restrict water after a certain hour to help with potty training. That is a myth and not healthy. I'm not saying you do this, just throwing it out there.

Great advice!!! :up:


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[MunasG]

My Nellie was also on Fromm and is very underweight right now. Even at the height of her love of her kibble she didn't eat more than a quarter cup a day. She's a little over 7 pounds at 16 weeks! Very skinny. check out the Fromm website for feeding recommendations, https://frommfamily.com/products/gold/dog/dry/puppy-gold/daily-feeding-recommendations/
Nellie has since about three weeks ago refused to eat the Fromm of any other kibble or wet food I've tried without without a topper. So I am about to start her on the raw diet. She is super picky so I hope your little one stays loving Fromm puppy gold. For the last few days she's had diarrhea and vomiting so she's been on a bland diet of boiled ground turkey and pumpkin. I know this is not nutritionally balanced so am looking forward to starting her raw diet. I'm in toronto and settled on big country raw brand. I'm going to be starting her on one protein to see how she does. Turkey makes the most sense.

 

[Joeturbo26]

Great advice!!! :up:


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I have to get some feta cheese today after I take him for his shots... This morning, he ate even less than a 1/4 cup, but pooped outside again like clockwork.

I was laughing at myself at 5:45am, preparing all these special meal bowls for the dog, and then dealing with Luigi's (my cat) prescription food for his urinary issues and his feline OCD... I literally was cracking up thinking... "This is my life at 32 years old... I'm a zoo keeper" lol.

I always talked to my cat but now I find myself having full on conversations with these two monsters.... "Luigi your brother is a picky little b&$t@rd..." Hahahahaha.

 

[2bullymama]

I have to get some feta cheese today after I take him for his shots... This morning, he ate even less than a 1/4 cup, but pooped outside again like clockwork.

I was laughing at myself at 5:45am, preparing all these special meal bowls for the dog, and then dealing with Luigi's (my cat) prescription food for his urinary issues and his feline OCD... I literally was cracking up thinking... "This is my life at 32 years old... I'm a zoo keeper" lol.

I always talked to my cat but now I find myself having full on conversations with these two monsters.... "Luigi your brother is a picky little b&$t@rd..." Hahahahaha.

:rofl: welcome to the club! They suck you in


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[blushy]

I have to get some feta cheese today after I take him for his shots... This morning, he ate even less than a 1/4 cup, but pooped outside again like clockwork.

I was laughing at myself at 5:45am, preparing all these special meal bowls for the dog, and then dealing with Luigi's (my cat) prescription food for his urinary issues and his feline OCD... I literally was cracking up thinking... "This is my life at 32 years old... I'm a zoo keeper" lol.

I always talked to my cat but now I find myself having full on conversations with these two monsters.... "Luigi your brother is a picky little b&$t@rd..." Hahahahaha.

I feel it! Every morning you're getting food, medicine, supplements, measuring stuff hahahaha I dont even do these things for myself!

They're worth it. And we know it makes their lives healthier, better, and hopefully prolonged!


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[Joeturbo26]

First off, he is a doll, so precious. OK, back to the food. At this age 1/3 to 1/2 cup three times a day sould be enough. Some are very picky eater. You can add a little Feta cheese to his food to help him eat. The Stella and Chewys is a good add in too. I like to gauge the amount by their poop, if their poop is soft, back down the amount a little, if their poop is hard, feed little more, plus make sure they get plenty of water too. Some people will say restrict water after a certain hour to help with potty training. That is a myth and not healthy. I'm not saying you do this, just throwing it out there.

[MENTION=4]davidh[/MENTION] thank you so much! Feta did the trick! Who knew it's such a dog favorite?!?! He has not come up for air once!

