picky about kibble

[bea'smum]

I wrote awhile back about Bea being somewhat "bored" with Canidae. We have since tried other kibbles - Innova and Wellness - and now believe that she perhaps wasn't so much bored with Canidae as she is bored with kibble in general. When we mix the kibble with yogurt, canned dog food, or whatever, she manages to eat around it. She has even gone to the extent of "sucking" the mixture off of the kibble and spitting the kibble back out into her dish or on the floor. I am getting a little concerned about her nutrition. She is still quite small - 6 mos and 34 lbs - and I want to make sure she is getting everything she needs in her diet. I would appreciate any suggestions on how to get her to eat kibble as well as any information you all have about kibble vs. canned dog food. Would it be okay to step up the canned stuff to get her to eat more? Right now I give about a 1/4 can with 1 cup of kibble (most of which she doesn't eat). Also, if any of you out there have picky eaters and have found a kibble they will eat I would love to hear about it. While visiting family over the holidays, she did sniff out and devour her cousin's dish of Purina Beneful but I really want to stick with a premium food. Are there any you've heard are particularly tasty?

 

[Iaboy]

Max was the same way and I. We tried everything his favorite is Bil-Jac. It will draw some negative responses I am sure, but it is high in protein and has good fiber. Since he has been on it, he eats it with no prompting and his coat and eye boogers have gone away. Good luck.

 

[boxer]

Have you thought of homecooking or a raw diet for her? Just another option

 

[kit02]

Check out these recent threads:

http://www.boxerworld.com/forums/showthread.php?t=65336

http://www.boxerworld.com/forums/showthread.php?t=65043

http://www.boxerworld.com/forums/showthread.php?t=64976

 

[courtney323]

Don't take this the wrong way, but this is usually more of a behavioral issue, rather than a kibble issue.

Your pup KNOWS that if she doesn't eat her kibble, mom will put in some "good stuff"!

That being said, dogs will not starve themselves. You need to put her feeding on a strict schedule. Put her bowl of kibble down in the morning and give her 10 minutes to eat it. When 10 minutes are up, pick up the bowl and put it away until dinner time. Repeat this at dinner.

It will only take a day or so for her to figure out, "gee ..... if I don't eat NOW, then I won't get another chance until dinner time"

This worked like a charm for my dogs (one is notoriously picky), and works for many many dogs on this forum.

Adding canned food or people food is not the answer, long-term. This is just going to create hassles for you. It's sort of like a 3-year old holding out for the "junk food" that they know you will cave in and give them, just to get them to eat.

Good luck

 

[kit02]

Adding canned food or people food is not the answer, long-term. This is just going to create hassles for you. It's sort of like a 3-year old holding out for the "junk food" that they know you will cave in and give them, just to get them to eat.

That all depends on how you want to feed long term. As I’ve said in previous threads, I know many people on here are hard core only kibble feeders and opposed to add-ins - which is fine if that's what works best for you. But the above might be true only if you want to feed an all kibble diet for the life of your dog.
“junk food” I think is farthest from the truth in describing adding fresh, wholesome food in their meals. Adding a variety of fresh food to their kibble is very easy, very good for them and they love it.

There’s raw, homecooker and kibble feeders. I do a combination of homecooking and kibble – though mostly homecooking. It’s not a hassle for me at all. I love to do it. Of course you can’t just throw table scraps down as their whole meal, you have to know what you’re doing to ensure they get a balanced diet.
If you don’t want to put in the effort to cook or feed raw, then yes maybe that’s a hassle compared to scooping kibble out of a bag.
This debate on whether to feed raw, kibble or homecooking will continue but it wasn’t until I found Boxerworld that I even thought to feed anything other than kibble so it’s good to educate new people to the site who may not even think of this, as an option of feeding.

 

[courtney323]

Kit - I am not referring to people that feed BARF or add in healthy nutritious things to the dogs food.

I do that - and there is nothing wrong with that (I actually think it's great)

I am referring to those who have trouble getting their dogs to eat what they set OUT for them to eat. That is a behavioral issue. I would not advocate adding canned food to their dry food JUST to get them to eat. In that respect, we are talking about 2 seperate issues here.

 

[bea'smum]

I don't mind feeding her extra nutritious things with her kibble and like giving her the variety. I agree that it is partly a behavioral issue, though, so I've never actually picked up the bowl of kibble and added anything to it after she's refused to eat it. She is stuck with what she gets, whether the kibble is mixed with yogurt, broth, canned food, or whatever. My concern is that she actually avoids the kibble - spits it out even - so sometimes all she gets is the extra stuff. Should I just relax and assume that if she was truly hungry she would eat the kibble?

Thank you all for your replies.

 

[kit02]

courtney323 - I understand what you were trying to say now

bea'smum - what kibbles have you tried so far? If you are concerned she's not getting enough nutrition and if you are doing add-ins, maybe just add some canned for now to mix with the kibble instead of the other stuff. The can at least has all the vitamins and stuff she needs for a balanced diet so if she picks this out at least she'll get some of her balanced nutrition. But it is true they will not starve themselves. She'll eat if she's hungry enough.