# Puppy doesn't like his Canidae! Or any dog food...



## heather1sell (May 5, 2007)

I am so confused as to why our 4 month old lab mix doesn't seem to enjoy eating. He LOVES his treats which we use only for training. He almost never gets people food unless he stole it from the kids. He was started out on the Science Diet and once I found out that was bad dogfood I am now switching over to Canidae. On both of these foods he acts like he doens't like them. I can tell he's hungry and he's always fed twice a day at 7 a.m. and then 5 p.m. When I put the food down he'll smell it and walk away. Then about a half hour later he'll eat a little, usually about 1/3 of it, if that. Then I realize he's still hungry but he still won't eat. So about another half hour will go by and he'll eat another 1/4 of the food. I am estimating that I give him about 1.5 cups but he eats maybe 1/2 to 3/4s of it. He seems to be growing ok, but I still feel it's so odd that I know he is hungry and lets his food sit. I have tried taking it away after twenty min until his next meal so he's REALLY hungry and he does the same thing. Sniffs it and walks away. Does anyone know why he would do this? Any ideas? I am only going to feed dry good, Canidae, which I thought was good. maybe I should get another flavor...

Thanks,
heather


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## Ginny01OT (Dec 3, 2006)

Are you giving him any table scraps? I am questioning because my vet said if I gave my pup table scraps before he a certain age (9 months I think) then he might not eat his regular food.


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## heather1sell (May 5, 2007)

He has stolen a few table scraps from my 2 and 6 year old. We watch him all the time and use a water bottle to keep him from the table w/out much luck. So he's had some but a very minute amount. I don't just feed him table scraps nor does he get them daily. He often tries to steal them though. : )


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## briteday (Feb 10, 2007)

Try crating him during your meals.

When you feed him at 7AM and 5PM, put the food down, let him eat what he wants for 20-30 minutes, then pick it up until the next meal. Feed the regular ration at each meal, no more no less. A healthy dog will not starve himself and in a few days he will realize that there is a schedule in this house, so like the kids, I'd better eat when it's put out.

I'm assuming that your dog has been checked by a vet and is up to date on shots. You might want to talk to your vet about the eating thing on your next visit. 

And just because you thinka certain food is wonderful doesn't mean your dog will. You might see if the store that sells Canidae has sample bags of other premium foods and give some others a chance before buying a whole bag.


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## heather1sell (May 5, 2007)

He isn't crating, he's in a safe room due to the fact that he had anxiety and hurt his nose severely. Yes, he's been to the vet and he's currently on anti-biotics for his nose. He's had all up to date shots. He seems to be growing fine. I just thought it was odd that he is hungry, yet acts like his food isn't that great, but in the end, he always has some.


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## ToysHaveMyHeart (May 9, 2007)

Excercise is really good for stirring up an appetite


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## RonE (Feb 3, 2007)

Antibiotics can mess with the appetite.

Leaving the food out indefinately sends the signal to the dog, "There's no particular hurry. I can wait and see if something tastier comes along and, if not, I can always come back to the Canidae." Instill some urgency by leaving the food out for limited periods each time.


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## SunSiberians (May 7, 2007)

ToysHaveMyHeart said:


> Excercise is really good for stirring up an appetite


Yes, perhaps he's not getting enough exercise. From experience, my dogs only eat if they've been well exercised (1hr in the morning and 2hrs in the evening and then dinner) and they eat the whole thing - if they don't get their exercise, they won't eat it. A hungry dog is a good dog - you want them to be excited about their meals. If they're not then it may be because they're not getting enough exercise to develope their appitite. 
Another suggestion would be to stop feeding him treats and only feed him once a day in the evenings, perferably after a long walk or run. 
It could also be a number of other things like some already suggested. 
Good luck!


