# He won't eat!!



## Alcibides (Feb 14, 2012)

The last couple of weeks (and Lucky is about 8 months and blowing coat), Lucky has been less interested in eating. This is really hard since up until then he wolfed down his food three times a day. Here are some ideas I've had: 1) we changed from three feedings to two (same amount in two portions) and maybe that's too much at one time? But he has seemed less interested in lunch; 2) he had a visit from two of his dog cousins (chocolate labs) and I'm pretty sure he tasted some of their food so maybe he thinks there's better out there? 3) Maybe he's outgrown puppy chow and needs a step up to a new kind of food???

Any suggestions? Any brands in particular if he's stepping up (he is currently eating Blue Buffalo puppy chow)? I am not up to or interested in cooking for him. Thanks so much.

p.s. I've tried mixing it with water AND microwaving it to increase flavor (both ideas I got on the forum thanks)


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## Suzi (Oct 27, 2010)

Well he is past his teething stage but maybe it could be teeth? I switched from the blue buffalo at about that age with Zoey. We went to Acana. I have always added some chicken breast when they wont eat . Have you tried a bit of natural broth the microwave? Or buy some canned food and mix it. Hope he starts eating better.


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## mamacjt (Aug 23, 2011)

I feel for you because I have "been there" and after spending probably well over $100 on different foods, there is only one dog food that my dog will even consider and that is: Earthborn Holistic Small Breed. He eats that in the morning, and I home cook for him at night. What's nice about Earthborn is that they have trial sizes for $2.99 for 1 lb so I don't have to buy so much at one time for my little 9 pounder.


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

Alcibides said:


> The last couple of weeks (and Lucky is about 8 months and blowing coat), Lucky has been less interested in eating. This is really hard since up until then he wolfed down his food three times a day. Here are some ideas I've had: 1) we changed from three feedings to two (same amount in two portions) and maybe that's too much at one time? But he has seemed less interested in lunch; 2) he had a visit from two of his dog cousins (chocolate labs) and I'm pretty sure he tasted some of their food so maybe he thinks there's better out there? 3) Maybe he's outgrown puppy chow and needs a step up to a new kind of food???
> 
> Any suggestions? Any brands in particular if he's stepping up (he is currently eating Blue Buffalo puppy chow)? I am not up to or interested in cooking for him. Thanks so much.
> 
> p.s. I've tried mixing it with water AND microwaving it to increase flavor (both ideas I got on the forum thanks)


If you start trying to tempt him with different foods, adding things, etc. you are on a slippery slope to a picky eater. As long as you are satisfied that the food you are giving him is a nutritionally sound diet, stick to your guns and DON'T cave to pickiness.

It's entirely possible that the reason he dropped the noon meal is that he was getting enough in the other two meals. By increasing the size of those meals, you may be over feeding him. Remember that a slightly thin dog is a healthier dog than an even slightly chubby one! I would go back to whatever quantities you used to feed AM and PM and just plain drop the lunch out completely. He may be done growing, or close, and just not need that extra food. Then keep an eye on his weight. Feel his ribs and spine, which should be easy to feel, with just a slight layer of padding. If he starts to drop weight, you can increase his food a little, but I'm betting you won't have to.

It is MUCH more common for little dogs to be overweight than seriously under weight.


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## TilliesMom (Sep 30, 2010)

my thoughts are the same as Karen, he may just simply not be hungry! Dogs WILL eat when they are hungry!! And "puppy chow" isn't the best of foods ... may want to consider something of higher nutritional quailty for sure!


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## Alcibides (Feb 14, 2012)

TilliesMom said:


> my thoughts are the same as Karen, he may just simply not be hungry! Dogs WILL eat when they are hungry!! And "puppy chow" isn't the best of foods ... may want to consider something of higher nutritional quailty for sure!


What do you recommend for "higher nutritional quality?" And if we switch do we have to ease into it? Is 8 months about the right time for adult dog food?
thanks so much all.


