Dogs food digestion time

Question
QUESTION: Hi, I have a malamute dog that gets me up at 5:00 AM to go outside to defecate.  I feed him twice a day, morning and evening.  He is 11 months old and about 80 lbs.  What time of day is best to feed him so he defecates during daylight hours?  Thank you

ANSWER: Hi Geo,

How late in the evening do you feed him? I might look at offering the supper meal earlier and then just a biscuit before bed. Do you feed equal amounts morning and evening? Are you feeding kibble?

My 2 year old RR always slept through the night, but a while ago he had a bad reaction to the new Canidae food and needed to get up at 3 am to defecate. Even after the stool cleared up he continued the pattern, dogs are such creatures of habit. I would look at this behaviourally as well as physically. Try feeding the larger meal in the morning, and a light earlier supper. Make sure he goes out to relieve hmself right before bed. And keep me posted, I feel your pain. When Danny was getting me up every night I was a basket case!

Ww are back to regular hours, but it took some doing.
All the best,Catherine

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QUESTION: Thank you for your answer and to answer your questions:  I feed him two cups of kibbled in the morning and two cups at about 5:00 PM.  I take him for two walks in the evening to give him plenty of opportunity to defecate BUT he does not seem to want to defecate while on a leash.  There are dogs in my area (I live in the woods in central Oregon) that are agressive so I have to keep him on a leash.  I guess I might have to go out further into the woods to let him off the leash to defecate.  I will try the hearty feeding in the AM and a lighter feeding in the PM.  Thank you very much.  Have a wonderful Thanksgiving.

ANSWER: Hi again -

Four cups of food seems reasonable, but then it depends on what type of food, how much your dog weighs and how much exercise he gets. Dry food can range from 250 calories a cup to as much as 500+, and that's only the energy - far, protein and to some degree, fiber all vary considerably. Foods higher in fat will sometimes cause a sense of urgency to defecate, but the longer I do this work the more individual variant I see. Some dogs can't deal with normal fiber content and some require more than usual. If you can fill me in about the brand of food I may be able to offer some more insights.

I'm betting that if he can empty his bowels at night you will sleep better!  I recommend trying that one first, before adjusting the intake of food.

Best wishes, we in Canada have had our Thanksgiving, but I  could be talked into another one. <g>
Catherine

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QUESTION: I feed him Dick Van Pattens Natural Balance.  It is sweet potato and fish.  The dog has food allergies and I was told to feed him potato and fish only.  Some times, about two to three times a week, I was told to put yogurt in his food to help with diarrhea.  Usually he has solid feces but sometimes the diarrhea is evident still.  I take him into the woods and let him run wild twice a day for at least a half hour to an hour.  He gets LOTS of exercise.  Maybe too much?  Thanks for the dialog.

Answer
Hi again,

well first of all, I don't think the exercise is too much, if your dog is in good condition.  I'm not seeing this as related to the diarrhea other than the inescapable fact that dogs will get into stuff on offleash walks, and that may provoke the bowel reaction. In addition, yogurt may not be the best choice for controlling loose stool. What you might need is a probiotic, and ocaasionally a non-dairy one as well. I have definitely seen yogurt give loose stool depending on your dog's digestive capacity and what he is allergic to. I might stop that for now, and add a probiotic instead.

Really, I think your best bet is to feed only the NB for two weeks - no yogurt, no supplements - and keep a journal about the diarrhea. If it stops, you have your answer. If it continues we may need to look at a range of other causes - something in the kibble, something he gets into on walks (Deer poop?) or even stress. (Many of my client's dogs with IBD are stress-reactors, bigtime).
Is this an option for you, as a test?
Catherine :)