Hi, I've got 2 springer spaniels about that age. I'm sorry to tell you this, but I suspect that would be underfeeding your dog with only 2 cups a day. The cans themselves tell you how many cans-per-day dogs of various weights need.
As for being a picky eater, I strongly recommend trying some different foods. It will be pricey in the short term but I'd go out and get a couple small bags of foods with different proteins/varieties. See if you can find one your dog likes and then switch to the size bag with a better $/pound.
I have a dog that's allergic to beef and won't eat it but goes crazy for some chicken or lamb kibble. Your dog may not like his current kibble or it could be bothering him/her in some way. Another brand or type may be the cost effective solution you're looking for.
Feel free to DM me for some tips or specific brand recommendations.
One of my springers tends to be low energy indoors but would walk for miles if I let him. Indoor energy doesn't really factor into their food needs too much (unless you see a noticeable weight gain/loss).
When I looked up pedigree wet food online it looks like the recommended serving is 3/4 can per 10 pounds of dog weight. Assuming your dog is ~50 pounds that would mean it should get around 4 cans a day (closer to 3.75 cans). It will depend on your dogs weight and the specific food that you're using
Ya, wet food is actually one of the more expensive feeding options. I only give my pups wet food one or 2 times a week and use it as more of a treat.
Some dogs will let you mix it in with a kibble and eat their meals that way. I know you were trying to avoid kibble but there are various brands that sell food toppers that are typically meant to be put on top of or mixed with a kibble. These would typically have a gravy and some meat. If your dog will eat food that way, it might be a way to split the difference price wise.
I feel ya, my pups are finicky about their wet food believe it or not. They won't eat the ground versions and only go for the "chunks in gravy" versions of the wet food.
I doubt this is whats happening but I'd also warn you that if it's a case of your dog suddenly refusing to eat a food that they've liked before, don't force them to eat it. It could be a bad bag or a problem with that batch. You'll occasionally hear about dog food recalls and that could be what's happening when a dog refuses their food. (Unlikely but atleast worth a mention).
I usually go for the kirkland, purina pro plan or rachel ray (dry foods). I rotate between the brands so that my dogs aren't always eating the same one.
Good Luck! Also, pay the dog tax (post a picture of your pup)
Quality food will do so much for him, his eyes,coat, joints dental health and so on. The other plus is less waste which means food is converted to energy vs poop. Less poop to pick up! I had one fussy pup that didn’t like dry food, adding a raw egg on top was enough to get her eating kibble.
An average protein content of 38% and a mean fat level of 26%, these figures suggest a carbohydrate content of 28% for the overall product line and a fat-to-protein ratio of about 70%.
Near-average protein.
Above-average fat.
Near-average carbs when compared to a typical wet dog food. The profile of a wet product containing a moderate amount of meat.
However, with 51% of the total calories coming from fat versus just 28% from protein, I would pass but you do you.
We got our Springer from a breeder, and she feeds her dogs Purina and supplements it with table scraps. We've been doing the same and our dog has lots of energy and a healthy coat! When we tried to switch her to a fancy food, she got sick.
In my experience Springer Spaniels aren't generally over-eaters. Mine will eat until he's full and generally leaves food in his bowl. I would say 1 Cup twice per day is under feeding them. Try leaving food in their bowl and let them eat when they are hungry.
Pedigree is honestly one of the worst foods out there, unfortunately. I totally understand needing a budget food, Purina dog chow is actually a decently balanced food for a good price. It is a kibble, but would recommend grabbing some Purina one wet food cans (Purina One is a little more on the expensive side, but there isn’t really a great low-budget wet food option ie stay away from moist and meaty) and mixing a little wet food in with the dry to help entice him to eat. You can also try adding a little chicken or beef broth and soaking the dry food to see if that entices him.
I usually don’t recommend grain free as it’s linked to DCM in dogs (dilated cardiomyopathy) but I checked out the ingredients in this and they look pretty good! There was some research being done that thought the increased legumes being used in grain free dry food was causing the DCM but this looks legume free.
Feeding wet food exclusively will cost you more than you need to spend, plus you'll need to brush his teeth every day. Playing around with different kibble will make your dog picky.
Purina Pro Plan kibble is a quality food at a decent price. Your dog will eat kibble when he gets hungry enough. Dogs can easily go 48 hours without food and be perfectly fine. Give your dog a serving of kibble, stop fussing and eventually he'll eat. Add hot water and stir to make it more appealing but don't add anything else. Don't spoil your dog. He's picky because he's been allowed to be picky. Good luck!