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## Alcibides (Feb 14, 2012)

Oh and yes, he (at 18+ pounds) surely may be finished growing. Thank you Karen.


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## misstray (Feb 6, 2011)

I thought Blue Buffalo was considered a quality brand.


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

Alcibides said:


> What do you recommend for "higher nutritional quality?" And if we switch do we have to ease into it? Is 8 months about the right time for adult dog food?
> thanks so much all.


What are you feeding him now? If you mean Purina Puppy Chow, Purina foods are some of the least nutritious foods available. Basically, if it comes from the grocery store, it's probably not very high quality food. If you mean a puppy formula of some other food, it depends on what you are feeding. Most good quality foods can be fed at all ages. One brand

While it is probably true that properly formulated home made foods (raw or cooked) are the absolute best nutritionally, many of us can't do that for one reason or another. Canned food from good manufacturers is another good option, but many of us use good quality dry kibble and find that our dogs do fine on it. It's just VERY important to make sure your dog drinks enough if they are on a dry kibble diet.

There are MANY good quality kibbles out there, and you'll find almost as many different choices as there are people on the forum. I have chosen to feed Natural Balance Organic to Kodi. It not only has a good list of ingredients, but they are organic as well. (there are very few organic kibbles) I like to feed my family organic as much as possible, so I wanted to feed my dog pesticide/hormone/antibiotic free food as well.


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## dodrop82 (May 21, 2010)

Yes, Blue Buffalo is a good brand.


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## TilliesMom (Sep 30, 2010)

sorry, I must have misunderstood, the original post says puppy chow, so I wrongly assumed Purina Puppy Chow, apparently without reading the last sentence of the post!!! ... SORRY, my bad!!! 
YES, of course Blue Buffalo is a high quality kibble!! I've read Orijen, Acana, Innova and Wellness core are good choices too.
Hopefully he is just cutting back and there will be no reason to change his food though!
Sorry for the confusion, been a crazy day around here and I should have kept my mouth/fingers shut!!


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## Suzi (Oct 27, 2010)

I liked blue buffalo because they cook the vitamins separate actually their freeze dried. I was told in other puppy foods the vitamins get cooked out because of the heat. One time my bag had way too many little vitamins and the company cave me a free $30 bag. I think it was suppose to be 7 or 14 little chunks to a 1/4 cup?


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## dodrop82 (May 21, 2010)

When I had Yogi on Blue Buffalo puppy food, she'd eat the kibble and spit out the 'LifeSource Bits' all over the floor....Little ****pot!


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## littlebuddy (May 30, 2007)

I know this sounds silly but Django has never been a good eater. I will sometimes take his food and put it in a different bowl or plate and take it to another part of the house where I will be for a bit. It's amazing how changing the pace makes them think they are getting something special. It works for me!


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## Alcibides (Feb 14, 2012)

All great suggestions. Thank you all. The breeder feels he should stay on kibble (as you know he's on Blue Buffalo) for a year, but I'm considering a switch of brands and have noted your recommendations. I've tried the shaking things up little buddy and it works with some effect. He'll eat from a Kong or as much as I can fit in the cognitive toy search thing...but I'm hoping to keep things simple (the switch to a plate worked for a while...) and not planning to cook for him. So appreciate all these suggestions and will report back.


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## Pixiesmom (Jul 31, 2008)

dodrop82 said:


> When I had Yogi on Blue Buffalo puppy food, she'd eat the kibble and spit out the 'LifeSource Bits' all over the floor....Little ****pot!


Pixie spits out the bits in the Wilderness kibble too (made by BB). It looks like rabbit poop all over the house. Mig will eat them, so I always say that alone was reason to get him....

My dogs have those days too where they will turn their noses up at pretty much everything. I try to switch up the food between chicken thighs and green beans, Merrick canned and Wellness canned. I tried raw (freeze dried) but couldn't deal with it, and they hated it. Have I duped myself and created two picky eaters?-probably!! Everyone is right-the dog will eat when it is hungry, although that doesn't make us feel any better.


