Dog wont eat dog food.

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Vicki1986

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My dog just really doesnt like dog food. I've tried several different types and he seems to get bored after a few days. Fussy eater isnt the word - spoilt brat is more like it, i didnt let him eat any type of other/human food thinking if he was really hungry he would just get on and eat his own food but no, and as he is only 5 kgs i can't reallly afford for him to loose weight too much. There is nothing wrong with his teeth (happily crunches biscuit treats)

I have tried everything to entice him to stick at it mixing in tiny bits of Dog gravy, marmite, pnut butter, cheese bla bla bla. feeding it dry, feeding it moist.

it wouldnt be very practical to feed canned dog food as he'd only be able to have a small amount per feed.

He just really prefers human food, give him a bit of broccoli, carrot, or bread and he is the happiest dog ever (weirdo)

Can i feed him people food and if so what sort of vitamin or mineral supplement would he need?

me?! trouble?! never !!
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i wouldnt feed him human food, he is refusing to eat it as he knows if he does you will change it, the more you change it the more he will become fussy, give him a dog food that he will eat and stick to it, if he leaves it take his bowl up and try again later but dont give him anything else till he has eaten it, he wont starve himself my dog did the same but soon learnt he gets what he is given and thats it, now he eats his food no problem so we make it more interesting now and again with his normal food.
 
i put a post up about this before and i've tried this before, he got down to a dangerously low weight i don't know if its a toy dog thing or if he is a just thick but he will pick at a minimal amount (about 5grams) and then leave the rest - and i wasnt feeding him anything else and he knew he wouldnt get any human food.
 
I wouldn't worry my dog will not eat dog meat of any sort. He eats one brand of dog biscuits and then the same meat or fish and veggies as us with those biscuits and he is perfectly healthy. He eats very well and we don't stress so all is well. We also tried leaving dog food down for him but he lasted three days without eating and I gave in. He is a bulldog so not a traditional fussy eating breed.
 
My mum feeds her dogs human food - they have pasta, veg and meat normally with some mixer and they love it!
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At the end of the day I wouldn't want to eat something I really didn't like so I don't see why dogs should have to! could you not try him on those ridiculously expensive little pouch things??
 
Of course you can
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I choose not to feed my Loki dog food - except occasionally - he likes dog food, but I would prefer to feed him something more healthy without additives etc.

I have a diet plan from a dog nutritionist that I follow, so that I know he is still getting all they nurtients that he needs. It involves a combination of raw and homecooked food - including meat, fruit, veg and carbs like rice. I can pm you some more info if you like? Would definately recommend getting a proper plan for your dog though - based on the needs of his breed, weight etc.
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I don't see why dogs should have to eat the same thing everyday... most dogs love human food - it must taste much better than the dog food
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(and before anyone says this, I do know that dogs have less taste buds than humans - but their sense of smell is much better than ours and smell is a huge factor in how things 'taste' (try eating a jelly bean eg. jelly belly one, while holding your nose - you can't taste it, is just sweet - then let go of your nose and you can taste the flavour
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well i have to say since feeding my crested a mix of the burns biscuits and a bit of human food he does look healthy so its obviously not doing him much harm.

If you wouldnt mind giving me some more info and where i can find out what his specific breed nutriition needs are i'd be really grateful thanks x
 
I split my dogs' feeds into three meals a day, it is kinder on their digestion and they look very well on it. I have a Yorkie who is 5kg, and he gets half a foil try (i.e. 75g) in the morning, a handful of Royal Canin Yorkshire Terrier dry food at lunch time, and the other half of the foil tray at tea time. The brands I buy are Tesco Finest, and Waitrose (usually organic though he likes the non-organic equally).

Little dogs do seem to like meat more than dry food. I think mine gobbles his dry food at lunch time as he knows if he doesn't, my Spaniel will finish it off! There's nothing quite like healthy competition!

The dogs also get a scattering of Terrier meal, which is broken up biscuits when I leave the house. It distracts them while I go out the door
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Why not try the foil trays, I expect he would like them?
 
my old rottie was a pain with food because when she was at her breeders she was spoilt with human food, she had cornflakes un milk for breakfast and a huge joint of beef for dinner, we tried all the expensive dog foods but eventually settled for butcher scraps which she loved and was very healthy on. but when we couldnt get it anymore we tried cheap tin dog food and she loved it. so i would say if your gonna try human food try and see if your dog will eat stuff from your local butchers its a lot more natural for your dog than veggies aklthough some dogs seem to like it.
 
