Dog seems to have gone off kibble and won't eat raw either!

[MayorMayhem]

My puppy is 7 months old and loved kibble (Simpsons premium - grain free due to dodgy tum) but suddenly just seemed to go off it. She would eat seemly most other things, but would just push her bowl of kibble round without eating it. I tried putting it in a Kong, mixing it with peanut butter etc but she still isn't that interested.
After reading all about the benefits of raw I bought some natures instinct and thought she would wolf it down, but she's turned her nose up! Anyone got any ideas? Should I persist for a few days to see if she gets used to being presented with raw food?

[FishChipsAndBeans]

I have to rotate food regularly as my dog gets bored of a food quickly if I give her the same thing several meals running. So I rotate between several flavours of Millie's Wolfheart and Simpson's Premium - one dry meal, one wet meal per day.

She will eat wet food from a bowl, but she refuses to eat dry food from a bowl. However, she will eat dry food if I scatter it across the floor. No idea why - she has a complicated rule system when it comes to food that I can't begin to understand!

[FishChipsAndBeans]

Sorry, pressed Post too soon. I meant to add: so maybe your dog is bored of the Simpson's and you could try rotating foods. Or if that fails, scatter it across the floor! I think my dog sees this as a bit of a game.

[MayorMayhem]

Thanks for your reply! My dog sounds similar in that she would eat the dry food scattered across the floor or hidden in her bed so she had to find it, but she's stopped doing that. I did buy another flavour of Simpsons but it's not made that much difference really. I did think about trying Millie's wolfheart - I wanted to avoid wet as I thought it might give her sloppy poo again but I guess I could just try and see what happens! Good idea to try one dry meal and one wet a day to mix it up a bit I think that's worth a try thanks!

[FishChipsAndBeans]

Ahh you're ahead of me with the food scattering!

I found Lily's Kitchen wet food gave my dog sloppy poos, but with Simpson's Premium wet food they have stayed solid and non-smelly, same as with the dry foods. (Not sure why as Lily's Kitchen ingredients are very similar to Simpson's.)

[ggirl]

I would persist with the food you want your dog to eat , they can go for a while not eating without any harm .
My dog goes through fussy phases and practically starves herself . I've done the chopping and changing types etc but have resolved to stick to it now. ..gavel !

[squaresnotcircles]

I have owned different breeds of dog all my life and bred some litters. IME healthy juvenile dogs can become fussy eaters or refuse food and I have dealt with it successfully by reducing the amount of food and/or frequency of feeding to suit the dog's appetite. There is no need to try to tempt with morsels of this or that, unless a dog is ill they will not starve themselves. It's common for a youngster to look a little thin and a vet will tell you that in most breeds you should be able to feel a dog's ribs quite easily. I'm not an over-anxious owner and have never left food down all the time for a dog to eat at will because dogs do very well on regular mealtimes.

Dogs are dogs - not humans!

[MarcoPoloCX]

Find a variety of food that are healthy for them and that they like and then stick with it.
They need a bit of tough love.
A healthy dog will not starve itself.

I used to give myself something else if they didn't eat.... ended up wasting loads of food.....
They were getting too fussy.
I was cooking something new, I was hand feeding them.
Then I thought enough is enough.

I picked up the bowls and reoffered later. They once lasted almost four days.

[pigsDOfly]

I'm glad you posted this OP. I'm very interested to read the answers.

I've changed my dog's food a few times for similar reasons to you and now she seems to be going off her current food - she also has other things like fruit and a few treats during the day.

She's on Canagan dry food for small breeds. I moisten it with warm water as she definitely prefers that to the plain crunchy version but now I'm also finding myself hand feeding and trying to find ways to make her eat, although once she gets going she clearly enjoys it.

I've got another dog staying with me at the moment (different food) and last night she (my dog) ate out of her bowl with no trouble - there's just the two of us normally. I don't baby her in any way and she's very independent generally but I think that when it comes to food she just wants me to fuss over her.

Well, no more. After reading this thread there'll be no more hand feeding and the Canagan stays. Thank you. :)

[FishChipsAndBeans]

Clearly I'm the soft-arse of the thread! I can't bear seeing her go to her bowl to see what I've given her to eat and then watch her walk away all despondent and sad because it's the same food yet again.

I tried the tough-love/dog-will-eat-eventually thing, but I felt like the biggest meanest mum dog owner in the world, so I justified it by telling myself that I know I'd get bored if I ate the same thing meal after meal...