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## Alcibides (Feb 14, 2012)

Sooo...went today in search of Acana (a grain free alternative recommended on the forum) and instead (they don't carry it) discovered Blue Buffalo makes another flavor puppy kibble (remember the breeder feels strongly Lucky should be on puppy kibble until a year). Soooo...I bought the new flavor (lamb which I know agrees with him because his treats are the Blue Buffalo lamb and apple sticks) and mixed some with his regular kibble AND he loved the lamb flavor, picked around it (leaving the regular chicken flavor) and wolfed it down. MY QUESTION:

Since the change is to another flavor of virtually the same food made by the same maker with the same ingredients etc. etc. DO I need to introduce it so slowly, i.e. mixing it with the other food over a week or would I be safe to pick up the pace in swtiching?

Thanks for your wisdom.


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

Alcibides said:


> Sooo...went today in search of Acana (a grain free alternative recommended on the forum) and instead (they don't carry it) discovered Blue Buffalo makes another flavor puppy kibble (remember the breeder feels strongly Lucky should be on puppy kibble until a year). Soooo...I bought the new flavor (lamb which I know agrees with him because his treats are the Blue Buffalo lamb and apple sticks) and mixed some with his regular kibble AND he loved the lamb flavor, picked around it (leaving the regular chicken flavor) and wolfed it down. MY QUESTION:
> 
> Since the change is to another flavor of virtually the same food made by the same maker with the same ingredients etc. etc. DO I need to introduce it so slowly, i.e. mixing it with the other food over a week or would I be safe to pick up the pace in swtiching?
> 
> Thanks for your wisdom.


It all depends on your dog's tummy!:biggrin1: With Kodi, I once switched him quickly to another food made by the same company, ALMOST the same ingredient mix... The one I usually feed is organic, the one I picked up because they didn't HAVE the organic had sweet potato in it, but I know he has eaten sweet potato treats before without problem. He ended up with poopy but. I'm sure if I had transitioned slowly (I've done that in the past) he would have been fine. But he doesn't seem to tolerate quick food changes well at all, even to a very similar product.


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## Alcibides (Feb 14, 2012)

krandall said:


> It all depends on your dog's tummy!:biggrin1: With Kodi, I once switched him quickly to another food made by the same company, ALMOST the same ingredient mix... The one I usually feed is organic, the one I picked up because they didn't HAVE the organic had sweet potato in it, but I know he has eaten sweet potato treats before without problem. He ended up with poopy but. I'm sure if I had transitioned slowly (I've done that in the past) he would have been fine. But he doesn't seem to tolerate quick food changes well at all, even to a very similar product.


Sounds like good advice (to go slow). Just so eager to see him eating with enthusiasm again. Will be cautious. thanks


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## jessegirl (May 13, 2011)

I agree with Tammy & Karen. I've read from a lot of folks here that Havs tend to be picky. Rollie has always skipped meals. We did a bit of tinkering with food, but it turns out that the ones he really likes the best are supermarket foods (used in a pinch) or really rich ones that give him diarrhea. So we keep him on a food that is nutritious, but that he isn't crazy about. 

When I was worried about him skipping meals (sometimes not eating for up to 2.5 days), someone on this site said this - a dog will never starve in the presence of food. (Sorry, I can't remember who it was, but you know who you are  ). Ever since I read that, I've relaxed and although Rollie will still skip meals, when he's hungry, he eats. It hasn't had any ill effect on him in any way.

Good luck!


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## jessegirl (May 13, 2011)

Ha, ha. I just read about how he would pick out the food he likes. Rollie does that. We thought we could mix in the rich food with the less rich food and have the best of both worlds. Nope. He only ate the rich food and we still had daily but baths.


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## Charleysmom (Dec 6, 2011)

Alcibides said:


> All great suggestions. Thank you all. The breeder feels he should stay on kibble (as you know he's on Blue Buffalo) for a year, but I'm considering a switch of brands and have noted your recommendations. I've tried the shaking things up little buddy and it works with some effect. He'll eat from a Kong or as much as I can fit in the cognitive toy search thing...but I'm hoping to keep things simple (the switch to a plate worked for a while...) and not planning to cook for him. So appreciate all these suggestions and will report back.


