Fussy Dog

Halfpass

Halfpass

Well-Known Member
Joined
1 May 2005
Messages
3,527
Location
East Sussex
Visit site
Believe it or not I have a fussy labrador!!
I started him on nature diet which he has been on since I got him in Sept last year. He thrived on this but recently stopped eating it. I tried all the leave it down he#ll eat it when he is hungry or pick it up after 20 mins etc etc and nothing made him eat it. For a week or 2 he just had supermarket own brands until I could get to the pet shop for some advice.
Now I know he doesn't like dried complete foods as I tried him on these when I first got him and he wouldn't eat, but I thought i'd try him again. So have tried Autarky which he ate for 2 days then stopped and I tried chuddleys original which he will eat but leaves all the grainy bits!!
This is bad I know but at the moment other than tinned meat the only other food I can get him to eat is Frolick
crazy.gif
. He does seem to like a moist ish complete food.
So my question is is there one like this out there that is actually good for them and not like feeeding a kid tonnes of sweets!!???
Or can anyone advise me on what to try next?
My other problem is that the nature diet was costing me a fortune so a value for money food that my dog will eat (not BARF) would be great
grin.gif
 
CHOOSE one good quality food and stick with it.....do not change when he refuses to eat one kind...this alone will make him fussy.
Believe it or not dogs do not need to consume vast amounts of food and can survive on meer morsils...we as owners pander and over feed them.
If he is an only dog...he has even less reason to wolf his food down...as he has no competittion...no one to nabb..what he does not want
smirk.gif


I would offer him the food and remove it ater 5 minutes!!! and do not feed him treats inbetween.

As long as he does not appear to loose weight/condition...I would not worry about the small amount he eats....I board dogs...and I have one in a the minute that has probably eaten the equivlant of a tin of meat in 2 weeks...he has lost no weight and is bright in himself...however at home he is fed on bacon butties, mince, sandwiches e,t,c, and the owner changes his food every few days
crazy.gif
those are things he wont get here
smirk.gif


If you are worried about weight/condition pop him to the vets and get him weighed....check hat his breed/weight ratio shoud be.
But like I said u would be suprised at what a dog can get by on.
 
That is exactly what I have done with the Autarky i'm happy that its a good quality food but again reasonably priced but he just won't eat it. I don't feed treats and it gets picked up if he hasn't eaten it. He just looks miserable and although he hasn't lost weight he is not his usual bouncy self. Is bakers complete a good food to feed?
I'm going away this weekend and leaving him with relatives and I really don't want them to worry that he's not eating. Should I try him back on nature diet and hope that he eats it?
 
My boy was getting a tad fussy with his food, not all the time but occasionally would turn his nose up (was being fed Beta Adult). I changed his feed to Burns and he hasn't refused a meal since, it's not cheap though.

Out of interest, is your dog neutered?? I had an entire male lab who would regularly go off his food when a neighbouring bitch was in season ... "if you don't let me get my wicked way mom I'm gonna starve myself
crazy.gif
"
 
Mine was similar but as cruel mummy i let him starve by putting his food under his nose for 15 mins, if he doesn't want it tough he won't get it until supper, He got best food any dog could get... Nature diet and Burns dog bis, he never have treats but a bonio or markies before he goes to bed.

He now worries that he'll get hungry and is on time every morning and evening for his breakfast/supper and polishes his bowl... this is typical JRT!!!

I don't think that burns/nature diet is expensive as in my dog's diet as he's Jack russell (he get half nature, 1/3 mug ful burns probably cost 70p a day) The bigger the dog the more expensive the food gets... So careful management do work, you don't really need to give more than mug and half ful of burns twice a day for a 5 year old large active Lab (i know someone on this forum does feed her lab that much.)
 
Dont worry about going away....even if he was a good eater...being away from his familiar environment can commonly put them off their food.
The food you have him on is fine....however changing all the time will distrupt his digestive system even more and encourage him to become parky...knowing he will get offered a variety if he refuses
crazy.gif

Agree with Kibob it is harder to keep weight on un-neutered males and more often than not they dont have a ravenous appetite....sometimes due to hormones.
But as I mentioned if he is an only dog..he has no reason to wulf his food down...as there is no competition...so you will have to act as the food remover and take it away when he shows no interest...so he does not rely on the food always being there.

If his weight is ok I would not worry to much...but I would try to get him intoa consistent routine of food down or 5 minutes then up and no more till next meal time.
 
my two were like this, I think they had been fed tinned food before I found them as the boy has a touch of gingivitus and at first they wouldn't eat the dried stuff. I bought about 10 different types of food and cooked them fresh liver & hearts everyday to mix with the dried, then I read somewhere that I was just making them fussy so I cut out all the treats and put the bowls down for a little while if they don't eat it then it is gone and they get nothign until the next meal. Now they eat it all and I do give them the odd pig's ear as long as they have eaten their dinners. A healthy animal will not starve itself.
 
Bakers is not a good food to give your dog it is full of E numbers colourants and has very little meat ,In its favour for a fussy dog it has loads of flavourings which encourage the dog to eat it thats why it sells so much.Autarky is about the best value for money if you are looking for a wheat gluten free dog food but it will be made from cheap ingriedence which is not so tasty. what ever you do never leave food down for him,feed twice a day. and try a bit of natural yogurt on it or grate a little bit of parmasan over the food. I hope this helps
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top