feeding once a day vs twice a day @ 6.5 months

I know my girls are still young - about 6.5 months - but I am wondering about feeding once a day. They are currently being fed 2X/day, but rarely seem very interested in their meal after a few minutes. It is a high quality food, and they do eat it, so I dont think it is a matter of them not liking it. It is for older puppies (the kibble size is a little bigger), but they eat it about the same as they did their original puppy food.
I give them about 3/4 cup daily (per dog food recommendations) - and they eat a little more than half.
I use the 15 minute rule daily. They do still get a small amount of treat for potty's and puppy class training, but no snacks other than a Kong ziggie
(one total/week) when they have to be crated for several hours.
Their poop amount is less on the new food and they dont seem to drink as much water. The vet says they are healthy and are still growing, though a little slower I think.
When can I safely go to once a day and see if they are more enthusiastic about mealtime? Can I do a trial run for a few days?

I appreciate the advice..
Ginger

Hi Ginger-

I've always fed mine twice a day, but yours don't seem interested in the second meal, maybe you could put the kibble in a treat ball or a Kong and feed them that way. I would think at 6.5 months, they still need two meals a day since they're still growing puppies.

I'm sure others will chime in...

Your puppies are so cute, by the way!

Should I get 2 treat balls and put them in their crates with the balls? If I use the puppy Konds, they are not big enough for a meal, so do I give them most of their daily amount in the afternoon and just give them what will fit in the ball/kong in the am?
Also, I take them out about 20 minutes after they eat. If it takes them a while to eat the kibble in the ball/kong, when do I take them out? I do work a few mornings a week for several hours, and cant wait around for an hour or so for them to finish.
Finally, about the water - they really dont seem to need as much as I think they should. I usually give them alo of ice as it is they just dont seem to want to drink water. Is there a way to get them to drink more or do I assume they get what they need?
Thanks
ginger

Just like children, dogs seem to go through growing spurts and stops. One day my grandson will eat enough for an adult-- other days he picks. I feed all of mine twice a day. It seems to work well with giving pills and it keeps them busy as I make our dinner.

I would get them each a treat ball and try using that for the evening meal or whatever meal you have more time for. I couldn't do it in the morning either, as I have to rush out to work. As for putting them in their crates with the treat balls, it depends on how big their crates are. They generally need a little bit of room to roll the ball around to get the food out. I would try giving them the balls outside the crate unless you think it would be a problem.

As for water, Mia doesn't drink a lot either. But she loves ice cubes!! I think it depends on the puppy, some drink more than others. I was worried about Mia in the beginning, too, but she seems like a pretty healthy girl.

Good luck with your Harley & Carley--love the names!!

I can do a treat ball in the evening - what kind do you use and how much food can you get in one of them?

I think if they are disinterested in 2 meals a day, then 1 is the go. I've read that picky eaters often become less so on just 1 meal.

I have started transitioning Lucky to 1 meal a day too ...

I did it for the same reason you are consideringing it. He is hungry for the morning meal but not at all so for the evening. With Lucky, he gets treats throughout the day though because I work from home (just chicken chips, sam's yams and real meat treats for potty breaks) so I think he actually is getting enough calories and nutrition and is not really hungry for an evening meal. I don't want to force it because I don't want him getting fat - I just feed him a bit more with his once a day meal.

Harley & Carley said:

I can do a treat ball in the evening - what kind do you use and how much food can you get in one of them?

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I have used the Kong Stuff-a-Ball Treat Dispensers. They can be found at PetSmart.

If you can't fit their entire meals in at once, you could refill the dispensers or feed part of the food from their bowls.

At their young ages they should be fed twice daily. I continue to feed mine twice a day even in adulthood.