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## heather1sell (May 5, 2007)

Thanks to everyone for their suggestions. We walk him two to three times a day and it doesn't seem to make much of a difference. Even on his walks he's somewhat lazy. He's just a very laid back puppy. Maybe his anti-biotics are affecting him...although he was like this even before his antibiotics. I feel like he forces himself to eat his food. how long should I leave the food out? Twenty minutes?

Heather


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## SunSiberians (May 7, 2007)

heather1sell said:


> Thanks to everyone for their suggestions. We walk him two to three times a day and it doesn't seem to make much of a difference. Even on his walks he's somewhat lazy. He's just a very laid back puppy. Maybe his anti-biotics are affecting him...although he was like this even before his antibiotics. I feel like he forces himself to eat his food. how long should I leave the food out? Twenty minutes?
> 
> Heather


Perhaps you can try offering him food in the morning and if he does eat it, then take it away. Offer it again at midday and if he doesn't take it offer it to him again at night. If he doesn't take it then, then just go to bed and offer him some more in the morning. If he's not hungry by then (actually dogs can go on for 5 days without food before it starts effecting their health) perhaps you should call your vet and see if there is something wrong. Is he constipated? That might be causing troubles.


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## Skylars mom (May 14, 2007)

I have sky on royal canin (not on recalled list) and moist cesars....... give those a try.


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## squirt1968 (Feb 19, 2007)

I have tried several different kibbles including the one you are feeding and my dog does not really like any of them. I quit buying differnt ones I now feed her Natural Balance and I put a dab of canned food on the top and she eats it right down. The canned gets her started and then she eats the kibbles cleans it all up.


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## Skylars mom (May 14, 2007)

*smacks self on forehead* Why are dogs so picky? Lol. gotta love em though........good luck!


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## cbow (May 6, 2007)

My schnauzer didn't like Canidae at first, I asked about it on another forum and I was told that if she wouldn't eat pick it up and wait till the next feeding and repeat. Now she eats it just fine, it took about two weeks for her to eat a full serving. I did the same with feeding her raw, I still have to brown the chicken for her to eat it, we'll work on that later.


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## DBZ (Apr 21, 2007)

Are you feeding 1 1/2 cups each time for 3 cups per day total? If so, you may be giving your dog more than he needs as Canidae is more concentratrated than grocery store brands. I know when I switched to Canidae it was hard to get used to seeing the small amount of food in the bowl compared to the amount I had been feeding of the cheap filler-filled food. Those cheap foods have a lot of salt and stuff that tastes good to dogs but not good for them so they gobble them up. Canidae may not seem as flavorful to the dog at first but over time will learn to love it and be healthier for it. My dog loves it but mine would wolf down a handful of sawdust if offered. 

It very well may be a result of the medicine causing your dogs' loss of appetite or the nose problem. Have you talked to your Vet. about it?

I'd stick with the Canidae and make sure the dog isn't getting full on something else. Stop all table scraps or you'll have continuing problems. And I don't just mean appetite problems. You'll have a dog that begs, bothers and harasses people and may nip a child trying to steal a piece of food. If you're feeding your dog the correct amount of Canidae for his age weight and activity level and he has an unhealthy weight loss not related to being on medication, then you may want to try an other premium kibble.

Good luck and please keep us posted,

DBZ


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## RonE (Feb 3, 2007)

Yes!

There is something to be said for finding a top quality food (and you have) and sticking with it. You can keep switching around, trying to find one the dog really likes, but they are like children (and most adults.) They like what tastes good.

A healthy dog will eat what's available - when they get hungry.

(That's easy for me to say. I've got a hound who will eat anything that's not nailed down and quite a bit that IS nailed down and she's ALWAYS hungry,)

For what it's worth, her friend Zeke, who IS a picky eater, prefers Esther's Canidae over the Purina Puppy Chow (main ingrediant: corn) that he HAD been getting. Guess what he's switching too.


