Dogs should not be fed after 5 p.m. because it reduces sleep quality, leads to obesity and makes consistent routines difficult. It also ensures that the dog has to go out at night and increases the risk of cardiovascular diseases.
At least that's what some dog magazines say. But is that really true? In my opinion, this recommendation is a bit exaggerated and unjustified.
Because yes, feeding a dog late is definitely harmful. But when exactly “too late” is depends on your lifestyle, sleep rhythm and dog walking time.
Below you will learn about the 5 strongest arguments for feeding before 5 p.m., what consequences this has and what it means in practice.
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#1 Lowers sleep quality
Let’s first dispel a myth here. It is often said that the dog's stomach stops at night and then the food lies undigested in the stomach.
That's not true. The stomach doesn't have an off switch. Even if you eat a meal shortly before going to bed, it is still digested while you sleep. Just slower. [1]
The problem with this is that it reduces the quality of the dog's sleep. You have probably experienced this phenomenon yourself.
For example, if you ate late, then slept for a full 8 hours and still get up completely unrested and overtired. Wasn't it?
It's no different with dogs. Except that they generally don't have to go to work. For this reason, some people recommend not feeding dogs after 5 p.m.
But what do many people forget? The time from ingestion of food to excretion is many times shorter in dogs than in humans.
While it takes an average of between 20-30 hours for humans, this transit time for dogs is only 6-8 hours. So it is more than 70% shorter. [2]
However, most of the digestion in dogs is completed after just 2 hours. For this reason, it is also recommended that you only go for a walk around 2 hours after eating.
If you go out with your dog at 8 p.m., you could easily feed him after 5 p.m. There is no “right” or “wrong” here.
Feeding after 5 p.m. can potentially reduce the quality of your dog's sleep because the digestive tract is busy digesting food half the night. This only applies if the time between feeding and bedtime is less than 2 hours.
#2 Makes you overweight and fat
When it comes to losing weight, the myth still persists that eating late, and especially carbohydrates in the evening, makes you fat.
The idea behind it sounds logical at first. Because through nutrition, new energy is absorbed, which cannot then be used up.
As a result, the excess energy is stored in the form of fat. In reality, however, the timing plays a minor role. What the dog eats is much more important.
It has already been proven in mice that eating outside the natural sleep-wake rhythm can lead to weight gain. [3]
However, previous study results in humans have been mixed. There have been no studies on this in dogs. There are also other differences.
While people primarily eat high-calorie foods like chips or crackers late in the evening, dogs only have their everyday dog food to choose from.
Not feeding a dog after 5 p.m. because it will become overweight is therefore nonsense. What is much more important is the daily calorie balance and the number of meals.
Or to put it another way: If your dog consumes more calories on average than he burns, then he will gain weight. But the same also applies vice versa.
Some studies also indicate that regular small portions have a greater satiety effect in dogs than a few large portions. [4]
Contrary to all myths, late meals do not make dogs fat. Maintaining the calorie balance and regularity play a much more important role here. The fact that dogs shouldn't be fed after 5 p.m. is more of a myth.
#3 Make sure you have nightly bathroom breaks
Every new, first-time owner knows the feeling when your dog wakes you up in the middle of the night because he needs to go outside. There are definitely nicer things.
So the question is: When should you feed your dog in the evening so that he doesn't have to go out at night? Basically, you should feed your four-legged friend before going for a walk.
Very young dogs in particular often have to defecate after just 5-30 minutes. For older dogs it can also be between 30 minutes and 6 hours.
You can usually tell when they become visibly restless, start to whine or your dog jumps at you. Ideally, the digestive break should be 1-2 hours.
This is intended to reduce the risk of life-threatening gastric torsion. However, there is no reason not to feed a dog after 5 p.m. [5]
Instead of a fixed time, it's more about the time between the meal and the last walk. Here is an overview of our recommendations:
Bedtime, walk time
(-1 h) feeding time
(-1.5 h)11pm10pm8:30pm10pm9pm7:30pm9pm8pm6:30pm8pm7pm5:30pm
If that doesn't help or if your dog even goes into the house at night, then I recommend going for a quick walk again right before you go to bed.
