My 6-month-old puppy is eating less. Is this normal puppy behavior?
Updated On September 23rd, 2025
Pet's info: Dog | Labradoodle | Male | neutered | 5 months and 20 days old | 63 lbs
My puppy is a 6 months old Labradoodle. He's always had a good appetite and is still on 3 meals a day. In the last week he's only been eating one meal a day and is not interested at his other meal times. His energy is fine and there's no diarrhea or vomiting. Is it just a lull in his growth where he's not hungry? Should I think about changing his diet?
4 Answers
Most Helpful Answer
Published on June 30th, 2017
As long as he is on a good quality, large breed puppy food and is otherwise well, normal growth and a healthy, shiny coat I would not change his diet. The more variety he is offered at this age the more likely he is to develop into a picky eater and refuse foods regularly! Most pups will have a reduction in their appetite as their growth slows, or ha may have picked up a mild infection etc. Monitor over the next 5-7days a schedule a vet check if any further symptoms develop
1Pet Parents found this answer helpful
Related Answers from Veterinarians
-
Published on November 20th, 2017
Yes this is absolutely normal. He is 6 months old now and his caloric intake is decreased by about 1/8-1/4. So a slight decrease in his food intake is no cause for alarm. Best wishes with your puppy. Take care!
1Pet Parents found this answer helpful
-
Published on August 16th, 2017
Forcsome reason a lot of puppies go through a phase where tgey lose interest in their food, it does tend to happen between 6 months and a year. It is likely to do with the major debelopment cycles. As long as Fiddle is bright and energetic, and not losing weight I would not worry overly. If you notice weight loss or change in his faeces I would have him checked by the vet in case there is an underlying issue. In the mean time you can either persevere with the same food or try somethibg different. Bear in mind that if you coax him with lots of tasty things he may become a little spoilt. Dog food does tend to be very high in energy so he is likely getting enough. Usually after a month or so they start eating properly again.
1Pet Parents found this answer helpful
-
Published on April 29th, 2018
Instead of feeding her twice a day, feed her 4-5 times a day and smaller amounts. You may also want to try another puppy food which may be more palatable to her and might have a higher concentration of nutrients per cup, so that you can feed less than your present feed, but still give her the right amount of nutrition. Since she is 6 months old, and it is spring time, it is also possible that she is preparing for heat and may not be as hungry as usual due to hormonal changes. Sometimes teething also can hurt and make her want to eat less. Check her mouth for sores.
1Pet Parents found this answer helpful
Is it ok for Norik to eat only half of the amount he supposed to eat daily? I heard that he should consume 55 calories per pound of his weight. He is still a puppy. He eats only 140 calories a day. Stella and chewy is a food he eats. Please advise.
All weekend my puppy has not been eating a lot of food. She hasn’t finished a full plate. She’s eaten little bits here and there but she’s drinking fine, playing fine, not lethargic or anything. Just eating very little. Is it possible she’s just goin
My 4.5 months old miniature poodle puppy suddenly became a picky eater starting a month ago. I usually feed him 3x a day. Now, he only eats once a day at around 3:30-4:00pm. Is this normal? He seems fine. He is still his jolly self and his poop is n
My 6 month old 17.5 Ib mini Aussiedoodle hasn't been interested in his meals the last couple weeks. At first I assumed it was related to teething and sore gums, but he's chewing bully sticks happily. He's acting normal and energetic and gets lots of
Is my puppy sick? I'm so worried, my 5 months old puppy doesn't want to eat like before? He use to eat 3 times a day, now he is eating one's, he doesn't look sick but ... He just want to be playing all day and not eating well... Is he sick, do I hav
My dog has not been eating voluntarily. He did not like his food so we tried to mix it with some rice and pumpkin, but he is very excited when he eats and we have to stay close to the bowl and try to force him to eat so that he does. He has been like
Is it normal for my puppy to not want to eat as much after losing teeth? (He is still eating just not as much)
Hi there. My dog teddy (8month old border collie) has recently had a decline in appetite. Of a morning we give him 1 scoop of food and the same at night however recently he refuses to eat in the morning, resulting in the food sitting there all day (d
Lucy is 6 months old. For the last few weeks, she hasn't been eating as well as before. She eats dry puppy food - and for her size, is supposed to eat 4 cups per day....At this time, she is only eating around 2- 21/2 cups per day. We have tried
Just wondering my furbaby had pups 2 months ago, and the pups have started to eat less and leave a fair bit of food left over is that normal??
Book an appointment with the pros – our expert vets are here to help.