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## heather1sell (May 5, 2007)

Well I am still having no luck with all of the above suggestions. I tried walking him at 6 a.m. before his morning feed and he could've cared less about eating. He ate maybe 1/2 cup, IF THAT! So I thought for dinner tonight he'd be starving, but guess what? He ate NOTHING! His nose infection is getting so much better, almost back to normal. He was like this before his anti-biotics as well. He never liked the Science Diet either, or this. I'm at a loss, don't know what to do or think. He seems healthy and was 27 lbs at his three month checkup which is good. He goes in next week and I will bring my concerns up that. I have tried putting some kernels of treats in w/ his dog food but he still doesnt' eat it! UGGGHHHH!


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## DBZ (Apr 21, 2007)

You say he appears healthy and is at a good weight, so he must be getting calories somehow.!?


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## Cheetah (May 25, 2006)

My dogs are both on Canidae. When I first got Shippo, he was 3 months old, and would only pick at his kibble like yours. It took about a week of tough love, taking the food up after 15-20 minutes and just making him go hungry, before he was scarfing his food down each meal. I also didn't coat it with wet food or anything like that until he was readily eating it alone. Now, he is a year old, and he will do backflips for a kibble. Sometimes it can take several days instead of just a couple lol...


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## borzoimom (May 21, 2007)

Solid Gold is a good one, and usually they like it more. I also posted "Feeding raw" if you are interested in it.


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## skydivermom (May 23, 2007)

Does he even refuse canned food? I know my aunt had a dog with an extremely sensitive stomach, and she had to get some special organic food. I can imagine it was pretty expensive. I've also heard you can make your own dog food naturally. Not sure how much that would cost though. Good luck.

Kathleen
Dream with your eyes wide open!

Homemade dog food help:

http://www.sunshine-4u.com/dog/index.html?hop=jumpmom2


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## heather1sell (May 5, 2007)

I haven't tried canned because I thought if I started that, he'd never want anything else. I am still trying to feed the same dry canidae and he still acts like it's not real good and he's been on it for a couple weeks. (one week of pure canidae and one week where it was half/half) I am going to stick it out for a couple more weeks and see how he does.

Heather


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## ritabooker (Aug 16, 2006)

heather1sell said:


> I am so confused as to why our 4 month old lab mix doesn't seem to enjoy eating. He LOVES his treats which we use only for training. He almost never gets people food unless he stole it from the kids. He was started out on the Science Diet and once I found out that was bad dogfood I am now switching over to Canidae. On both of these foods he acts like he doens't like them. I can tell he's hungry and he's always fed twice a day at 7 a.m. and then 5 p.m. When I put the food down he'll smell it and walk away. Then about a half hour later he'll eat a little, usually about 1/3 of it, if that. Then I realize he's still hungry but he still won't eat. So about another half hour will go by and he'll eat another 1/4 of the food. I am estimating that I give him about 1.5 cups but he eats maybe 1/2 to 3/4s of it. He seems to be growing ok, but I still feel it's so odd that I know he is hungry and lets his food sit. I have tried taking it away after twenty min until his next meal so he's REALLY hungry and he does the same thing. Sniffs it and walks away. Does anyone know why he would do this? Any ideas? I am only going to feed dry good, Canidae, which I thought was good. maybe I should get another flavor...
> 
> Thanks,
> heather


Sounds like our girl, Abby, who is still on the Canidae and doin' well. I just mince a little beef or chicken into the kibble and mix it up(dry) so that every kibble gets meat molecules on it. She eats it right up. Canidae isn't super palatable for dogs, but it is really good for them.

You can also grate a little bit of Natural Balance Dog food roll instead of the meat. It only takes a small piece of meat, maybe 3/4" cube, minced fine.


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## Ginny01OT (Dec 3, 2006)

Get some green tripe to add to his food, he should gobble it up most dogs do. Green tripe is not a dog food but to be given supplementary, in addition to, his dog food dosage. I get Tripett--you can get it thru Sitstay.com or Petfooddirect.com. Additionally tripe is great for their teeth, their coats and their digestive tracts, well worth it. I give Riley (50lbs) a half can at night with dinner.


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