# Picky Eaters



## marisoma (Jan 20, 2008)

Giotto is 7mos and he is perhaps the pickiest dog I know. He eats 5 things consistently; his dog food, Zuke's Mini Naturals, Beefeaters Chicken Jerky, Iam's puppy biscuits, and parmesan cheese shreds. That is it. He may occasionally eat roast beef or some chicken, but that's if he is in the mood. Lately, he hasn't been eating his food at all. I was feeding him three times a day but finding that he only ate twice, so I took one meal out and started feeding him two. He did well with that, but in the last few days he's been turning his nose up at each meal. He still will take his favored treats when offered, but won't even sniff at his meals. If I add chicken or hamburger to it he might go for it, but that is hit or miss. I want him to eat, but I realize I am catering to this dog more than I cater to the kids or myself. He is a dog. Don't they usually eat anything? Am I making him picky? Should I try a new food or just buckle up and only give him his dog food until he accepts that is all he is getting?

thanks!


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## Havtahava (Aug 20, 2006)

Have you read the eating chapter in "The Havanese" by Diane Klumb? If you read it, you'll see you're not alone. Fortunately, my dogs aren't picky eaters at all, but I don't change things around for them either. They may skip eating a meal, or even a whole day of meals, but I've never had a dog go more than two days without eating on that third day. They quit their hunger strikes pretty quickly after that.

I stick to kibble, and rarely surprise them with a smidgeon of wet food mixed into it. As a rule, I only give treats for training or when we are performing in the show ring. It keeps things simple.

So far, I don't think that any of my puppy owners have complained about having a picky eater.  In fact, there are a few that could really use some meal restrictions. LOL!


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## Lina (Apr 26, 2007)

Well you can do whatever you feel comfortable with. I personally would never cater to Kubrick. Giotto will NOT starve. If you don't want him to be picky, you can't cater to him. And that includes giving him treats in the middle of the day. He doesn't need treats. We humans like to give them treats because we feel like it's something we would like to have, but it's not necessary. Give him his bowl in the morning with whatever it is you feed him. Pick it up after 20 minutes, even if it's untouched or unfinished. If he didn't touch it, save the exact same food in the bowl and put it down for dinner. Wait 20 minutes and pick it up again. He can go two days without eating with no problem, so don't freak out if he doesn't eat for that long. Until you can make sure that he realizes that this is what he is getting, don't give him any treats during the day. You can go back to giving him treats later, but make sure it's after he knows that his regular meal is what he should be eating.

That's what I did with Kubrick, and he now he will eat anything. There are, of course, foods he likes better than others, but he will eat his meal regardless.

Good luck!


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## Posh's Mom (Dec 20, 2007)

ditto on the advice for lina and kimberly. posh is a picky eater. i've noticed if i actually make her "do" something for her food, aka sit and wait until i release her she eats a lot better.

i've also taken the advice of forum members and 1. feed her on a plate vs. a bowl. 2. add a tablespoon of hot water over her kibble. and 3. mix dry with a dollop of wet. i am currently feeding her evo grain free small bites mixed with a bit of wet merrick food and she is doing well. i also use treats only for training. she loves zukes!


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## DanielBMe (Nov 25, 2007)

Posh's Mom said:


> ditto on the advice for lina and kimberly. posh is a picky eater. i've noticed if i actually make her "do" something for her food, aka sit and wait until i release her she eats a lot better.
> 
> i've also taken the advice of forum members and 1. feed her on a plate vs. a bowl. 2. add a tablespoon of hot water over her kibble. and 3. mix dry with a dollop of wet. i am currently feeding her evo grain free small bites mixed with a bit of wet merrick food and she is doing well. i also use treats only for training. she loves zukes!


I also recommend Evo. You can get regular or the red meat version. The key is not to give up, your dog may just be playing a game of wills with you. Just stick to the food for a few weeks. Don't worry a dog won't starve itself. You may also want to cut out the treats until you are sure the food is being eaten. If he is expecting treats, he will probably hold out for that instead of dinner.

You could also try this. Put out your new food, put a pot of boiling water on. When it comes to a boil, take it of. Put an egg in it and leave it in the water for 5 min. Then take it out and crack open the egg and mix in with kibble. He will gulp that down so fast you won't believe it.


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## mintchip (Apr 19, 2007)

Wouldn't that be to hot for them?


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## marisoma (Jan 20, 2008)

Thank you for the suggestions!

Since Giotto does eat his "treats" or if he is in the mood, bits of table food offtered to him I know his resistence is not because he isn't hungry. I think he's holding out for something better. I may have to cut out his treats and only give him his food for a few days and see if that gets him back on track. He doesn't eat a lot of treats, but he gets offered a treat probably twice a day and he usually eats them. 

I think this is also my issue because I want him to eat and I feel bad when he doesn't and like he's going hungry and I don't want him to be hungry. He is 7 months old and 13 lbs, so he certainly isn't starving. He's just picky and being stubborn. I feed him Merrick (dry and canned) which is probably some of the best tasting dog food on the market, so he has no reason to complain about it. I was going to switch foods or start making his food, but I don't want to cater any more to his pickiness. It is good to know he can go a couple of days w/o eating and be okay. He hasn't gotten to that point yet. He hasn't eaten his dog food for the past three days, but he's eaten a couple of slices of roast beef, some chicken, and some of his jerky. So, he is still eating, just not what I would like him to eat.

Thanks again, and today I am only going to feed him his two meals and we'll see how that goes. He has to be hungry so eventually that will win out.


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