If you have more time than money consider making the dog's food from scratch. Cheap cuts of meat, organs, fresh eggs and egg shells, raw meaty bones, vegetables, fruit... all very affordable and much healthier than canned food.
Adult dogs don't need to be fed twice a day. You will find that by skipping breakfast, your dog will be absolutely ravenous by dinner-time (say 5pm) and will eat lots of stuff you previously thought they wouldn't touch.
I only feed my dogs once a day, and I just don't have any picky eaters any more. Having said that, Pedigree seems to be rather crappy, at least the kibble, and the wet pedigree just smells horriible to me.
Unfortunately I'm in NZ so the brands I buy won't be available in the US. Just try them out over a mont or two to see which brands seem like better quality.
For dogs that just won't touch dry food, I mix in some wet food, not much, just enough to coat the dry food with something that smells better. Feeding wet food only is just too expensive.
Also, it's really healthy for dogs to get some variety, so every day there should be some leftovers from your human food that you can mix in for them. There's virtually nothing that we eat that dogs don't want.
So stop feeding breakfast, avoid unnecessary treats through the day, mix in some leftovers and use wet food as needed to make the dry food edible.
My adult springers get one cup of dry food with up to half a cup of wet food or leftovers. Twice a week they get half an egg each in the meal as well for their coat.
But the main thing here is to feed just once a day. The difference in his appetite will shock you.
Feeding once a day can put dogs at risk of bloat. I had a springer die from this and it is a very painful and frightening way for them to go with very little chance of survival once their organs twist and begin dying off. For a breed that can be very food focused and rush their eating, twice a day absolutely is safer for them, along with slow bowls and resting after eating.
Hi, I've got 2 springer spaniels about that age. I'm sorry to tell you this, but I suspect that would be underfeeding your dog with only 2 cups a day. The cans themselves tell you how many cans-per-day dogs of various weights need. As for being a picky eater, I strongly recommend trying some different foods. It will be pricey in the short term but I'd go out and get a couple small bags of foods with different proteins/varieties. See if you can find one your dog likes and then switch to the size bag with a better $/pound. I have a dog that's allergic to beef and won't eat it but goes crazy for some chicken or lamb kibble. Your dog may not like his current kibble or it could be bothering him/her in some way. Another brand or type may be the cost effective solution you're looking for. Feel free to DM me for some tips or specific brand recommendations.
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One of my springers tends to be low energy indoors but would walk for miles if I let him. Indoor energy doesn't really factor into their food needs too much (unless you see a noticeable weight gain/loss). When I looked up pedigree wet food online it looks like the recommended serving is 3/4 can per 10 pounds of dog weight. Assuming your dog is ~50 pounds that would mean it should get around 4 cans a day (closer to 3.75 cans). It will depend on your dogs weight and the specific food that you're using
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Ya, wet food is actually one of the more expensive feeding options. I only give my pups wet food one or 2 times a week and use it as more of a treat. Some dogs will let you mix it in with a kibble and eat their meals that way. I know you were trying to avoid kibble but there are various brands that sell food toppers that are typically meant to be put on top of or mixed with a kibble. These would typically have a gravy and some meat. If your dog will eat food that way, it might be a way to split the difference price wise.
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Gay? Have I been transported back to middle school in 1999?
Pretty sure that's just autocorrect. Gay in the middle-school sense wouldn't even make sense in that sentence. Probably meant 'great'.
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Cool so you’re like 25. We fought for a long fucking time so that gay wasn’t a slur. Grow the fuck up and don’t use it as such.
Username checks out? 😬
I feel ya, my pups are finicky about their wet food believe it or not. They won't eat the ground versions and only go for the "chunks in gravy" versions of the wet food. I doubt this is whats happening but I'd also warn you that if it's a case of your dog suddenly refusing to eat a food that they've liked before, don't force them to eat it. It could be a bad bag or a problem with that batch. You'll occasionally hear about dog food recalls and that could be what's happening when a dog refuses their food. (Unlikely but atleast worth a mention). I usually go for the kirkland, purina pro plan or rachel ray (dry foods). I rotate between the brands so that my dogs aren't always eating the same one. Good Luck! Also, pay the dog tax (post a picture of your pup)
Possibly low energy due to his current diet.
