Feeding schedule when switching to Orijen Puppy at 17 weeks old F1B

[Raj and Teddy]

Hi All,

Our F1B is now 17 weeks old (12.6 lbs currently and expected to be at 24-25 lbs fully grown) and we had him on TOTW Orange bag as that is what the breeder had him on. I am planning to switch him on Orijen puppy in the next few days following the recommendations on how to switch different food. My questions are

1. I looked at Orijen website and also talked to a representative at chewy.com and it seems we need to feed only 1 cup per day based on our puppies current weight and expected weight at fully grown. Currently we are feeding 3 times a day as TOTW feeding recommendation was 2 1/4 th cup per day, so I am thinking of switching to feeding schedule of 2 times and cutting down midday feeding , this should be ok if puppy gets his full days nutrient requirements. Any thoughts on am I right in my thought process as I feel dividing 1 cup between 3 feeding schedule will be too small an amount. Any suggestions on how to handle cutting down feeding schedule at this stage of puppy growth?

2. I made a mistake of adding boiled carrots as a topping just for one meal and long behold my puppy refused to eat plain kibble from that day onwards. We added boiled green beans as I did not want to feed too much carrots due to sugar. Sorry Karen this was all against what you have recommended new puppy owners, I met someone during one of puppies walks and that person had been a dog owner for 20 plus years and mentioned to me that I can feed a boiled carrot or chicken as a snack and long behold I have created a picky eater. Now he expects a topping at every meal. I am hoping with all the positive stuff I have heard about Orijen (taste, quality), I can switch my puppy back to eating plain kibble, at least wishful thinking on my part.

Thanks
Raj

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Four months is the age when a lot of puppies start to give up the midday meal anyway, so switching to two feedings now should be fine. 

I don't know that your pup is going to like Orijen so much more than the TOTW that it will make him happy to give up the toppings, lol, but we can hope. The puppy doesn't know that Orijen is higher quality than his old good, and he doesn't care. Hopefully the novelty of the new food will help. If not, the green beans are a better choice than the carrots and won't hurt him. 

(I've been a dog owner for 38 years, and lived with them for 57 years, and if there's one thing I've learned it's that being a long-time dog owner doesn't necessary make you an expert on caring for them, lol.) 

Based on one method of estimating a puppy's adult size, which is to double their weight at 4 months and then add 5-10 lbs, I think your guy will probably be a little bigger than 24-25 when he's fully matured. If he seems to be hungry and looking for more food, you might try giving him an extra quarter cup of Orijen per day. 

[Raj and Teddy]

Thanks Karen, as always appreciate your valuable insight and feedback. I agree green beans are a better choice. I forgot to mention that couple of times our puppy had not the best poop and I decided to give one tablespoon of lactose free low fat yogurt to help bind his stomach. I had never seen him finish his food so fast, he was eating at lighting fast speed. Now when we open the refrigerator and take out yogurt to eat for ourselves he gets all excited. I am amazed at how quickly they pick up on these foods and start craving for them.

One quick clarification on adult weight for F1B, my understanding was that for them you double their weight at 16 weeks but don't add additional 5-10 lbs, again I am learning about this myself and thought I will check if my understanding is wrong.

Thanks Raj

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

The yogurt is great for him; you can give him some with every meal if you want to. 

I personally learned that formula about doubling the weight at 4 months and adding 5-10 lbs here on-line in the various doodle forums. I've always had purebreds and you don't need to estimate their adult size, lol, so this was all new to me. 4 months actually comes out to 17 and a third weeks, not 16. The generation doesn't have much to do with it, especially with minis. However, it's not a scientific rule, so no way to be sure. 

[Raj and Teddy]

That's great to know about yogurt, I thought maybe once a day would be the max. I am keeping him on lactose free low fat yogurt. I have learnt so much on this forum and hope to continue to learn as you all have so much experience.

Thanks on the final weight clarification, we were initially told by our breeder to expect the puppy to be 18-20 lbs fully grown but now that may not happen as I clearly see him to be more close 25 lbs or above. We did meet another f1b during our walk who is from the same breeder but a year older, we accidentally ran into them and while talking learned that there dog is from the same breeder. The owner did not know the weight of the dog but it gave us a good idea on what to expect from a size perspective.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Unless the other dog is from the same parents as yours, there's really no way of knowing if yours will be similar in size. And even in the same litter, you can have huge size differences. The breeders are also notorious for underestimating the dog's adult weights, especially with minis. There are many, many people here whose doodles ended up 20+ lbs bigger than the breeder's estimate. 

It doesn't really matter anyway, except that the Orijen feeding guidelines are based on both the puppy's current weight and the expected adult weight. :)

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

The formula doesn't seem to work that well for minis because they are done growing sooner (about 6 - 8 months).