Picky Eater Suggestions Needed

Ann

Ann

Moderator
Does anyone have a food recommendation for a super picky eater? Barkley is suddenly picking at everything I give him. I've tried four kinds of kibble, two kinds of canned, a mixture of both, even my home-cooked food. His bloodwork is fine, teeth have been cleaned, and the vet says there are no medical problems. I'm at my wit's end. I'm thinking about trying something freeze-dried, but I can't do anything with raw because of my immune issues.

Anyone have a suggestion? Please??
 
Wow sounds like you've tried everything. Has he always been a picky eater? Idk what could be more enticing than smelly canned food.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Ann
Sounds harsh, but do you feed him with the rest of your crew? Maybe a little competition and a few missed meals might make him appreciate what is before him a bit more?

That is, of course, so long as he is all okay and no tummy upsets that are causing the pickiness. How is his breath?
 
  • Like
Reactions: Ann
This is the hardest thing to deal with Ann. :( Did they xray his teeth when they cleaned them? Brooke had issues that showed up that way...

Other thoughts: scrambled eggs, cottage cheese, bone broth to mix in the kibble?
 
  • Like
Reactions: Ann
Yes, they all eat together. They all have their "spot" on the floor which has never been a problem since they all inhale their food in about a minute. I've started gating his off since the other piranhas will go hover around him now that he eats more slowly. He's always been a good eater, although more picky than the rest of my crew, but not like this.

We didn't xray his teeth, Sharon. But the interesting thing is that he eats better at dinner than he does at breakfast. Nothing is different, I have no idea why that is. I haven't tried cottage cheese or bone broth, I'll give those a shot. I also ordered some complete freeze-dried food from Chewy so I'll give that a try.

Barkley and Checkers are littermates. He had Lyme disease at six months old which recurred thoughout his life. He is much more frail and feeble than Checkers who, in spite of two cancers, is more like a 6-year-old than a 12-year-old.
 
If you have a Costco card, they have a decent bone broth - it's organic, only has 95 mgs of sodium per cup vs chicken broth which has over 400.

How is his breath? I would opt for broth over dairy only because if there are unforeseen tummy troubles, dairy can curdle in the belly and make him feel worse.
 
Sandy in CT said:
If you have a Costco card, they have a decent bone broth - it's organic, only has 95 mgs of sodium per cup vs chicken broth which has over 400.

How is his breath? I would opt for broth over dairy only because if there are unforeseen tummy troubles, dairy can curdle in the belly and make him feel worse.
Click to expand...

Good to know about Costco, Sandy, thanks. His breath is fine. I had his teeth cleaned last year after one of his slow eating spells in case that was the problem but there was nothing found. He was just at the vet for his 6-month checkup and gallbladder ultrasound plus bloodwork and got a clean bill of health, although he is on gallbladder meds for sludge.
 
Many years ago I remember a Victoria Silwell episode where she suggested sprinkling garlic salt on the food of a very fussy poodle. Are you heating up the food to release the smells?

Otherwise, that's really tough, because it sounds like you've been through everything.
 
Ann said:
Yes, they all eat together. They all have their "spot" on the floor which has never been a problem since they all inhale their food in about a minute. I've started gating his off since the other piranhas will go hover around him now that he eats more slowly. He's always been a good eater, although more picky than the rest of my crew, but not like this.

We didn't xray his teeth, Sharon. But the interesting thing is that he eats better at dinner than he does at breakfast. Nothing is different, I have no idea why that is. I haven't tried cottage cheese or bone broth, I'll give those a shot. I also ordered some complete freeze-dried food from Chewy so I'll give that a try.

Barkley and Checkers are littermates. He had Lyme disease at six months old which recurred thoughout his life. He is much more frail and feeble than Checkers who, in spite of two cancers, is more like a 6-year-old than a 12-year-old.
Click to expand...

If you have an instant pot Ann, I hear you can make a great bone broth in a fraction of the time (that'll be my next experiment), ready in about 5 hours or so.
 
Ann, if you do use cottage cheese make sure you get the Lactaid cottage cheese since many dogs are lactose intolerant.
Trini
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top