I have a maltese who is a fussy eater, iv tried all sorts of dog food, he likes bakers meaty meals and will pick on pedigree complete, i give him 1/2 a packet of wet food every day and often give him pasta but he just cant put weight on
 
Can't you get those little cans of dog food now for little dogs? I know they are probably expensive, but at least they won't go to waste.. There are plenty of people out there who prepare their dogs food similiar to peoples. If you look on the internet and type in hand prepared dog food I am sure you will get some recipes suitable.
 
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if your gonna try human food try and see if your dog will eat stuff from your local butchers its a lot more natural for your dog than veggies aklthough some dogs seem to like it.

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Actually, dogs have an intestinal tract that is somewhat omnivorous, so it's fine for them to have vegetables.

I would definitely enlist the help of a dog nutritionist, just to make sure that he's getting sufficient vitamins etc.

As I've posted before, we are *so* lucky to have a holistic pet store around the corner, which makes its own fresh food (organic turkey breast, squash, zucchini, carrot and broccoli being the main ingredients, but there are also several supplements thrown in, too, such as a multivitamin, glucosamine, flax, sea meal, omega 3 etc. etc.). For treats, I give carrots, blueberries, Dr. Bob's Health Nuggets, elk jerky and a scrambled egg twice a week.

Though my dog is a little piglet and will eat *anything*--cheap or expensive--I choose to feed high-quality grub because it gives her incredible muscle tone and a shiny coat. Everyone we meet thinks I mean five months, not five years, when I tell them her age.

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Can't you get those little cans of dog food now for little dogs? I know they are probably expensive, but at least they won't go to waste.. There are plenty of people out there who prepare their dogs food similiar to peoples. If you look on the internet and type in hand prepared dog food I am sure you will get some recipes suitable.

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99p per tiny can is pretty rediculous if you ask me, especially when they reccommend a small dog should have 2-3 tins per day. My mother's rescue Shih Tzu is about the pickiest dog you can find - in desperation (he was a bag of bones when he arrived) she bought him the Applaws tins. Cost a fortune, but he liked it to begin with. That lasted maybe 2 weeks, when he started turning his nose up at it. From then on he refused to touch the stuff. Applaws is ok, but it is mainly water and is way overpriced. Don't bother.

The most reccommended method is to put down the dog food for 20mins. If he doesn't eat it, then take it up and leave him to go hungry - no treats, no nothing. Next day, do the same. Down for 20mins, then take back up again. Cut out ANY form of treat/food until he eats the dog food. Keep repeating - eventually he will realise and he will eat it - you shouldn't have any more problems. Sounds harsh, I know, but there really isn't any other way around it.

My dog dislikes dog food, so I feed her on raw meat - she loves it.
 
Have you consulted a vet? My lab is very fussy as he is lacking an enzyme in his stomach which means digesting can be very painful for him. At one point he was 7kg underweight and was receiving daily injections (thank god for insurance) and refusing to eat, he even collaped at one point. After getting the green light from the vet we went to a homeopathic therapist. He went on to a diet of natural yoghurt, plain vegeratian biscuits and a small amount of Natures Choice wet meat (alternating the flavour daily). After a few weeks he was able to move of the yoghurt and plain biscuits and is now able to eat a wider variety of doggy food. We do however have eight (
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Quite frankly I don't blame him!! If you presented me with some of the cr*p that masquerades as dog food I would go on hunger strike! Of course you can feed him Human food, just not all that humans call food!!! I’m afraid that from research and experience I care too much about my dogs long term health to feed anything that I cannot identify all the ingredients by sight!

I have found that modern commercial dog feed is full of unnatural food for dogs, colorants and additives that would not be allowed in human food, and how boring to have exactly the same each day bulked out with wheat oats or rice, totally alien food for dogs and flavoured artificially in a poor imitation of rabbit, turkey, lamb etc. In fact some of the so called natural diets presented have undesirable ingredients too.

The problem is with these feeds is that they are very overcooked and many have to add artificial vitamins and minerals back into the food as they are destroyed by the cooking process, little independent research has been done into just how available to the dog these artificial additions are. Not only that but because it is overcooked the food be it tinned or biscuits is insipid in colour so they add a colour back into it to make it attractive to dog owners, there are no restrictions on what they add to pet food and many colorants are carcinogens! A lot of the food is bulked out to make it cheaper and to do this they add carbohydrates alien to a dog, which can be unfit for human consumption as can be the meat that they use, chicken for example, is not necessarily meat it can be legs heads and even claws and beaks!! Not only that but if you read the labels the meat content can be as low as 30%!!!!