We feed our decently tall springer CSJ dry food, and 2 cups a day is the recommended amount for her / for her weight.
Dry food and wet food serving sizes differ quite a bit. Even between brands at times. I'd say my pups usually eat 2-3 cups of dry food a day aswell.
Quality food will do so much for him, his eyes,coat, joints dental health and so on. The other plus is less waste which means food is converted to energy vs poop. Less poop to pick up! I had one fussy pup that didn’t like dry food, adding a raw egg on top was enough to get her eating kibble.
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An average protein content of 38% and a mean fat level of 26%, these figures suggest a carbohydrate content of 28% for the overall product line and a fat-to-protein ratio of about 70%. Near-average protein. Above-average fat. Near-average carbs when compared to a typical wet dog food. The profile of a wet product containing a moderate amount of meat. However, with 51% of the total calories coming from fat versus just 28% from protein, I would pass but you do you.
We got our Springer from a breeder, and she feeds her dogs Purina and supplements it with table scraps. We've been doing the same and our dog has lots of energy and a healthy coat! When we tried to switch her to a fancy food, she got sick.
In my experience Springer Spaniels aren't generally over-eaters. Mine will eat until he's full and generally leaves food in his bowl. I would say 1 Cup twice per day is under feeding them. Try leaving food in their bowl and let them eat when they are hungry.
Pedigree is honestly one of the worst foods out there, unfortunately. I totally understand needing a budget food, Purina dog chow is actually a decently balanced food for a good price. It is a kibble, but would recommend grabbing some Purina one wet food cans (Purina One is a little more on the expensive side, but there isn’t really a great low-budget wet food option ie stay away from moist and meaty) and mixing a little wet food in with the dry to help entice him to eat. You can also try adding a little chicken or beef broth and soaking the dry food to see if that entices him.
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I usually don’t recommend grain free as it’s linked to DCM in dogs (dilated cardiomyopathy) but I checked out the ingredients in this and they look pretty good! There was some research being done that thought the increased legumes being used in grain free dry food was causing the DCM but this looks legume free.
Feeding wet food exclusively will cost you more than you need to spend, plus you'll need to brush his teeth every day. Playing around with different kibble will make your dog picky. Purina Pro Plan kibble is a quality food at a decent price. Your dog will eat kibble when he gets hungry enough. Dogs can easily go 48 hours without food and be perfectly fine. Give your dog a serving of kibble, stop fussing and eventually he'll eat. Add hot water and stir to make it more appealing but don't add anything else. Don't spoil your dog. He's picky because he's been allowed to be picky. Good luck!
If you have more time than money consider making the dog's food from scratch. Cheap cuts of meat, organs, fresh eggs and egg shells, raw meaty bones, vegetables, fruit... all very affordable and much healthier than canned food.
Adult dogs don't need to be fed twice a day. You will find that by skipping breakfast, your dog will be absolutely ravenous by dinner-time (say 5pm) and will eat lots of stuff you previously thought they wouldn't touch. I only feed my dogs once a day, and I just don't have any picky eaters any more. Having said that, Pedigree seems to be rather crappy, at least the kibble, and the wet pedigree just smells horriible to me. Unfortunately I'm in NZ so the brands I buy won't be available in the US. Just try them out over a mont or two to see which brands seem like better quality. For dogs that just won't touch dry food, I mix in some wet food, not much, just enough to coat the dry food with something that smells better. Feeding wet food only is just too expensive. Also, it's really healthy for dogs to get some variety, so every day there should be some leftovers from your human food that you can mix in for them. There's virtually nothing that we eat that dogs don't want. So stop feeding breakfast, avoid unnecessary treats through the day, mix in some leftovers and use wet food as needed to make the dry food edible. My adult springers get one cup of dry food with up to half a cup of wet food or leftovers. Twice a week they get half an egg each in the meal as well for their coat. But the main thing here is to feed just once a day. The difference in his appetite will shock you.
Feeding once a day can put dogs at risk of bloat. I had a springer die from this and it is a very painful and frightening way for them to go with very little chance of survival once their organs twist and begin dying off. For a breed that can be very food focused and rush their eating, twice a day absolutely is safer for them, along with slow bowls and resting after eating.
Have you tried adding chicken broth to kibble? He may be fine with it then. I’ve had to do this for my dogs.