I know a few adult dogs who are picky eaters and unfortunately their owners started out just like you - the dog doesn't eat and then every idea under the sun is tried. In my opinion, this guarantees a picky eater. Someone I know (a 91 y/o women) actually stands over her dog encourgaing him bite by bite. If she walks away, the dog stops eating. Boy has that dog trained her!! 
I would stick with a good quality food (I feed Charley Acana and Origen) and if the stool and weight are good, then just stick with it. Otherwise, you might be trying to figure this out for a very long long time. In the end, your dog will have trained you to give him something different and more exciting on a regular basis. One thing is certain, your dog will not starve himself.


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## Alcibides (Feb 14, 2012)

Suzi said:


> Well he is past his teething stage but maybe it could be teeth? I switched from the blue buffalo at about that age with Zoey. We went to Acana. I have always added some chicken breast when they wont eat . Have you tried a bit of natural broth the microwave? Or buy some canned food and mix it. Hope he starts eating better.


Suzi, I got the Acana for Lucky (wild Prairie) and he seems to really love it. The saleswoman said it was good for him even though he was only 8 months, but I notice there is a kind of Acana for puppies and small breeds...is that what you use? THe kibble bits are large and take more chewing but he doesn't seem to mind. Thanks so much for your help. Alc


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## BennyBoy (Apr 25, 2012)

krandall said:


> If you start trying to tempt him with different foods, adding things, etc. you are on a slippery slope to a picky eater.


I couldn't agree more! Benny will wait it out and see if he is getting any of our food, and when he finally realizes we aren't giving him anything else, he eats his food. He has missed quite a few meals doing this (I pick his food up after 30 minutes or so and then he's lost his chance) but since he's still pooping as much as ever, I am not worried.

He is eating Orijen dry food, which is one of the best, so I feel no guilt.


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## BennyBoy (Apr 25, 2012)

dodrop82 said:


> When I had Yogi on Blue Buffalo puppy food, she'd eat the kibble and spit out the 'LifeSource Bits' all over the floor....Little ****pot!


Benny did the same thing! So funny!


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## misstray (Feb 6, 2011)

BennyBoy said:


> I couldn't agree more! Benny will wait it out and see if he is getting any of our food, and when he finally realizes we aren't giving him anything else, he eats his food. He has missed quite a few meals doing this (I pick his food up after 30 minutes or so and then he's lost his chance) but since he's still pooping as much as ever, I am not worried.
> 
> He is eating Orijen dry food, which is one of the best, so I feel no guilt.


Ha ha Brody has missed out on a few of his meals doing this too.


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## Alcibides (Feb 14, 2012)

A woman at the pet store suspected that Lucky might be rejecting all the grains in the puppy kibble (perhaps she thought an allergy was setting in) and I switched him to the grain free Acana brand which he loves and eats with the same vigor he used to devour the Blue Buffalo. A simple solution (inspired by Suzi's story) after an array of ideas and attempts. Perhaps sometimes our dogs are just training us (as some have said) and sometimes they are telling us what they need.


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## gertchie (Jan 28, 2012)

Ozzie is a super picky eater too and I always worried about him until I too read the post saying he wouldn't starve himself! I home cook using U-Stew so it's super easy! I just add ground turkey or chicken and ground veggies (carrots, peas, beans, broccoli) I only have to do it about once a week or so, and freeze it in ice cube trays. He eats about 1-2 of those a day. I also feed him Castor and Pollux Ultramix and either mix some in with his turkey or, even better, put some in an empty water bottle. He loves the sound of the kibble rattling around and throws it in the air until some comes out...then it's totally like a treat and he gobbles it up!! I will admit that when I feed him his turkey dinner it's on a plate but then so is ours, shouldn't his be too?


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