Change of attitude...

[lola-pup]

To make a long story short...a few weeks ago, I got my second boxer pup, Ada, because my roommates and their dog moved out. Knowing that Lola would get lonely, we wanted to get her a playmate. Before getting Ada, Lola would eat 3 times a day and lick her bowl clean. Not to mention try to eat the other dog's food. Now that we have Ada, Lola doesnt eat as much. Some days she does and other days you have to pretend that you are eating her food to get her interested in it. However, Lola tries real hard to eat Ada's puppy food. Lola and Ada get along great. They play together, sleep on top of each other and Lola watches out for her little sister. Does anyone have a thought as to why Lola doesn't eat like she used too? Is it because of Ada? That's the only thing I can think of... Thanks

 

[gmacleod]

Possibly that is part of the cause, especially if Ada is getting something that Lola isn't... The best thing for you to do is to just feed Lola as usual, and pick her bowl up after 20 minutes or so if she isn't finished. She needs to learn to eat when food is offered, not to hold out for something 'better'. If it is a case of eat now or wait until the next meal, she will most likely learn to eat now No healthy dog will starve themselves to death when food is available - but skipping a few meals won't hurt her.

If it were me, I would also change Ada onto the same food as Lola. That has the added benefit of eliminating the perception that the puppy has something better to eat - but primarily it would be because I think that adult or all-life-stages foods are much better for puppies than puppy formulas