My dog is picky. Should I feed her once or twice daily for health?

What a great question. It’s the age old debate about whether we should feed dogs once a day, twice a day, or three times a day. Honestly, it depends on the dog. if the dog is healthy and happy, and he is keeping his weight at a healthy amount that is not too heavy or too light, I see no reason with feeding him only once a day. One recommendation I would also add to you if you do intend to only feed him once is to keep his food elevated and use a special type of feeding bowl that forces him to eat slowly. There are certain bowls with prongs in them that force your pet to eat slowly. The reasoning is that large breed dogs like yours can sometimes have gastrointestinal problems like bloat, etc. if they inhale their food without chewing. Feeding only once a day can sometimes cause a dog to ravenously eat so you have to be careful. But again it depends on the dog and most that I have come into contact with that are only fed one meal a day still do fairly well. Thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach and I hope I have helped. Have a nice day.

I'm glad to hear that Molly is such a spunky older girl! Not to worry - feeding her once per day is perfectly reasonable. I generally recommend twice daily feedings for adult dogs simply because most dogs prefer eating more often, but it sounds as though Molly has made her preferences perfectly clear! Some dogs are just less food motivated than others. As long as she eats a good dinner, there's no cause for concern.

Hi, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! I recommend feeding twice daily for the rest of their lives. Soska is a German Shepherd and they are at risk for bloat (gastric-dilitation-volvulous). So feeding her once daily may be a bit more risky for her. I hope this helps!

You are doing a good job with her feeding. As dogs become adults they often will only eat twice a day, and less sometimes than when they were growing. As long as she’s a normal weight I would feed her twice a day and an additional bedtime snack so she doesn’t have an empty stomach overnight, I feed Hills food and I like it because it has everything a dog needs. Other food provide an excess of calories, protein or fat, much more than they need. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to help you care for Snowball.

Hi and thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! I love the name Tigre. It really boils down to owner's preference and convenience like you state but I always like twice daily feedings. It gives you an opportunity to quickly assess their appetite and any changes that may occur with it which could indicate something is wrong. Smaller meals divided into 2 feedings are more easily digestible rather than one large meal, in my opinion. Free feeding can lead to obesity problems so strict attention must be made as to the amount that the pet has access to each day. Obesity is a very common problem in pets just as in people. I hope this helps and you are able to make an informed decision regarding Tigre.

While young small breed dogs can develop toy breed hypoglycemia, it would be rare for an adult dog to have this problem and require frequent meals. I think twice a day is probably just fine for both dogs as long as they don’t have any other medical problems.

I would check to see if Bongo has lost weight or not. If he's not lost weight and/or has maintained his weight, then it would be fine to keep him on one meal a day. If you are concerned he isn't getting enough food, you can give him the daily recommended allotment of food during this one meal. Some dogs can eat one meal a day and be just fine. If that's the way you can keep him eating, then you can do it. I hope this helps!