Feeding my dog 3 1/2 cups twice a day but...
 

I have an 8 month old German Shepherd pup, he scrafs up all of his food as soon as he gets it. We feed him 6 cups a day but he doesn't seem to be gaining any weight. His hip bones are very boney and when I gave him a bath today, he looked so skinny that it concerns me.

I took him to the local dog park and a guy suggested that I do a self feeder but I'm concerned that he will be eating too much then.

I need some advice.
Oh and I am feeding him Purina One Large Puppy.

That might be the problem. It has a lot of fillers, that's why you have to feed him so much. Check out the info on this forum on good brands to feed and to look for ingredients to avoid.
You will pay more for each bag but also feed less and scoop less waste.

I agree with Wolfy...check that thread out. I feed my 3 1/2 yr old GSD only 1 1/2 cups of dry food plus some treats and she's right where I want her.

if you're feeding 3&1/2 cups twice a day that's 7 cups. if you're feeding 3, 1/2 cups twice a day that's 3 cups. i fed my pup 3 cups a day (1 cup in the am, 1 cup noonish and 1 cup in the pm. he had a snack throughout the day. you could switch to a better food. that may help. make sure there's nothing medical going on.

Good advice form doggiedad: take a stool sample t the vet to have it checked for parasites but even better to have a physical along with it. You don't want nutritional problems with a fast growing dog like a GSD.

If he is healthy (normal stools, etc.) but skinny, at that age, and with all the growing he is doing, you may want to try giving him more. My Sting was on the same food as yours at that age and I went by the package guidelines but he was always hungry, so I increased it. When he was finished with that growth spurt, he actually ate less.

Check the calories you are feeding him daily--you can google to find the amount of calories per cup of the food you are feeding.

Then use a metabolic calculator get a rough estimate of how many calories he needs:

Metabolic Energy Requirements For Dogs

You might do better to switch him to a higher calorie food. If you want to stay with Purina, the Purina Chicken & Rice (not "Shredded") is a pretty decent food.