Feeding Time! - YorkieTalk.com Forums

oneswtplee · 05-01-2007, 02:35 PM

I’ve had my yorkie for some months now. She doesn’t have a set feeding schedule. I work full-time and no one’s home to feed her so I simply set food out for her so she can eat it whenever she wants. I’m not sure if I should be doing that or not. What would you suggest? Thanks!

hommie · 05-05-2007, 05:03 PM

that is a good question. So far some of the people that I talk to do the same thing. We just got a puppy and we are doing that for her. When she is hungry she goes over and has a little food. We only did this because we are going to be gone during the day for 8+ hours. So she is going to have to learn on her own. So I would say you are okay.

Yorkieluv · 05-05-2007, 06:47 PM

If you feed kibble, free feeding is a good idea. When we used to give them kibble, we always free fed our furbabies. They could eat whenever they were hungry

But now that we homecook, it has to be on a schedule. You can't leave fresh food out all day, so we feed them 4 meals a day.
I recommend free feeding, especially if you're at work all day. We did that for almost 3 years, and never had any problems.

marcerella02 · 05-05-2007, 06:53 PM

Layla is free fed.. i think it works very well for such picky eaters.. she NEVER eats at the same time each day.. and if she were home alone i'd be doing that!

oneswtplee · 05-07-2007, 09:28 AM

Thank you all for replying to my post. It seems all of you free fed your pups, that's a huge relief for me. I'll continue to feed her that way then. Hopefully she doesn't over eat.

Thanks again all!!!

Dior'sMom · 05-07-2007, 09:47 AM

I have tried free feeding in the beginning but quickly found out that wasn't the best idea. I work full time and i feed them before i leave for work which is at 5:30am and when i return home at 5:30pm. I give them 10 mins to eat. if they haven't eaten i take it away and feed them at their next feeding time. It may sound cruel but if they are hungry they will eat. They have water available all through out the day. Why i do this is because, you know how much they have eaten and when. Free feeding leads to gaining weight. My girl is almost 6lbs at 8 months and my boy is already 4lbs at almost 5months so they are not be starved.
Hope this helps.

Yorkieluv · 05-07-2007, 10:53 AM

Just because you free feed, doesn't mean that you don't monitor the amount of food your baby eats...This is what we used to do:

Miko needed 1-1 1/4 cup of his food per day. So I would put 1 1/4 cup of food in his bowl every morning, then at the end of the evening I could see how much he had eaten throughout the day. Whatever he didn't finish, I would measure to see how much he wasn't eating...I would leave it in there because many times, he liked to eat at night. In the morning, I would check again, and usually the bowl was empty. And repeat the process

WesleyandMaddie · 05-07-2007, 06:43 PM

Mine free feed. Some days they pick and eat very little. Then some days they finish off the whole bowl. They have no weight problems.

05-01-2007, 02:35 PM	#1
oneswtplee Yorkie Talker Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: wa Posts: 24	Feeding Time! I’ve had my yorkie for some months now. She doesn’t have a set feeding schedule. I work full-time and no one’s home to feed her so I simply set food out for her so she can eat it whenever she wants. I’m not sure if I should be doing that or not. What would you suggest? Thanks!

05-05-2007, 06:47 PM	#3
Yorkieluv Donating YT 3000 Club Member Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: USA Posts: 7,178	If you feed kibble, free feeding is a good idea. When we used to give them kibble, we always free fed our furbabies. They could eat whenever they were hungry But now that we homecook, it has to be on a schedule. You can't leave fresh food out all day, so we feed them 4 meals a day. I recommend free feeding, especially if you're at work all day. We did that for almost 3 years, and never had any problems. __________________ Miko 's his Mommy

05-05-2007, 06:53 PM	#4
marcerella02 Loved by Layla Donating Member Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Canada Posts: 11,257	Layla is free fed.. i think it works very well for such picky eaters.. she NEVER eats at the same time each day.. and if she were home alone i'd be doing that! __________________ http://misscanam.blogspot.com/ Layla 's Simon

05-07-2007, 09:28 AM	#5
oneswtplee Yorkie Talker Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: wa Posts: 24	**..thanks To Who Replied..** Thank you all for replying to my post. It seems all of you free fed your pups, that's a huge relief for me. I'll continue to feed her that way then. Hopefully she doesn't over eat. Thanks again all!!!

05-07-2007, 09:47 AM	#6
Dior'sMom Donating YT 2000 Club Member Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: New York Posts: 2,900	I have tried free feeding in the beginning but quickly found out that wasn't the best idea. I work full time and i feed them before i leave for work which is at 5:30am and when i return home at 5:30pm. I give them 10 mins to eat. if they haven't eaten i take it away and feed them at their next feeding time. It may sound cruel but if they are hungry they will eat. They have water available all through out the day. Why i do this is because, you know how much they have eaten and when. Free feeding leads to gaining weight. My girl is almost 6lbs at 8 months and my boy is already 4lbs at almost 5months so they are not be starved. Hope this helps. __________________ Proud Mom 2 Dior

05-05-2007, 05:03 PM	#2
hommie Yorkie Yakker Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: Everett, WA Posts: 57	that is a good question. So far some of the people that I talk to do the same thing. We just got a puppy and we are doing that for her. When she is hungry she goes over and has a little food. We only did this because we are going to be gone during the day for 8+ hours. So she is going to have to learn on her own. So I would say you are okay.

05-07-2007, 10:53 AM	#7
Yorkieluv Donating YT 3000 Club Member Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: USA Posts: 7,178	Just because you free feed, doesn't mean that you don't monitor the amount of food your baby eats...This is what we used to do: Miko needed 1-1 1/4 cup of his food per day. So I would put 1 1/4 cup of food in his bowl every morning, then at the end of the evening I could see how much he had eaten throughout the day. Whatever he didn't finish, I would measure to see how much he wasn't eating...I would leave it in there because many times, he liked to eat at night. In the morning, I would check again, and usually the bowl was empty. And repeat the process __________________ Miko 's his Mommy

05-07-2007, 06:43 PM	#8
WesleyandMaddie I Love My Stinkers Donating Member Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Alameda, CA Posts: 791	Mine free feed. Some days they pick and eat very little. Then some days they finish off the whole bowl. They have no weight problems.