hounds – beagles especially – are notorious over eaters. it’s a survival thing and if given the chance would eat until they pop. you can make a game out of feeding her. place the food in a busy ball or buster cube to knock around or pack it into a kong. for the kong buy the extra large one, line the inside with honey and pack in the kibble. drizzle honey over the packed kibble for more fun. close the end with PB and freeze. this should put more joy into eating and expend more energy. if you feel up to it you can hide her food around the house and have her hunt for it!

What is her weight like? That’s really the only important thing. Most dogs do not get fed 3x a day, just 1 or 2, so unless she’s underweight, I doubt she is really hungry. She has learned to manipulate you for food, learned that her whining produces extra food. 1.5 cups a day for a Beagle doesn’t sound like an excessive amount at all, but it depends on the quality of food you are giving- not only its calorie content, but it’s digestibility. I like the idea of feeding her out of a treat ball.

Hello, Lida it sounds as if you have a very smart Beagle who is highly motivated to to get you to hand out treats and dog chow.

Beagles can be very determined to get thier own way. They can melt the hardest heart with thier big brown eyes and long, soft, floppy ears. My rule of thumb is this; if your dog is burning off the calories and is not fat, then increase the amount of food that you are giving your Beagle. Two cups of dry food a day might not be too much food at all if your Beagle has a high metabolism.

So, take it easy and give your Beagle what she needs as long as she is not fat.

Ami Moore the Chicago Dog Expert www.dogdoright.com