My dog never seems to get enough food

[Shianne Mack]

I feed my pup three times a day, and yet he still always goes for my other two dogs' food. Is he still hungry or is he just trying to eat everything he can get his paws on?

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

What kind of food are you feeding him (the exact formula, not just the brand), how much are you giving him, how old is he and what does he weigh? 

[Shianne Mack]

I am feeding him the simply nourished puppy food. The sweet potato and salmon one. The exact ingredients are this "
Salmon Meal, Dried Sweet Potatoes, Salmon, Tomato Pomace, Flaxseed, Canola Oil (Preserved with Mixed Tocopherols), Natural Flavoring, Choline Chloride, Dried Carrots, Minerals (Salt, Zinc Sulfate, Ferrous Sulfate, Copper Sulfate, Manganese Sulfate, Sodium Selenite, Calcium Iodate), Vitamins (Vitamin E Supplement, L-Ascorbyl-2-Polyphosphate [Source of Ascorbic Acid], Niacin Supplement, Pantothenic Acid, Vitamin A Supplement, Riboflavin Supplement, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Vitamin D3 Supplement, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Biotin, Thiamine Mononitrate, Folic Acid)"

And I am giving him about 3 1/2 cups a day and I spread it out between morning, lunch and dinner. He is 11 weeks and he is about 13 lbs. (well that's what he was two weeks ago at the vet). I give my other dogs pedigree adult food and he occasionally will eat that too because he just loves to eat their food too.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Well, you know we have a list of recommended foods here in The Food Group and neither of these is on it. You didn't ask for advice on the food itself, but I have to say, Pedigree is absolute garbage, and I wouldn't let the puppy go near it, no matter what it takes. It contains chemical preservatives and ingredients that are known to cause cancer in dogs (and humans, too, for that matter) among lots of other problems.

The Simply Nourish Petsmart brand isn't on our recommended list either, but it's much better than Pedigree. I couldn't find any feeding guidelines online, but at 350 calories per cup, it sounds like you're feeding too much. Even if he weighs 15 lbs now, it would be too much.  He definitely isn't eating the other dogs' food because he's hungry. It sounds like he's just a little chowhound. And of course, they all love other dogs' food, the junkier the better, lol.

What do the guidelines on the bag say as far as feeding amounts per day for his weight and size?

Are you sure the other dogs aren't eating some of his food?

I would start supervising at mealtimes so that nobody is eating anyone else's food. And don;t free feed; no food left sitting in bowls. Give them their food at set mealtimes, give them 10-15 minutes to eat, and then pick up the bowls.  

[Shianne Mack]

Oh wow... That's not good :/

I took a look at the recommended list and with so many options I am not sure which one is best! Which one would you choose? Hah

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

There are a lot of factors to consider. If a dog is doing well digestively with the current food, you look at the basic ingredients and the nutritional profile and try to find something similar in terms of macronutrients. Availability in a particular area is also a factor, as well as budget. While you can't judge the cost of a food solely by the price on the bag, because in many cases, you have to feed so much more of the "less expensive" foods that you go through it faster and it can end up costing more over time than the food with the higher price tag, there's still no doubt that some are higher priced than others. If you're on a tight budget, that needs to be considered.

The Simply Nourish is unique in that it's a salmon based puppy food, which is a rare thing. It would be hard to duplicate that. The food itself isn't bad at all; it's the sourcing that's a concern. I would stay with it until your pup is ready for an adult formula, and then you'll have lots of choices. 
For the other dogs, I would have to know which exact Pedigree formula they're on to suggest an alternative. But just about anything would be better than Pedigree. Why not look at the adult Simply Nourish formulas for them, too?

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

As far as not getting enough food, my puppies have always tried to 'steal' my other dog's food and it had more to do with wanting what isn't theirs than actual hunger, especially when that food is different.  My dogs have been taught not to eat each others' food yet just today I caught Clancy gulping down Ned's breakfast.  Clancy is seven!

[Kelly & Zoe]

We only have a single dog, so this may not be applicable, but until Zoe was about 6 months, she was ravenous!  Ate everything we put in front of her so fast we had to feed her with toys to slow her roll.  We even fed her about 1/4 to 1/3 more than the max recommendation for her size.  She was skinny so didn't worry too much about over-feeding, she seemed to need as much as we were feeding her.  Then around 6 months, I guess her growth spurt stopped and she slowed down.  Now she self-regulates what she eats.  We'll put food out in the AM and again in PM and she'll eat what she wants throughout the day.  I know that's frowned upon by some, but works for us.

[Shari Becker]

Lexi continues to be a voracious eater at 18 months, but when she was a puppy, she was obsessed with eating. I asked my vet about this she said that Lexi is a goldendoodle, and golden retrievers are notorious for being voracious eaters at all ages. The love food and can never get enough. We are careful to not give her too much food (because she will eat it all), and she's now fine between meals.