I am the lucky new owner of a beautiful yellow lab. He is 8 weeks old and so adorable. So far it is going very well. He is sleeping in his crate and goes "outside" to go potty most of the time.

A few guestion on his eating:

1) He eats SO fast - I mean he shakes sometimes he is so excited about eating. Is this normal???

2) I am feeding him 3 x's a day at 1/2 cup each time. IS this enough? He looks very healthy to me! He is not skinny and not too fat, just right.

3) Whenever I am in the kitchen he follows me and think I am going to feed him. I don't want him to be a begger. What should I do in terms of training with food?

Any help is greatly appreciated as I am a new owner! Thanks

KT from Illinois

Inhaling their food seems to be a trait many (but not all) labs have perfected. And believe me, no matter how much you feed your pup, he'll still act like he hasn't eating in approximately 18 days. ;) As long as his ribs are easily felt, but not seen, he is probably well within his weight range. I'd keep it up and increase his food a bit when your vet recommends it.

How much does he weigh right now?

Christy

Thanks for the response. I think (I don't have a scale) that Wrigley probably weighs about 9 1/2 pounds at almost 8 weeks. I really think that in the week that we've had him, he has grown.

By the way, from you photos are those all your dogs? How many do you have? How long have you had labs? THis is my first one. They seem so sweet. We were going back and forth between a lab or golden. I think goldens seem a bit more active.

So far Wrigley is such a good boy. He's very playful at times and then he just "hangs out" and watches life around him. I have 3 children so he gets plenty of attention. I just have to watch him carefully as his teeth are very sharp.

This is an awesome site by the way. One last guestion - do you know alot about decent dog foods?

thanks - KT from Illinois

There are others that can answer the weight questions better, but it sounds like your guy may be a tiny bit underweight. Of course, mine are so huge, with the smallest weighing 45 lbs at 8 months, the largest at 69 pounds.

I only know about the food that we like the best...Diamond Lamb and Rice. Diamond is a premium food and is very reasonably prices...$18.00 for 40 lbs...and it comes in a variety of flavors!

:)

Oh, and we have five labs. The two in the picture are Smokey (who passed away a few months ago) who is dad and Bear.

Christy

Originally posted by kt5
1) He eats SO fast - I mean he shakes sometimes he is so excited about eating. Is this normal???

2) I am feeding him 3 x's a day at 1/2 cup each time. IS this enough? He looks very healthy to me! He is not skinny and not too fat, just right.

3) Whenever I am in the kitchen he follows me and think I am going to feed him. I don't want him to be a begger. What should I do in terms of training with food?


Maddy used to LOVE being fed. It was the highlight of her puppy life. Don't get me wrong, she loves her meals now too, but she was really excited as a pup. She was one of about 15 puppies out of 2 litters that the breeder had, and the smallest. I think she as probably last to eat alot of times.

Sounds like the exact right amount for a pup that age. Your vet can be the final judge since he'll be going in for his shots on a regular basis. 9 1/2 # does sound little small for a male at 8 weeks, but Maddy was 8 1/2 at 7 weeks and she is a smaller female. It's not far off track, you might just have a smaller male.

Just because he follow you in the kitchen hoping for a treat won't turn him into a beggar. Just be dilligent about not giving him a treat from the table or off his feeding schedule, and he will learn not to associate you eating at the table as a time for treats.

Ours normally sleep during dinner. Especially Maddy. But both love being in the kitchen with us. When we cook, when we clean, always under foot and in the way. But they aren't begging.

My pup is now 17 weeks and when she was 7-12 weeks she would get really excited about her food and inhale it. It would be gone within like 30 seconds. I called the breeder and he said to just fill her bowl up and she would learn to stop eating when she was full. I had my doubts, but after a few minutes when she stopped eating I took the bowl away and gave her the rest at her next feeding. This worked well, now that she is 17 weeks she still likes to eat, but does not get quite as excited about it.