[TheCrowFromBelow]

My dog buries raw food, usually in my flower pots, and then digs it back up

[pigsDOfly]

I know what you mean Fish but the difference this time with my dog is that she genuinely seems to enjoy the food once she starts eating it. Some of the foods she's been on she hasn't actually seemed to enjoy, I think that's why I don't want to change this one.

Have to say, you conjure up a very vivid picture of a very sad doggy

[FishChipsAndBeans]

"Have to say, you conjure up a very vivid picture of a very sad doggy"

Pigs she walks away, head down and shoulders slumped, and she actually sighs. I swear I'm not imagining it!

[pigsDOfly]

Clearly she's a bit of a drama llama dog.

[MarcoPoloCX]

I home prepare their food from a selection of different meats that I know they like.

One day they wolf the chicken down like it's the best meal ever and the next day I could prepare the same and they'd refuse it.
So easy to succumb to them and make something else but now they know they get the same until they finish what they are given.

[MayorMayhem]

Thanks for everyone's thoughts and advice - glad my pup isn't the only fusspot out there! We had fish and chips for tea which she was looking longingly at so I mixed a tiny bit of fish into her raw food and it did the trick, she was very unsure at first but I think then clicked that it's food for her ha!! So I will try that for a couple of days gradually adding less fish and see if that does the trick. I have a DD with autism and food issues - seems I got a dog that fits our family perfectly. Grrrr....

[MayorMayhem]

Just an update - had some success this morning with pup eating a small amount of raw for breakfast! Fingers crossed she will keep trying it now xxx

[arbrighton]

Mine got bored at that age, was teething and I think her hormones were starting to kick in and make her miserable too.

She's still fussy but will at least eat most days

[shockingsocks]

I use Ci Tickety Boo - it's well priced, grain free and comes in five flavours which I rotate through on a constant basis for variety. Fast delivery too.

[01Fredthecat]

This is exactly like my dog. You can never get in a routine.
She just likes different things each day. And yes dry kibble has to be on the floor. Lol x

[muckandnettles]

Mine loves Millie's Wolfheart and I buy the kibble and the tins (pup would also lay down his life for their fish biscuits...) but I also mix in some tuna or sardines to make it special sometimes.

[01Fredthecat]

Ah fab - good tip. Rosa is loving Forthglade currently but good to have a few newbies in the cupboard. lol x

[StillMedusa]

Another sad face drama queen... look at food, sigh heavily and walk away dog.
I have to scatter some first or she does not eat. End of. Tried holding out on her but she can last longer than me (we are talking over a day)

Doesn't like raw except chicken wing tips now and again. Kibble is boring (she tells me). So she gets kibble with a top up.. bit if chicken, or turkey in the morning, or a few bits of grated cheese, and lamb mince in the evening (sometimes beef mince but it tends to go through her)

I've learned to relax about it, but she's just not very enthusastic about food... sometimes she even turns down cheese!

[Yokohamajojo]

My one goes fussy now and again, we do rotate flavours but it's same brand of kibbles and at the end of a big bag, he sometimes won't eat it for a while as he is waiting for something better to appear. If I he is particularly cute that day I may sprinkle a bit of frozen parmesan type cheese on top as it's smelly, that usually does it. Other times mixing it with just water does the trick

[vanillandhoney]

Mine went through a fussy phase - we ended up reducing his meals to one per day in the end. Now his routine goes like this:

Morning walk at 8am which includes some treats for recall/good behaviour. Normally chopped up cocktail sausages or liver training treats, depending on what we have.

When we get back at 9am he has a chew - either a stuffed hoof, a pizzle, a braided lambs tail or similar. Always something natural - he's not really interested in Kongs or anything like that.

Dinner is at 3.30pm and he has Harrington's wet and dry mixed together and wolfs it down. I give him 200g of wet and 200g of dry in his bowl. He's a beagle if that makes any difference.

When DH gets home and eats around 6pm the dog will get some chicken or similar - but not a huge amount, just a couple of bits as a treat.

His poos are firm, his weight is stable and the vet is very happy with his health. You just need to do whatever makes your dog happy - not all dogs want two meals a day, not all dogs will eat raw or kibble or whatever - you have to do what works for you (and what works with your lifestyle too).

Ours has been on the above routine for about a year now and we've had no problems whatsoever, and his weight has stayed the same too :)