Getting my puppy to eat her dog food

E

emmygirl

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My pup does not seem to want to eat still. I have given her dog food. She eats it sometimes. But most times she will go with 3-4 bites full and that is it. The Vet said she is gaining not to worry. I have tried hiding the dog food around the house (I worry about ants!) If I pick it up after 20 mins or so she has barely touched it. If I am not in the room when she is eatng she stares at the door and wiats for me to return. When I am in the room she jsut brings me her toys to play!

I have tried adding chicken broth(worked for awhile!) I tried pumpkin (she ate about 1\3 of a meal!) She is only getting about 1\2 cup 2 times a day to begin with! She is 6 months old.

HOWEVER!!! She will eat any human food (hot dogs, chicken, steak or chese) that I might toss her way when training!!!! If I try to slip her some kibble when training...she won't even take it! She has actually gone without eating 3 meals in a row.

Does anyone have any suggestions on how to get her to eat more? I was thinking maybe trying yogurt or applesauce. any other thoughts??? I don't want to leave food out all day since she is so young! She is doing so well with housebreaking I would be worried she might regress!!
 
Depending on what you're feeding, if she's getting 1/2 cup twice a day at six months old that's not bad. There are two things you can try if you haven't already though...first, maybe she doesn't like or is tired of her current food. One of mine went through that at around six months' old. I got samples of a few new foods and put out about three little dishes to see which one he liked. We switched to the one he picked, and it did the trick. You can also try mixing some canned dog food in with her kibble if you're feeding dry. Add a bit of water to make a gravy.

The other thing you can try is feeding her in her crate. Just put her in with her food for 15 - 20 minutes so she isn't distracted. This doesn't always work and won't if she doesn't want to eat but is worth a try.

Good luck and let us know what happens!
 
Absolutely Ann. I did the same with mine as Tully went off her kibble at around the same age so I gave her a choice and when I found her in the cupboard with her snout in a bag of pro plan I knew which one she wanted! I switched back to a better quality kibble later when she passed through this fussy stage. Human kids do the same too - pass through a fussy stage so I wouldnt worry too much.
 
I have never been blessed with "chow hound" shelties. Just keep a track on wieght gain and loss (should it occur), and I would also take into consideration how much people treats she is getting. If the little furball is getting a lot of training treats, she may be getting full from that. Also you said she was gaining weight, so that is a good sign and just continue to watch.

Also maybe a little baby food chicken added in to her kibble. That worked well with McKinely. A vitamin too if you think there might be a deficiency, but that I would talk over well with your breeder or vet to make sure that bones and organs continue to develop normally.
 
Buddy is 9 months old and eats 1/2 cup of kibble twice a day. I have always had shelties that are chow hounds, but tended to get overweight. Buddy is 9months old, 15 inches tall, and about 20 lbs. From other threads I have read that many of the full-grown shelties eat about 1/2 cup twice a day. How tall is she and how much does she weigh? She may be getting plenty of food.

Ann's suggestions sound good to me.
 
I agree with Ann. Try feeding her in her crate. I have to feed my puppy in her crate. If I leave her food outside, she will just play with her toys and eat a kibble here and there. She eats much more when I leave her food bowl in her crate for 20 mins.

I didn't see this post and I posted a similar question in another thread lol

My puppy eats less on wellness puppy than she did on purina puppy chow. So I think it also depends what she's eating. What kind of food are you feeding her?
 
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take4roll10 said:
I agree with Ann. Try feeding her in her crate. I have to feed my puppy in her crate. If I leave her food outside, she will just play with her toys and eat a kibble here and there. She eats much more when I leave her food bowl in her crate for 20 mins.

I didn't see this post and I posted a similar question in another thread lol

My puppy eats less on wellness puppy than she did on purina puppy chow. So I think it also depends what she's eating. What kind of food are you feeding her?
Click to expand...

I'm not a big believer in catering too much to our pups preferences. Ever since Bacca's little trauma, I've been working to get him back to what I say is proper food - and not what he says. I catered to him long enough for him to develop bad habits. He's still working on the guilt thing though.

So I've compromised some, and now both boys are getting mostly kibble, mixed with 1 tbsp of wet food. That seems to be enough to get Bacca eating, and Indy is in heaven. Eventually I may change the wet food to pumpkin as some have suggested. Adds taste, texture and nutrients without calories.
 
Try the Merrick's canned. Mine loves the wing-a-lings.(Or maybe it's dings:eek2:) Mix a teaspoon with some hot water and stir in her dry food. The food is very rich so go sparingly when you start. They also have other flavors. The chicken pot pie is suppose to be a doggy favorite.

I was babysitting a mini doxi and she was crying when I would get out the canned food. She was also in love with the mixture in her dry food. Mine has went from a very picky eater to a chow hound. She has never left a drop of food since I changed her to the Innova (1/4 cup) with canned Merrick and hot water.

I did try her on the Wellness canned, but she didn't like the pate consistency. She also didn't care for the Wellness dry sample. For whatever reason, she just doesn't care for that particular line, though it seems to be a good food. We went through a lot of high quality brands before she seemed to like one. Ask the pet store if they have samples of dry dog food. Then as someone suggested, line them up and see which one she prefers.
 
Trust me: do the 15 minute thing. I didn't, and now Layla is the Picky Princess. My breeder says, "I don't have time to mess with that. Mine get 15 minutes; then it's gone. They learn to eat when it's time pretty swiftly!"
 
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