We have been feeding Blondie the following schedule. She is now 9 weeks 4 days. 6AM - half cup puppy chow 9AM - half cup puppy chow 6PM - half cup puppy chow Water is also given at each feeding then removed. She seems fine with this. Does this look OK? Also.. When she sees someone go to the food cupboard, she barks like crazy, jumps, whines. Very excited. I try and get her to stop jumping using down command. Does not work. Should I just let her co wild or any ideas how to stop this? Thanks.
Re: Feeding schedule - this look OK? It's different from my feeding schedule, but every pup is different. (I feed at 8am, 1pm, and 7pm.) I would crate her or otherwise separate her when you go to get the food. At this age you can't expect perfect obedience in the face of something so exciting as meal time, so I would do my best to prevent this behavior by separating her, instead of reinforcing it. In her mind, jumping, barking, nonsense = food. Try to avoid that because it won't be so cute in 6 months It's easier to create a good habit than break a bad one.
Re: Feeding schedule - this look OK? I would have the pup on four meals a day at the moment. You are feeding her at 6am then three hours later and then not for another 9 hours! If you want to stay on three meals a day then I would do has Philsmom does, the feeds are more evenly spread out. She is too young to understand the down command in view of the exciting situation of food. Do you think she might be hungry?
Re: Feeding schedule - this look OK? I was just about to say the same as Stacia , at this age she is going far too long without a meal, so this will be one reason she is going wild for her food . I would also say not to take water away during the day time as dry food requires water to soften it in the tummy .
Re: Feeding schedule - this look OK? Yes, I missed that bit! Always leave fresh water down all day; some people take it away in the evening so that the pup doesn't want to wee so much during the night.
Re: Feeding schedule - this look OK? Hi, I echo what has been said. the meals need to be more evenly spaced out and maybe even add another. It is really important not to restrict water in such a young pup, especially if fed on dry food. It should be down all day and lifted just a couple of hours before bedtime.
Re: Feeding schedule - this look OK? You could weigh out the days food allowance first thing in the morning, then you will not have to go to the food cupboard during the day.
Re: Feeding schedule - this look OK? It's not the way I would feed a pup of that age, I would be feeding 4 times a day up to 3 months then move on to 3 times a day. Personally I space the meal times out throughout the day as evenly as possible. My pup/s (now dogs) always have access to water. I could see the need to restrict access to water in the evening with a pup but not during the day when they are active. [quote author=Dan.NY link=topic=5824.msg74834#msg74834 date=1399554862] I try and get her to stop jumping using down command. Does not work. [/quote] Down command!!!! your 9.5 week old pup probably does not even know it's name yet. I'd not let her see anyone going to the food cupboard if it's a problem (for you). Feeding time at that age is great for early conditioning for 'commands' used later on. Recall, Sit, Stay. I feed my pups 4 times a day at that age so that's 4 recalls 4 sits 4 waits per day. That's 28 of each a week. None of this is forced at all, it's controlled and it's called conditioning. Example at feeding time:- Recall the pup from a different room at feeding time, it's comming anyway so no pressure at all Hold the food bowl over it's head and it's gonna sit (say sit). Hold the bowl there and it's going to have to stay (say stay) couple seconds will do. The rest of the time I would play with them at 9.5 weeks old
Re: Feeding schedule - this look OK? Thanks for feedback. Feeding is staggered due to work schedules. Very very challenging to feed different but I will attempt. FYI - She does sit command quite well. Also does stay quite well and down quite well. All during feeding time that is. The process is get her food dish, tell her sit then stay. Set food bowl down (away from her), grab handfull of food, return near her, set small pile of food on the floor, tell her down, stay. She sees the food and stays. Most times does down also. Is this the best way to feed and train her? I thought it was. More comments are appreciated.
Re: Feeding schedule - this look OK? Hiya Dan, seems to me you are expecting quite a lot from what is basically a tiny puppy… and that actually she is doing very well! Sounds like a nice little puppy. You can certainly use small amounts of her food to help train her with sit, stay, and come. Just remember to keep it all fun at this stage, and to use a friendly voice with her. Remember she is learning all the time, from every interaction with you, so keep it positive. Don't worry, you'll get there. But if at all possible I would try to fit another small meal in during the day - that's an awful long time for a small pup to wait. Is she alone a lot during the day? As others have said, leave water for her all the time. I understand that if she is alone for some of the time during the day, that she may make a mess - but you are just going to have to accept that for a while.
Re: Feeding schedule - this look OK? [quote author=Dan.NY link=topic=5824.msg74866#msg74866 date=1399558593] 1. get her food dish (anticipation) 2. tell her sit (command) 3. then stay (command) 4. Set food bowl down (away from her) (anticipation) 5. grab handfull of food (anticipation) 6. return near her (anticipation) 7. set small pile of food on the floor (anticipation) 8. tell her down (command) 9. stay (command) 10. She sees the food and stays (anticipation) [/quote] From the pup's point of view that's 10 step's to get her food that I can see, possibly more for the pup! and no doubt confusing. I'd be more than happy at 9.5 weeks with 1. Recall, 2. Sit, 3. Stay a few seconds then reward with her meal.
Re: Feeding schedule - this look OK? Hi Dan, everyone is different and has their own way of doing things. But I see no real value in getting too tied up over obedience at this point. There are a lot of people out there really struggling with their dogs, and it isn't because they won't sit or stay. It is usually because they drag their owners around on the end of a lead, or won't come back when they are called. Despite the fact that you can teach a tiny puppy to do these things, I don't actually bother with sit/stay at all for the first few weeks. I concentrate on 'recall' and 'follow me' (which leads onto 'walk next to me', which in turn leads on to 'walk nicely on a lead') Here is my 'ages and stages' post to give you an idea.