However, this may not help with very young puppies. In this case, you can prevent a mess in the house with such reusable diapers.
If dogs are fed too late or even after going for a walk, they often have to go out in the middle of the night. In most cases, blanket statements such as that dogs should not be fed after 5 p.m. are neither sensible nor justified.
#4 Increases risk of illness
An early last meal is intended, among other things, to ensure that the dog can immediately release the energy it has absorbed. At least partially.
For this reason, it is often recommended not to give dogs just one big meal. Because several smaller meals reduce the likelihood of blood sugar spikes.
High blood sugar levels in dogs are dangerous because it damages the blood vessel walls in the long term and can lead to diabetes. In addition, a single meal often leads to bingeing. [6]
But that alone is not enough to discourage feeding after 5 p.m. Such a long feeding break often results in morning vomiting.
This is especially the case in dogs with a sensitive stomach if they fast overnight for more than 12 hours. It can be recognized by its yellowish mucus.
The latest studies on humans have already shown a connection between late meals and the risk of cardiovascular diseases. [7]
Whether there is a causal connection here is still questionable. It is also unclear whether these results can also be transferred to dogs. Investigations into this are still pending.
In any case, there should be a longer break in digestion between feeding and excessive physical exertion in order to prevent gastric torsion.
But that also has nothing to do with the time. Rather, it's about taking into account the time intervals between feeding, walking and going to bed.
Not feeding dogs after 5 p.m. is said to reduce blood sugar spikes and reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease. In both cases, however, there are currently no meaningful studies on this. The specific time seems to be less important here.
#5 No set routine
Wolves and other wild dogs are completely responsible for themselves. Domestic dogs, on the other hand, are 100% dependent on their owner.
You decide for yourself how safe or unsafe your dog feels. To reduce stress and anxiety, a fixed routine is recommended:
- Fixed feeding times
- Fixed chair times
All other needs such as attention, activity and exercise can be relatively flexible. But the food and the subsequent business should be fixed.
For this reason, general advice is often given, such as not taking your dog out after 8 p.m. or not feeding it after 5 p.m.
However, specific times are unfounded here. Rather, when it comes to feeding time, it's about ensuring that your dog knows that he will get food on time and doesn't have to beg.
Even with the fixed dog walking time, the sole aim is to reduce unnecessary stress. Because your four-legged friend knows exactly that you will go out with him.
It also increases the likelihood that the bowel movement will actually work and you won't have to walk back and forth on the grass in vain. [8]
General recommendations, such as not feeding dogs after 5 p.m., are often given to help create a routine. What is important, however, is not the specific time, but rather that your four-legged friend can always rely on you.
How often to feed dogs?
Here are a few additional tips for feeding. For small and very large breeds, more meals are often recommended as they usually have more sensitive stomachs.
Number of
MealsAge
Old
4-6 months age
> 6 monthsSmall breed4-53-42-3Medium breed3-42-31-2Large breed3-42-31-2Very large breed4-53-42-3
But there are also several exceptions in which more or fewer meals can make sense:
- More meals? If your four-legged friend slings or has chronic flatulence.
- Fewer meals? If the dog skips meals or becomes fussy.
Frequent meals may sound stressful at first. Especially if you also have a full-time job.
For this reason, I am personally a big fan of automatic feed dispensers like this. It couldn't be more stress-free and your dog can always rely on it.
When to feed your dog?
It is generally recommended to feed the dog before going for a walk. But there is no “right” or “wrong” here. The following times are just examples.
Personally, I think not feeding dogs after 5 p.m. is unfounded and too general. You will notice this at the latest in the following recommendations.
Number of
Meal options
Times28am + 6pm38pm + 1pm + 6pm47pm + 11am + 3pm + 7pm57pm + 10am + 1pm + 4pm + 7pm
If your dog is unfocused at certain times of the day and doesn't follow, it may be due to a lack of energy. This effect has already been proven in studies.
The phenomenon became known as the “breakfast effect”. Sniffer dogs can search more precisely when they have eaten something and are not hungry. [9]
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