Teenage Cavapoo Help Please

[boredofhomework]

Hello,

Our cavapoo is 16 months and I think he's just hitting the adolescent phase. Suddenly he doesn't want to listen, chews / eats sticks constantly / barks for attention etc etc. I'm just looking for tips and some solidarity really! Did you have a cavapoo like this? Does it get easier?

Also, what's the best diet to put him on to avoid soft poos? I have tried all sorts but his poo is always too soft 😬

All teenage dogs are like this, but just keep going with the training and they will come out the other side. He is a small breed so hopefully won’t take too long!

mine do better on fresh than dried, they have butternut box or symply.

If his poo is too soft he may be being over fed?

Agree we feed a mixed diet, raw in the morning and kibble evenings, if we ever run out of raw poos become very soft it seems like more water is drawn into the bowel during digestion.

Yep, very normal for teenagers 😂 you just need to stay consistent and try and be as patient as possible while internally suppressing your screams 😩

In terms of poo I agree with the PP who said he's probably being over-fed, it's very easily done.

My cavapoo was exactly like this at that age. She's now 2.5 and calm as anything- will happily sleep/chill all day after her run. Stay consistent with your training as thats really important.

I feed her dried raw food, often supplement with beef liver, green lipped mussels and shiitake mushrooms as all are really, really good for dogs and her poos are very solid and they dry up really quickly which is fantastic for disposing of them.

Thanks for the reply. Can I ask which dried raw food you use please? Thanks

Possibly. I think I will have to do some research in to how much he should be getting. He is currently fed twice a day but will check quantities x

I really like McAdams raw preserve and also wainwrights freeze dried raw. I tried actual raw for a while but the hassle of having to disinfect the kitchen afterwards just got a bit much and she didnt really like it that much anyway so this seemed like a great alternative

Don't take any notice of the amount suggested on the packet/tin, it's always far more than most dogs need.

How much should he be having do you think? He is 9kg x

That very much depends on what you're feeding him.

It's really a matter of trial and error I'm afraid.

My dog is 13 years old and weighs around 5.5 kilo. She's on a wet tinned food.

According to the tin she should be having around three quarters, perhaps a little more, of food a day; tin contains 410 grams.

She actually has 194 grams a day.

On that amount her weight stays the same and has done for several years.

I know she's an old dog but she's a small breed, obviously, and is still very active. Also she's been on that amount for several years now.

She's been on various foods over the years and I used to go by the the amounts that was on the tins and she had runny poos for years until I realised it was because I was over feeding her.

Try cutting the food down a little bit and see how your dog is with less food. Obviously, you don't want your dog to start losing weight.

It might be an idea to have a chat with one of the nurses at your vet. They're usually well informed about feeding.