Dog seems too heavy

[leechlake]

This is somewhat stupid but I have a 6 yr old lab and a 2 yr old Golden Retriever. The lab is a female and weighs about 75 right now, Golden is 60 pound male. He seems in perfect shape, nice and svelt can feel ribs with a bit of "meat" on top of the ribs. The female just has too much meat on the ribs, she doesn't look like a sausage just too heavy, I know it.

What seems odd is that I feed them both three cups of food a day, I use a measuring cup. We do not feed the dogs anything else, zippo. They get moderate exercise in the off season and hunt quiet a bit in the fall.

I guess my question is how little can I feed her? 2 cups enough? We feed Pro Plan for Large Breeds. My vet said something like, "some dogs just need less food." Anyway, I don't really know what that means, I'm trying to balance her overall long term health with turning her into a runway model and not eating anything.

Her mom weighed 55 and dad 65, british labs.

[TruthWalleyes]

3 Cups during active hunting season to keep the calories high. Lean back to 2 cups the rest of the year.

It doesn't really matter how much we feed our labs on the farm...they'll find something else to eat no matter what.

You could also put that lab on a new workout program during the winter

[pureinsanity]

Id say you are feeding them both two much already! Cut back on them both!

[SalmonSlayer]

I think it all depends on the dog, like the vet said. My vizsla gets 2 cups in the morning and 2 in the evening and he's filled out nicely and has maintained his weight for about 6-8 months now. I'm feeding him the pro plan performance food. He does get a lot of exercise though, craps a lot too, hmm, maybe I could cut back...

[CC Hurl]

Not that I am an expert on dogs or spelling so bare with me. Are they both fixed? That changes there metabelism there for needs to be watched and adjusted for. I have a 9 month old lab and feed him 3 cups per day. 4:30 am, 12:00 noon and 5:30 pm. He looks great so far and was fixed at 7 months. He was fed 3 cups before he was clipped also. I am concerned with winter being here as far as activity and weight gain on him but am hoping that are time on lakes ice fishing and with him pulling my little one on the sled (thanks to the pics above,lol)he will maintain good weight. Thats if we get snow this year. I would feel bad cutting him down to two cups per day as he really looks forward to chow time. We keep him indoors also so that may play a factor for your dogs. Outside all the time or indoors all the time? I bet your question don't sound as stupid as my answer. Lol Hope you get what your looking for.

[Jmnhunter]

i'm having the opposite problem, I'm trying to get my pup, just over a year, to gain wait, hes been hovering at 50 for a few months, 5 cups/day

[DaSwede]

i'm having the opposite problem, I'm trying to get my pup, just over a year, to gain wait, hes been hovering at 50 for a few months, 5 cups/day

Not sure what breed you have, but my lab was really thin, but then had him fixed at about 2 years, and he really filled out after that. I'm not sure if it was just a maturity thing or if was because of that...

[Chaws]

Not sure what breed you have, but my lab was really thin, but then had him fixed at about 2 years, and he really filled out after that. I'm not sure if it was just a maturity thing or if was because of that...

Really watch the weight on neutered males. Because of that testosterone loss, they have a major tendency to carry a lot more weight. Doesn't happen to all of them but some it does and some it causes drastic weight gain especially if they're not exercised frequently.

Regarding feeding. Feed to your dog. Not many dogs are the same as some just naturally burn more calories than others. Don't feed to what is on the bag. I train my labs heavily in the liquid water season and cut their food way back in the winter. I like to see a little rib when they're standing. Keeping excess weight off a dog will considerably help in the long run with their joints.

[reinhard1]

Love that picture.!!!good luck.

[RangerJack]

I have a neutered male Golden Retriever that weighs roughly 115lbs, and occasionally will weigh 120. I run him 3-5 miles a day at 15-20mph with our polaris ranger. He is very energized and can run all day, but he is just plain old FAT! It kind of sucks actually. He's fed in the morning and evenings, a few cups of food.

Some dogs just get fat.

[matilda]

You're lucky to feed them like that, cause i'm having a hard time to feed my dog.. he couldn't even finish his 2cups every morning.. i guess it depends on the Dog.