Parmelee Beagles

Feeding

Before they go home with you we are leaving kibble out for the pups all the time, and making specific meal times for them 2-4 times a day by adding a little bit of wet food to the kibble.  At this age they use most of the energy up in growing and playing. You will want to give your puppy 2-3 meals a day until they are at least 6 months old. Some people go to one meal a day a that point, we prefer to feed two smaller meals twice a day (breakfast and dinner).  


A common question from our puppy families is how much they should feed their puppies when they first come home. This can be tough to answer since each food (and there sure are a lot to choose from these days) can have a very different calorie count per volume. I would recommend starting with the package recommendations and then adjusting as needed for your pup’s activity level and needs. If your puppy seems too thin, add more food, if they seem fluffy, a little less food. Until you find a good quality kibble that works for your budget and for your puppy, you may want to buy the smaller bags of food. Different dogs react differently to different foods, some work well for one dog, but not for another. We researched our current dog food on sites like Dog Food Advisor and Dog Food Analysis.


Once your puppy is full grown (usually by around 18 months they are filled out and probably will not grow any more), you will want to keep an eye on how much they eat as beagles can tend to be plump if they don't get enough exercise. If you find your beagle getting a bit fluffy, some people have had good success adding no-salt canned green beans to their food to make it more filling but less calorie intensive and longer walks and more play is also helpful.  Avoiding people food can also keep those beagles lean and mean.

 

Beagles, especially beagle puppies, tend to put everything in their mouth, the more disgusting the better as far as they are concerned. Occasionally what they manage to get into makes them sick. We have found that boiling a chicken breast with some diced carrot and cooked rice helps to sooth those tummies for a few days until the diarrhea/vomiting have subsided. For a puppy a single breast mixed with rice can last for 3-5 meals, just refrigerate the unused portions for the next meal. If you do not see the vomiting or diarrhea clear up within a day or so, consult your veterinarian as your puppy may have gotten hold of something nasty and need a de-worming or more serious medicine. Hunter liked the boiled chicken mix so much we think he found nasty things as a pup just to get more boiled chicken and rice instead of puppy food! Note: if your pup has more than a bought or two of diarrhea or vomiting, it may be worth checking with your vet as the pup may have picked up giardia or coccidia, both very treatable and will sometimes clear themselves up, but you want to get rid of those as quickly as you can.


Try to keep detergents, antifreeze and other dangerous chemicals out of nose/mouth range. If your puppy gets something bad and you need to make them vomit, some hydrogen peroxide squirted down the back of their throat usually does the job, usually a teaspoon at a time every half hour or so until the urp is achieved. We have a syringe I use just for this, makes it easier to squirt something down the back of the throat and not have them spit it back at you. For some chemicals you do NOT want to induce vomiting, always check package information and with your vet if your puppy gets into something it shouldn't.