Feeding guide: Dog bland diet how much to feed per day

Okay, so my furry buddy, Max, had a bit of a tummy upset last week. Nothing serious, thankfully, but the vet recommended putting him on a bland diet for a few days. I've done this before with my previous dogs, but I always forget the exact portions, so I figured I'd document it this time. It might come in handly for myself or someone else!

Figuring Out the Bland Diet

First, I cooked up a big batch of plain, boiled chicken breast. No skin, no bones, just the meat. I also cooked some plain white rice – no oil, no butter, no seasonings, nothing. Just plain, fluffy rice. Super boring, but that's the point!

The tricky part is always figuring out how much to actually feed. You don't want to give too much and overload their sensitive stomach, but you also don't want to starve them.

The Feeding Schedule

What I did, and what the vet suggested, was to start small. Really small. My dog is usually pretty active and love eating, so it's hard to image only few food for him. Instead of his usual two big meals a day, I split his bland diet into four tiny meals.

• Breakfast: I gave him about a quarter cup of the chicken and rice mixture. He looked at me like I was crazy, wanting more, but I stayed strong!
• Lunch: Another quarter cup. He was a little less enthusiastic this time, probably realizing this was the new normal for a bit.
• Dinner: Same deal, a quarter cup.
• Before Bed: One last quarter cup to tide him over through the night.

I used my hand to measure the mixture, one part shredded chicken and two part white rice.

Monitoring and Adjusting

The key is to watch your dog closely. I kept an eye on Max's, uh, "output" to make sure things were moving in the right direction. After a day of the tiny meals, his stools started to look more normal, which was a huge relief.

Since he was doing well, I gradually increased the amount I was feeding him at each meal. By day three, I was up to about half a cup per meal, still splitting it into four feedings. And by day four he was good and ready to back to his own food, the transistion was also smooth and I am happy with that!

It's always best to check with your vet, of course, but this small, frequent meal approach seemed to work really well for Max. Hopefully, this little log helps someone else out there dealing with a doggy's sensitive tummy!