I feed raw meat and bones to mine largely of human grade but if you don’t feel inclined to go that far there are a lot of really good home prepared dog food recipes available on the internet, this looks interesting but I don’t feed cooked so I don’t know, but it’s a start http://www.expertvillage.com/video-series/554_homemade-dog-food.htm
These will be much better for your dog than commercially available overcooked over bulked “food”. Basically for one so small you could probably do his meals by buying a little extra for your own meals and saving a bit for him, a bit like home made baby food!

On raw diet I feed in the ratio of 80% bone to meat, and a small amount vegetable, but if feeding cooked I would say you could up the vegetable content and not overcook his meat, but I am no expert on cooked foods. There are also small frozen meat packs available from pet food stores that he might enjoy, you could cook up a couple of different ones and freeze them in smaller portions. I shop a lot at the supermarket reduced fridge, you can get real doggy bargains (2 large lamb chops tonight for 50p ).

I know it’s a bit more hassle than opening a tin or sack but once you get into the habit its easy and he would be getting good nutrition with no additives or hidden nasties
 
Karynk is right. I feed my dog the bones and raw food diet and I am very happy with it, my dog laps it up and looks great on it.

Dogs would naturally eat a variety of meats, bones and fruits, seeds etc. Some people now feed their dog one type and brand of cheap dog food that if full of rubbish and lack certain nutrients. I would definitely recommend the BARF diet. You can make your 'menu' and stick to it.

How many meals does your dog have per day? And at what times, before or after exercise? You should take you dog out for a good walk then feed him when you get back so that he would have worked up an appetite. Naturally dog would hunt for hours and work for their food so walking sort of mimics that. It might help to give the main meal in the evening, when dogs are more hungry.
 
I am sure there are better complete diets but it depends on what’s in it. I have studied a lot of "quality" even organic complete feeds and have not found many that do not bulk with some form of carbohydrate, those that don’t are VERY expensive. Some even high end producers make it very hard for you to find out exactly what they are bulking with or the actual meat content of their food or indeed the source of that meat.

Each to their own and if you are happy with the quality and all the ingredients in the food you feed and that it is cooked/dried at high temperatures with nutrient added back in then all well and good, but if a few people read this and start asking questions of the labels then there will be a better lot for concentrate fed dogs.

But to me this is totally meaningless as nothing cooked would ever form the basis of any diet for my dogs. I don't go for convenience and the vast majority of their diet is food of human grade, like I say if I can’t see what it is it doesn't hit their dog bowls!

Besides why would I pay a lot of money for a sack of "quality" overcooked little biscuit thingies and have to clean my dogs teeth, when I can feed 2 medium dogs on a natural diet for no more than £10 per month and save left over “waste” food being incinerated?

Sorry but you will never persuade a purist raw feeder that cooked complete diets are any good for a dog at all no matter the contents or how proud the manufacturer is. A wild or even feral dog does not eat a daily balanced diet and wheat, oats other cereals and rice would not ever be eaten by such a dog, nor would cooked food and that’s what we base our dog nutrition on, balancing a diet over a week or even two.

If you want an objective evaluation on complete diets bulking with grain from an enlightened vet read this http://www.thepetcenter.com/imtop/bestfood.html
Sadly for me he has not made the leap of faith and looked at raw feeding but hey he's sort of on his way !
 
Well, a friend bought "small dog" foil pouches by accident instead of puppy ones so has passed them to me - the box says he should have 3 of these a day which seems quite alot so as theres only a few in the box ive given him a little less and mixed them in with his burns biscs, he's not overly keen but more so than with just his dry food (cant blame him)
but i have to say he is very gassy and seems desperate for the loo from eating it - but that just may be due to not being used to it. and the price of them - flaming eck, glad i didnt pay for them.

I live on my own so i often have food left over so practically it would suit me better to feed him what i eat where possible so i will look into his dietary needs properly so i make sure he gets everything he needs
 
That's great and practical as you wont be waisting anything, get surfing, there are a lot of websites with info and recipies for cooking your own AND GOOD FOR HIM FOR MAKING A STAND! He is so cute, but there is a brain at work there as well!

There were some recipies in the back of a book I read, but the content of the book is not for the feint hearted, reading this will put you off pet food for life! Its called Food Your Pets Die For.

What you could do as a start is blend leftover veg (this breaks down the plant cellulose for the dog to digest) add a bit of raw or blanched spinach with a bit of mince add an occasional raw egg, mine love them and get them as a treat as well. But basically if you vary the type of meat content add veg don't overcook it, feed offal occasionally and give a kelp supplement that should set you on the right path. Until you find out how to supply all his needs on this diet.

If you are brave you can add some raw meat and see how he goes.
 
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