Pugs are voracious eaters that will eat anything that you put in front of them. So how much food should a Pug have a day? While it might be easier to keep their bowl full all day, your Pug will become obese if you don’t regulate their eating habits. For a healthy pug, you shouldn’t feed them more than twice a day if they’re an adult or four times a day if they’re a young puppy.
How Much Food Should A Pug Have A Day?
A small dog breed like a Pug should consume about 3/4 cups to 1 1/2 cups of food per day. However, Your Pug’s age and activity level can influence the number of times you feed them each day. Puppies need plenty of food to sustain their rapid growth.
However, it’s still possible to overfeed your Pug even if they’re young, energetic, and spend most of their time running around outside.
How Much Food Does Your Pug Need?
As your Pug gets older, you’ll need to reduce their food intake unless your veterinarian recommends otherwise gradually.
Here’s a look at what your Pug needs to stay lean and healthy throughout its lifespan.
Young Puppies
Blue Buffalo is made with real meat first and will provide your pooch with high-quality protein to help build healthy muscles.
Hills Science Puppy Formula is made with wholesome ingredients to provide your pooch with a healthy well-balanced diet.
Young puppies need the most food because they’re growing rapidly and burn a lot of energy. If your puppy is younger than three months old, you can feed them up to four times a day.
Ensure you’re feeding your puppy high-quality puppy food that is made specifically for Pugs. At most, give them a half cup of food at every meal.
Older Puppies
Once your puppy hits the three-month mark, you should reduce its meals to three times a day. You can give them up to one-third a cup of food at every meal.
Young Adults
At eight months, you can feed your dog a half cup of food twice a day. Your vet might recommend reducing their intake to one-third a cup of food depending on your pet’s weight and energy levels.
Adults
When your Pug is a year old, you should limit their meals to a half-cup of high-quality adult Pug food once or twice a day. If your Pug doesn’t get a lot of exercise, you might want to restrict them to one meal per day. Some pugs can handle two cups if they burn a lot of energy.
Seniors
Your senior Pug will love the taste and you'll love the benefits they receive from the antioxidants, vitamins, etc.
Feed your senior Pug the great taste of Nutro with a trio of proteins to help them stay strong and energized.
As your Pug becomes a senior, they will require less food as their metabolism starts to slow. You’ll also want to change their kibble from adult to senior to ensure they don’t gain too much weight.
How Do You Measure Your Pug’s Servings?
Measuring your Pug’s servings is as simple as buying a set of measuring cups. See how much food your dog needs according to their age, then scoop the food into their bowl at feeding time.
For best results, you might want to develop a routine, so your Pug knows when they’ll be fed every day.
What About Wet Dog Food?
Wet foods have high amounts of water, which means that it is safe for Pugs to consume. If you feed your pup high-quality wet food, a larger portion of wet food will provide the same number of energy calories as your dog’s kibble.
That said, AKC warns a dog’s diet shouldn’t consist of wet food alone, as it won’t provide your pup will a well-balanced diet.
If your Pug enjoys eating wet food, it’s best to use it as a topper or feed it to them as an occasional treat.
Why is Free Feeding Bad?
Keeping your dog’s bowl full throughout the day–otherwise known as “free feeding”–is bad because most pugs have no sense of portion control.
Your dog will eat whatever you give them, even if it makes them gain weight. This breed tends to overeat and will continue eating until they get a tummy ache.
If you don’t limit your dog’s calorie intake, you have no idea how much they’re eating and how that might affect their health.
Your dog might beg for more food throughout the day, but don’t let that fool you unless your vet says otherwise. Like humans, your Pug can’t maintain a healthy weight if they eat all day.
Your dog’s water bowl is the only thing that you should fill throughout the day.
What Are Some Other Ways to Keep Your Dog Healthy?
Besides limiting their calorie intake, you can keep your dog lean and fit by making sure that they get enough exercise.
Older dogs don’t burn as much energy as puppies, but they still need to exercise regularly to burn calories. Take your dog for a walk on a regular basis and encourage them to play outside when the weather is nice.
You might also want to take a look at what you’re feeding your dog. Some types of dog food are more fattening than others, especially processed dog foods. Your Pug could still gain weight even if you’re not feeding them more than the recommended amount.
Some pug owners make their dog food from healthy ingredients like lean meat, rice, and pet-friendly vegetables. Making your own dog food might take some extra time, but you’ll also know exactly what you’re feeding your Pug. You can select lean, healthy ingredients that give your dog energy without overloading their calorie intake.
Popular lean meats include chicken, fish, and hamburger without a lot of excess fat. Some dog owners include organ meats to give their dogs an extra boost of protein and nutrients.
Does Healthy Processed Food Exist?
Healthy processed dog food isn’t unheard of, but you’ll want to look at the ingredients to ensure that it doesn’t have artificial preservatives or additives.
Some brands of dog food are loaded with fillers and empty calories that make your dog gain weight. Make sure that lean meat is one of the first ingredients instead of flour or corn syrup.
Some processed dog foods contain other healthy ingredients like rice and vegetables. If you’re ever in doubt, ask your veterinarian what type of food is right for your Pug.
You might need to put your dog on a special diet if they have allergies or dietary restrictions.
What Happens if Your Pug Gains Weight?
An obese pug could suffer from a number of health issues ranging from a lack of energy to diabetes. Over time, your Pug might have trouble exercising, experiencing heart, breathing problems, and even dying at a young age.
Since your dog depends on you for everything, it’s your responsibility to help them maintain a healthy weight.
Final Word
The amount you feed your dog will vary between 3/4 cups to 1 1/2 cups per day, depending on the age and lifestyle of your pup. If your Pug is more active and is burning more calories throughout the day, you can adjust their serving size to ensure they are getting enough food.
If you have an older Pug or one that isn’t as active as they were when they were a puppy, you can cut back on the portion sizes.
Like us, you can maintain a healthy weight for your Pug based on the amount and type of food they eat. If you’re concerned about your Pug’s weight, read the article on how much should a Pug weigh?
References
https://www.petsworld.in/blog/feeding-requirements-of-a-pug.html
https://blog.homesalive.ca/dog-blog/bad-dog-food-ingredients-to-avoid