When feeding a dog what does "free feeding" mean?

Question

Feeding Question on Puppies

Answer 1

Free feeding means your dog gets to chose when they can eat.  There is always access to food and they can come and go as they please.  It's not good for puppies as you're trying to get them on a consistent schedule for housebreaking.  It is usually used for older dogs.

I free feed my 11 month old, mainly because she is a high energy dog and her calorie need changes day to day depending on how active we are.

My 3 month old puppy had a schedule where she eats 3 times a day and gets water every few hours.  This helps because you can get a general idea of when they'll have to eliminate.

Answer 2

I believe it means feeding them as much as they want, not a reasonable ammount.

Dr. Dog

Answer 3

Free feeding is when you just keep the bowl filled all the time.

I don't recommend it for a puppy. That's not something you should do until you know your dog's eating habits. Most dogs will just keep eating and eating as much as you give them and will get fat. I free feed my dog, because she tends to eat some at different parts of the day, but never overeats. However, I understand that this is a bit rare, so a set feeding time is usually the better idea.

Answer 4

It means you leave food out for them all day and let them eat whenever they want.

It is better to schedule their meal times and keep them on a routine, especially when trying to housebreak.

Answer 5

Also known as 'free choice' it's leaving food out all the time for your dog so it can eat when it likes, as much as it likes. No particular feeding times or measured amounts.

I've had a number of dogs that did well being fed free choice, and if it works for your animal, it's more convenient than having to be home to feed at a particular time or worrying about the dog going hungry.

It's not suitable for all dogs though, as some will over eat and have weight/health problems. I also had the advantage of having a doggie door in my home so my dogs could go out and potty when they needed to.

EDIT: Puppies shouldn't be fed free choice, they need certain amounts of food to grow but you don't want them to become overweight and unhealthy. Once they are older you can see if your dog will do well eating free choice or not. If it's an active animal or not prone to eating a lot, it may be fine.

Answer 6

feeding then table food

Answer 7

Free Feeding is a constant supply of food for them to eat as much as they want at any given time.

Answer 8

why throw garbage  away when you can feed it to your dog. garbage is free, and some people feed their dog garbage. if you have food left over after dinner and you give it to your dog that is free feeding cause the dog is getting what would other wise be garbage. there is nothing wrong with this, but if you Begin eating you dog's left overs, well that me be the ultimate in coolness or you may need help mentally.  

Answer 9

When you just leave the bowl on the ground with food ,always so he can eat and go  whenever he plleases. It not goood if you want them to be poidie trained.

Answer 10

as much as they will eat  

Answer 11

I've understood that to be filling the bowl to the top and the dog eats as much as they want

Answer 12

Free feeding is when you put down a bowl of food, and fill it as it empties. It's bad because the dog goes through much more food than it needs, which can lead to a fat pup and a thin wallet. Also, the dog will have to go potty at random times, which can lead to accidents.

Answer 13

Hello,

I have always "free fed" my dogs and had them all my life, which my oldest kid will be 18 soon so I am not a kid.

Free feeding is when you buy the feed and open it, that is it. The dog eats whatever it wants. This can be a problem for some dogs. Most my life I have had more then one dog and not ankle biters, but bigger dogs who form "packs" and have lived on property which means the dogs get exercise.

Some dogs will over eat if not used to free feeding, there will be dominance issues with more then one dog.  This means fights.

We have a huge feeding dish we keep full, a cooking pal like from a restaurant. The dogs eat when they want to. The way it is here is are female eats first, period. She will fight for this right, she is a aussie if this matters.

Then the English mastiff eats.  There are fights sometimes with the female aussie and him. The mastiff only lets her think she is the boss lol! He can kill her in one bite, but likes her.

Then are border collie/aussie mix eats and he will not fight but will wait his turn.

We have had these three all there life's. New dogs do not last here and we gave up getting another older dog in here. Only a puppy would be able to come into this pack.

Good luck if you choose this way, I do not know any different.

Answer 14

free feeding is when you always leeve food and water out and youre dog can eat whenever he pleases when you dont free feed it meens you give youre dog his meals twise a day

Answer 15

free feeding is when you put out a bowl of food and they can eat from it all day.