My puppy skips dinner. Is leaving his food out bad for his schedule?

Small breed dogs are particularly high risk for sudden low glucose levels when they skip meals, so I would suggest waking him and making sure you at least offer food. If he refuses the food, then just leave it out to make sure that if he gets hungry in the middle of the night that he has something to eat. Try not to make it a habit however because leaving food like can cause accidents to occur in his crate.

Some dogs have their own schedule in terms of eating. We have dogs that graze throughout the day small amounts, dogs that will eat any food in front of them immediately to the point of making themselves sick, and other dogs like yours that may just eat at certain times. As long as your vet thinks your dog's weight is appropriate/ their growth is acceptable and Norik is not having diarrhea or vomiting then I wouldn't be concerned. I would recommend if Norik hasn't been to the vet recently for his vet to examine him and be sure he is of an appropriate weight.

Great questions! Take a look at the bag of food that you are giving Roxy and determine how much she should be eating given her age and current body weight. Using that volume, divide it into 2 meals for the morning and 6pm "first dinner". Save whatever she doesn't finish in the morning and offer it at her 9pm "second dinner". Try not to leave out too many biscuits during the day, even if she isn't eating them currently. As she gets older, biscuit and table scrap ingestion can be some of the leading causes of obesity. Some dogs prefer not eating much in the morning - this is still normal. :-)

Hello. This could be just a normal schedule for Benny. No dog has to eat twice a day, that is something we have imposed on them. As long as he is healthy & happy, does not seem to be losing any weight, then skipping a day or day and a half is of no concern. If there is any weight loss, vomiting or change in stool quality or quantity, that would be the time to become concerned. But he looks very happy with his friends. Take care.

At his age it is not ideal because their blood sugar can get too low in the middle of the day. If it's unavoidable however, it is ok. Because of his high rate of growth, a quality diet labeled for puppies- especially large breed puppy- is the best thing for him. Congrats on your new little one and kisses to Max!

Hello, Luna should be fine to have a later meal. It is more worrisome if she does not eat for prolonged periods of time versus eating a later time. You should however, no over feed her during each meal as this may cause her to feel full/bloated and may be the reason why did not want to eat her later meal. Hope this helps and best of luck.

Thank you for submitting your question regarding Abby. Is she maintaining a healthy body weight? If so and if she is acting like herself, then I would not be concerned about her food habits. It may just be her preference to eat at night. If she is consuming enough calories, then I do not have a concern. However, if she is continually dropping weight and shows signs of illness such as vomiting or diarrhea, then she needs to be seen by her veterinarian. Some dogs that go close to 24 hours between meals will vomit due to a build up of stomach acid. In these patients I encourage the owners to feed them more frequently. If this is not occurring with her, then you do not need to worry. I hope this information helps!