Hi all,

I recently, about two weeks ago, switched Gypsy to Royal Canin dog food. She has been doing really well on it, and is looking very nice(shiny coat, no odor, etc). Except, last night when she was standing next to her brother, I noticed that she was looking a bit chubby. I asked my DH, and he noticed the same thing.

So obviously, I should be cutting back on her food, as she doesn't get treats except for when we are training, and no table food to make her chubby. The only problem is that she attacks her food dish every time I feed her. She seems like she is starving, and she eats every piece of kibble that is in her bowl.

My question is then, should I be judging her food intake by her appetite or by her waistline(that is slowly disappearing).

In case anyone is curious, she gets 4 cups a day and she is 7 months old.

Thanks in advance!

How about just giving her a bit more exercise?

Funny guy Jason!

I wish it was that simple! I take both of them out 2 or 3 times a day, and they run the pants off of each other, and she is still getting chubby.

I have suscribed to your mantra of A good dog is a tired dog! Well, they are great in the house because they don't have the energy left to be bad.

You cannot judge a dog by its appetite- If we did Tyson would be the size of a HOUSE! If eating fast bothers you try putting a large rock in her food bowl. This will make her eat around it- forcing her to slow down... Just make sure that she can't eat the rock! :D

What heather said... if Grip ruled the world there would be food covering every surface of it. Except for where the balls were. Okay, half the world covered with food and the other half covered with tennis balls and a long level green lawn to chase them on.

My first suggestion would have been increase her exercise but you've got that covered. Why don't you go down by 1/2 a cup per day for a week, that shouldn't be too noticable to her.

HOWEVER!!! Since she's a puppy I'd rather someone with more puppy experience than me suggests something. My boys both get 4 cups a day, too. I don't want to suggest cutting back if she needs the calories for growing.

If she's getting too fat then cut her food back. At 7 months she's growing more slowly than she was for her first few months, so I often find that I need to cut back their food at around that age. I wouldn't cut it back much though, I agree with trying 1/2 cup less per day and then keeping an eye on her to see how she does. As far as her appetite goes - most labs will literally eat themselves to death if you let them. Don't be fleeced by dramatics. One of my girls gets 3 cups of food a day (she is 14 months old) and my 2 year old girl only gets 2 cups of food a day. I base the amount of food I give them on how they look - not how hungry they seem.