Dog is always hungry.

dlofnep

Hi there,

Is it normal for a dog to be always hungry? I have a little lad about 2 years now and I feed him a fair bit - but he always seems to be hungry. He devours his food when he gets it, as if he's never been fed. Did give him worm tablets a few months back - but he still seems to be hungry.

Is it worth taking him to the vet? He's tiny, but eats more than I do!

andreac

Some dogs are like this, they could eat all day long if you let them.

What food are you feeding? Once they are on a good quality food and they are in good condition then there shouldnt be anything to worry about.
Dogs need to be wormed every 3 months or so, so just try and keep that up to date.

phasers

A lot of dogs are like this, they'd eat all day if you let them! As long as you don't let him overdo it there shouldn't be a problem.

dlofnep

I feed him pedigree chum, and for snacks I give him those Pedigree chum Markies. I often throw him some leftover meat from dinner too, cos he's always hungry. He never seems satisfied. Even after I feed him, he always wants more. It just doesn't seem normal.

I'll get some more worm tablets for him and see how he goes.

andreac

To be honest, pedigree is crap, its a very low grade food with bad quality ingredients.
You should try getting a better quality food from the pet shop which has better nutritional value for them with higher quality ingredients which will help him feel fuller.
Pedigree is the equivalent of feeding mcdonalds to dogs really as its full of artificial colours and flavours and very low meat content.

Zapperzy

How often do you feed him? Try splitting his meal into 2 meals a day. Change to a better quality food, high quality dry dog foods are easily enough available in most pet shops. Look out for James wellbeloved, Burns, Red mills leader (green bag) or Royal canin, there are a few other brands like orijen if your willing to order online.

What condition is he in? You should be able to easily feel his ribs by rubbing your hands down his sides but they shouldn't be very visible. What condition is his coat and teeth in? Whats his overall behaviour like? He should be full of energy without literally bouncing off the walls. Are his stools firm and normal in colour?

LucyBliss

One of mine was like that. He would scoff his food as if it were his last meal. We had to make sure the dog food was always firmly secured, otherwise he'd stick his head in there and munch away. He never had enough food. But now that he's hit two and a half, his appetite has slowed considerably and if anything, he's eating less. Though he'd happily chow down on human food or treats all the live long day.

Your dog could be going through growth spurts and his metabolism is telling him he needs more food. After all, he's only two so he is still growing and moving out of puppyhood. Mine is a terrier cross, I don't know what breed you have, but just because they're not large breeds doesn't mean they don't need extra sustenance. So long as his coat is good and his ribs have some cover and he has good energy and seems happy, then I would just feed him what you think is right according to the levels on the bag and adjust it as you see fit.

caseyann

dlofnep wrote: »

Hi there,

Is it normal for a dog to be always hungry? I have a little lad about 2 years now and I feed him a fair bit - but he always seems to be hungry. He devours his food when he gets it, as if he's never been fed. Did give him worm tablets a few months back - but he still seems to be hungry.

Is it worth taking him to the vet? He's tiny, but eats more than I do!

It sounds like he thinks he has to store up his food,was he ever left without food before you got him or had to fight for his mothers milk?
I had same problem with my dog.
A good way to get him to slow down eating and not wanting so much,is feed him the amount for his weight and then say no to any other food.Also raise his food make him sit and stay away from food till you give him the ok and dont feed him till he give you his eyes and not fixated on the food.In a few days he should get the idea.Also if you give him snacks inbetween meals he can get greedy so dont.
One more thing if he is anyway bored he will eat aswell.
Does he growl at you if you try take it before finished?

Sigma Force

One of mine is a little greedy piggy and she acts like she's starving and never been fed 2 minutes after being fed. I split her feeds in two she's never been overweight but the last few weeks being dark and cold she's started to put on weight so need to cut back.

I'd switch to another brand of food, ped chum is horrible stuff they can give off some nasty farts with it too. A dry food should keep the dog feeling more full and takes longer to digest. If you switch to a good quality dry food it can work out cheaper than ped. chum wet food esp. if you buy larger bags zooplus.co.uk is a good site for dry foods like Burns etc.

After a few weeks if you find she's still going nuts for food perhaps take her to the vets to have her health checked and thyroid checked out.

bigbrotherfan

Any chance he has worms?

dlofnep

Got tablets for him so I'll see how he goes.

I'll try him on different dog food too, thanks. It's my first dog, so I assumed pedigree chum was good for him. And +1 @ nasty farts lol..

kylith

One of mine is the same, you'd think she'd never been fed. I give her two meals a day to stop her choking herself. You can get bowls with obstructions on the bottom that they have to eat around in order to slow them down too; I used to just put a tennis ball in the bowl and that did a good job.

+1 on changing the food to something better. I ran out of my usual food and couldn't get more because of the weather. The change is temperment, and the amount of farting, is shocking on the crappier food.

dvet

Have you noticed him losing weight/gaining weight? Are you feeding him according to the instructions on the side of the food (no matter what you're feeding, if he's getting enough, he won't be hungry!)?

If he still seems to be starving after feeding him the recommended amount of food, or if he's losing/gaining a lot of weight, it would be worth taking him to the vet. An increased appetite is actually a symptom of certain medical problems, so it may be worth checking out. Also, it depends on what wormer you use, but you should generally worm your dog every 3 months, so no harm giving him another dose of that too.

Wolfe Tone

My dog will eat until she explodes, always hungry no matter how much she is fed.

portgirl123

dlofnep wrote: »

Got tablets for him so I'll see how he goes.

I'll try him on different dog food too, thanks. It's my first dog, so I assumed pedigree chum was good for him. And +1 @ nasty farts lol..

i would change his food over 7-10 days. do not do it all at once or you will facing more that nasty farts. lol

furtzy

Wouldn't worry about it some are just greedy etc. Ours does this as well. She would eat until she exploded if we let her. Shes a rescue dog who was waiting quite a while to be rehomed so that might explain it....she has impeccable table manners though and always waits until you tell her to eat though

Our previous dog would just eat what she wanted and leave the rest for later so just different personalities

Graces7

As others have said, some dogs are never full.. Collie was appalling when we rescued her; she had been half starved and thus never knew when - or if - her next meal would be, so if food is there.... wolfed it. Ate too fast to even taste it.

She was also full of worms and rail thin; she is now still a little overweight as her metabolism was messed up, but funny to see her at last refusing some foods. Shows she is secure now.

Take care not to overfeed is all....If the weight is fine, great.

By the way, we feed raw and home cooked. Always. No processed stuff ever.