 

[hannah]

OH MY GODDDD HE IS SO PRECIOUS!!! HIS FACE! I cant even handle his cuteness

We always follow the directions on the bag. Maybe that's not helpful advice haha but that is what we do when determining the amount to feed

 

[Joeturbo26]

OH MY GODDDD HE IS SO PRECIOUS!!! HIS FACE! I cant even handle his cuteness

We always follow the directions on the bag. Maybe that's not helpful advice haha but that is what we do when determining the amount to feed

Lol thank you! Fine one more pic just for you... If I must.

 

[hannah]

He looks like he is contemplating life LOL

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[blushy]

Lol thank you! Fine one more pic just for you... If I must.

Love his little white chest!


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[Joeturbo26]

Love his little white chest!


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Me too! But my absolute favorite thing about him is... Behind both of his font paws, equal size and the same exact place on both, he has two white dots. It looks like the hole on a hostess cupcake where they injected the cream filling. You can only see it from behind when he walks in front of you. I'll get a picture when I take him for a walk in a little bit and I'll post it in the photo section!

 

[hannah]

Me too! But my absolute favorite thing about him is... Behind both of his font paws, equal size and the same exact place on both, he has two white dots. It looks like the hole on a hostess cupcake where they injected the cream filling. You can only see it from behind when he walks in front of you. I'll get a picture when I take him for a walk in a little bit and I'll post it in the photo section!

YAAAS I cannot wait

 

[davidh]

I love the last pic, he is too precious. :heart:

 

[Joeturbo26]

Alright so here's an update. I think this is just too much for him (and me)... LOL the feta cheese worked great for a few meals... But now, he has slowed down again and isn't loving the feta. Also, I think it's too much for him... He had lunch today (with the feta) he ate 38 grams of food so that's a little over an ounce... Went on our walk—peed outside... Came home played for a little bit... And he puked! Haha.

Ok so here's my next question. Should I start cooking instead? If so, what vitamin additives do you recommend? There are a ton to choose from but none that are "puppy specific".

Ugh now if you excuse me I have to go light 50 candles to get the smell of puked up dog food and feta out of my nose.

 

[WeeDex]

I feel it! Every morning you're getting food, medicine, supplements, measuring stuff hahahaha I dont even do these things for myself!

They're worth it. And we know it makes their lives healthier, better, and hopefully prolonged!


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Me: spend all morning preparing food for the dog, then sit down to a bowl of cereal straight out of the box haaaaa!! :lmao:

 

[WeeDex]

He is craaaaazy cute!!!

I'll leave it to those experienced with home cooking to help you, but I'm definitely adding feta to my shopping list this week Hope you find something he really enjoys soon. Food problems are tough.....

 

[MunasG]

Alright so here's an update. I think this is just too much for him (and me)... LOL the feta cheese worked great for a few meals... But now, he has slowed down again and isn't loving the feta. Also, I think it's too much for him... He had lunch today (with the feta) he ate 38 grams of food so that's a little over an ounce... Went on our walk—peed outside... Came home played for a little bit... And he puked! Haha.

Ok so here's my next question. Should I start cooking instead? If so, what vitamin additives do you recommend? There are a ton to choose from but none that are "puppy specific".

Ugh now if you excuse me I have to go light 50 candles to get the smell of puked up dog food and feta out of my nose.

Story of my life! I went to three weeks of on and off with the fromm including adding toppings. I tried the cooking thing but getting the right ingredients in there to make it balanced was tough. I was spending my entire weekends shopping, chopping and cooking. So i started to do research on raw diets. it was super overwhelming and i wanted to pull my head off LOL. I eventually settled on going raw and spoke to my vet about it. He was opposed at first but then came around to it. I found a local canadian made brand called Big country raw. We started on sunday and so far so good! she licks her bowl clean! we haven't had any issues with stomach upset et and i am crossing my fingers that she doesn't hate raw soon. While i was looking into cooking for her, i found a dog food place that does prepared cooked meals for dogs. Maybe there is something similar in your area that you can look into? It was a pricey option though a little bit more than the raw diet so i opted for raw instead.

Good luck with everything...food problems are the worst.