Human food for poorly pup

[Angelthekingcharles]

We brought our puppy home at the weekend (12 weeks) with food recommended by breeder which the puppy didn't seem to like and hardly ate any.

I originally put it down to new home nerves, despite the fact that she seemed so happy in herself.

Yesterday morning she had a really upset tummy and was yelping in pain. After a check up the vet gave antibiotics and suggested chicken & rice or scrambled egg and to return to puppy food in a few days.

Well she has absolutely wolfed down every meal since and also seems a lot better in herself.

Could a puppy/dog live on human food (obviously only specific food safe and healthy for dogs) or are there more nutrients needed which are only found in puppy/dog food?

Any advice greatly appreciated!

What puppy food did the breeder recommend?
I think dogs do need specific nutrients so can’t just be fed what you eat, but know several who are raw fed (look up the threads on here) or fed mince and veg.
Your puppy may just prefer wet food.

If you look on Pinterest there are so many great recipes for dog food
We have looked into it to
If in doubt maybe just add a small amount of kibble to whatever food you prepare

My dog prefers wet food and can't tolerate kibble very well.

Whether you feed kibble, wet, raw etc I would personally stick to a complete food until they have finished growing to ensure they get all the nutrients they need.

The breeder recommended Royal Canin mini puppy as this was what she had been fed so we continued with that but she would never eat it (over 3 days) ate less than one meal amount each da

I swopped my puppy onto another food very quickly as he wasn't that bothered about the breeders food.

You can use allaboutdogfood.co.uk to compare some brands and prices.

Thank you, I'll have a good look on that website!

It might have been the upset tummy making her not eat but it was so worrying to see her not eat and be lethargic compared to her finishing every meal straight away.

I’ve had never ending issues with my dog and food. She’s 2 now and we have finally found one the agrees with her and that she likes and eats. We brought her home at 10weeks and quickly switched her royal canin food from the breeder to something else she wasn’t tolerating it well at all. We’ve been through so many foods it’s been a nightmare from high end expensive food to cheap bakers which is full of crap and really no good for them. She likes to have wet food and likes variety too.
Dogs need dog food, some human food is fine but in order for them to have a balanced diet they need god food. I’m not a fan of raw feeding but I know many people do and love it.
I still give mine a tin of fish in sunflower oil (tuna,sardines, mackerel) about once a week as a treat with her kibble and give her the odd bit of chicken but mainly the dog food now

Thank you, in a few days when her stomach has settled I'll see how she is and which foods she will eat. Thank you.

When my pup was sick vet advised some scrambled egg and boiled chicken and rice

Personally i think dogs need proper dog food, Royal Canin is actually a really good quality food so i'm surprised it didn't agree with your puppy, you could try re-introducing it again in a few days or try something similar. James wellbeloved is a good brand for dogs with allergies/food intolerance. Long term i would recommend a hard food/kibble as its much better for your dogs teeth. Just to warn you, obviously she's a new puppy and you want to give her whatever she wants but by giving her lots of human food and chopping ad changing you're likely to make her very fussy and she'll land up being over weight. Find a good complete dog food that she likes and stick with it. Scrambled eggs/boiled chicken/rice are all very bland food that the vet will often recommend for a few days if your dog has an upset tummy or after an operation or anything, but it shouldn't be fed as a long term food.

Some people do home cooked food, though it couldn't be just chicken and rice or scrambled egg.

If you want to go down that root, Butternut Box do a good home cooked style frozen option, or you could look at doing raw, which is currently very fashionable.

@Merrz Royal Canin really isn't as good as the marketing would have you believe - it gets 2.6/5 rating for nutrition www.allaboutdogfood.co.uk/dog-food-reviews/0065/Royal-Canin-mini-junior

James Wellbeloved isn't much better at 3.3/5 www.allaboutdogfood.co.uk/dog-food-reviews/0114/james-wellbeloved-puppy

Royal Canin gave my dog no end if tummy troubles, it's shite in a bag. We out her on Millie's Wolfheart at 1 and she's been great on it ever since...she's 5 now

I had the same when mine was a pup, and that was royal Canin as well, supplied with pup but she didn't like it. I changed her to wet food which she much preferred. As she's got older she has become less fussy, if that's any consolation. She does have human scraps regularly, meat and veg, which she also enjoys.

I have two Eurasiers that I've fed human food too since they were about 6 months old. I had to to alot of research to make sure I was giving them everything they need. My starting point was the Lilly's Kitchen recipe book. It's got some good info in there although I would advise you to steer clear of their suggestion that garlic is okay to feed.

If you have a spare drawer in your freezer, it might be worth looking into raw feeding
You can do it yourself with meat plus veg/yoghurt/eggs but it's much easier to buy the ready made tubs
Naturaw and Nutriment are both excellent brands to get started with
Or nature's menu which you can buy from Pets at home

@Merrz Royal Canin is actually pretty appalling considering the cost of it. I certainly wouldn't buy it for my animals unless it was the only thing they tolerated.

Our old vet used to promote it but you can buy much higher quality, cheaper foods from Pets at Home!

Complete raw all the way here, with spratts given twice weekly as a treat and a meaty bone to knaw on every couple of weeks.

Since I moved her to raw, she hardly ever vomits, her breath doesn’t smell anymore and her coat is so glossy.

Thank you for these really good suggestions and advice, I will see what she prefers to eat after a couple of days on this bland food.

Much appreciated.

Our puppy wasn't enjoying the food the breeder sent him home with, and was actually fairly thin when we picked him up. We put him on wet puppy food the next day and he's thrived on it since. I think a lot of puppies don't really like kibble and possibly struggle to eat it.

No wonder so many breeders seem to be using Royal Canin. The company is doling out free puppy and kitten recommendation kits pro.royalcanin.co.uk/breeders/

AgathaF ours was gradually getting thinner and more lethargic each day, she is a different pup now after a few days of chicken and rice and scrambled egg.

I just tried her on wainwrights wet food and she didn’t eat that. I did put some of the royal canin in with chicken and rice at lunch and she ate all of that so maybe a combination will be best for her!

I had a dog who I fed a completely raw food diet as he was allergic to and unable to tolerate dog kibble. He occasionally had a tin (maybe once every couple of months). He was an extra large breed and ate 4 chicken carcasses a day (free from the butcher). I picked up reduced meat from the fridges in the supermarket to supplement and he loved raw eggs (completely whole in the shell) as a treat. He had the occasional carrot but was most insistent that he was a carnivore

We were constantly complimented on how fit and healthy he was, and how glossy his coat was. I would only feed a dog raw now. Have a looked at the BARF diet online