Alternative to Lily’s wet dog food please?

[Happygoluckyx]

I have a :rescue PomSpitz (about 6yrs) who is extremely fussy with his food. I tried every single food there was when I got him and for an extended time he would only eat Waitrose own brand cheap trays (I know I know).
He eventually went off those and then got excited about raw for a while. Went off that. He can go days without eating. He’s been to the vet and had lots of tests and there’s nothing clinically wrong with him. She said give him smelly cat food to tempt him to eat. He also went off that and was at the point where I was feeding him human food, chicken and rice, sliced turkey or tinned mackerel. But he wouldn’t eat the same meal twice in one day! He’s gone off chicken completely. Gone off salmon. (Im vegetarian by the way so this is not fun!) Out of the blue in desperation this week I tried some lilys trays again and he’s wolfed them down. However I’ve now read in the past couple of years Lilys has been taken over by Nestle and have gone downhill re quality and arent the same as they were before.
Is there a similar small, premium brand that focuses on good quality ingredients and nutrition?
Thank you in advance!

It sounds like she will probably go off the Lily's in her own time anyway, but if she's eating it's better than not and it's not terrible. Maybe see if can get some samples to mix it up while you still know what she likes. Will she never cycle back to past likes?

My dog has kidney issues and they can feel bit nauseous or get acid reflux not eating so understand the frustration and worry with a picky eater. I feel like been feeding the bin more than dog lately and miss dog that scoffed everything and how easy feeding same kibble daily was. I read how some CKD owners drop food on floor as dog will 'steal' it but not touch if in a bowl and my dog will give a try if I spoon feed first as thinks she's getting a treat.

@nearlyspringyay

Burns is great, I have a diabetic, pancreatitis prone senior. He loves it.

We were previously on Chappie since diabetes diagnosis and he has never been better although it gets looked down on a lot. They changed the formulation so it was higher fat and no longer suitable.

The ingredient comparison in Chappie v Hills vet diabetic food was interesting, Chappie came out better, and less than half the price.

Different foods suit different dogs but it doesn't have to be ££££££££££

My dog, prone to colitis, is also on Burns. She is doing v well on it. My old dog could only tolerate Chappie, anything else made him ill.

@LadyCatStark we've also used the Aldi Langhams version, though can't seem to get it anymore, are they still selling it?

@GeorgieTheGorgeousGoat yes but I asked one of the ladies on the checkout and she said it’s so popular, it goes out as soon as it comes in!

@GeorgieTheGorgeousGoat I’ve noticed they only sell it in the Aldis in “posher” areas too 😂.

They definitely used to have it in our (posh) branch but it must really be flying out the door! Reminds me of lockdown when there were puppy food shortages and we'd drive around 2/3 supermarkets just to get enough for the week

I feed my spaniel Nature Diet wet dog food. To be honest, he would eat anything, but it's meant to be free of preservatives, etc. It's very smelly and meaty. It's about £1 a carton I think, but cheaper if you buy it in bulk online.

Our two do very well on Burns. Really calmed them down too

Forthglade is excellent and a good price in my opinion. I use Millies Wolfheart, a mix of wet and dry.

Mine rejected Butchers. Eats lily's... but sort of reluctantly.

We feed Harringtons and have never had any issues. The vet says he's in excellent shape and health.

Would you want to eat the same thing, day after day? Some dogs will put up with it, but it’s a miserable approach to what should be a highlight of their day. Sounds like your dog’s problem isn’t with a specific brand of food but with boredom.

Much better for your dog to pick several different types of dog food and rotate them throughout the week. Benefits include access to a wider range of micronutrients (yes they’re all supplemented, but differently), reduced exposure to any food that turns out to be bad (see Applaws and pancytopenia), and simple enrichment.

No-ones mentioned Caesars yet which is a terrine brand marketed at small dogs.

My elderly greyhound is fussy but I use a few of these to get him to eat if it goes over a day without him eating.

Saying that dogs are having a boring life by having to eat the same food every day is pretty anthropomorphic. Dogs may have a superb sense of smell, but their taste receptors are pretty rudimentary. One of my dogs would have been quite happy if you had served her own turds for her meal every day, so delicious did she find them at one stage. I think if you find a decent food that your dog enjoys and it keeps them well and happy, you should stick to it. A dog is really not bothered that it gets, say, Butchers for every meal. Dogs are not culinary critics. Food is food. However, I must say my dogs do enjoy a bit of a treat from time to time - like a bit of left over chicken, vegetables or pasta, but, only recently having found a food my dog loves, and which keeps her digestive system working properly, I won't be chopping and changing.

I have used a variety of wet foods brands over the years but have recently settled on Butchers. Very reasonably priced, ok for quality and I just buy the variety packs so he gets a different flavour each time which keeps his interest.

Thank you to everyone for your kind replies and suggestions. This is my first post on here :)
I opened a lilys tray today and horror of horrors it was green mouldy!! 🤮🤢 I opened a 2nd (different flavour and purchased from sainsburys not Ocado) and I thoroughly checked it and that one was mouldy on the bottom too! Needless to say I didn’t even give that to the fox. On googling I found many reviewers had the same problem! Never again lilys!!
I have a butternut delivery coming tomorrow and a stockpile of forthglade, edgar and butchers in reserve.
Thanks again!

Good luck OP.
I’m a Butternut convert - a number of different varieties, no smelly farts and happy dogs.
In the early days I warmed it up slightly (I know, I know!) but my two happily wolf it down whatever the temperature now.

Barking heads
Made of human quality food, no crap

@GuyFawkesDay do you find you waste loads with only using it as a topper? I need to start
Doing this as mines not eating kibble anymore.

@MyAnacondaMight I’ve bought some applaws toppers. Are they not good?

@Scaredypup nope, I put a special tin lid on it (thanks aldi!) And keep in fridge. A tin lasts 3 days used twice a day.

We have a small poodle cross that is also very fussy about food. He is a senior and has had pancreatitis so we have to feed low fat. Chappie worked for awhile but now he just sniffs it and walks away.

The vet sells and recommends Royal Canin gastrointestinal low fat but it is so very expensive we have tried to find an alternative.

He is currently eating 3% fat canned food made from lamb and brown rice, plus a senior small dog kibble that is also lower fat. As we ordered cans of Chappie from England (we are in Canada and were desperate) we are mixing that with his lamb and rice. He will eat it quite enthusiastically.

We know right away if the food suits him by his stool. It is small and firm now.

DH accidentally bought cat food and gave it to him just before he got sick with pancreatitis so I would be wary of cat food that tends to be high fat. The vet was very clear about feeding digestible low fat food,

How about Pooch & Mutt?

* I’ve bought some applaws toppers. Are they not good?*

Applaws uses higher quality ingredients than most. But a brand is neither good nor bad - I rate some of their products highly and wouldn’t touch others, based on ingredients used.

Last year hundreds of cats died from pancytopenia - a very rare disease. This was thought to be linked to high levels of mycotoxins found in some foods produced in a factory for Applaws, Sainsburys, AVA and Wilko. The link was never proven as the cause of the pancytopenia, but it really highlighted two things: that no brand is “good” or “bad”, and that if you only offer your pet one food then it has no choice but to eat it - even when it’s mouldy and full of toxins. Some pets might eat it anyway - but if they’re only eating the mould once a week they’re less likely to die from it.

We switched from Lily’s to forthglade and had a mouldy tray in our first box. They sent us a pack of 12 trays for free and responded really quickly.
We’ve stuck with them since as our dogs love it.

I have a very fussy dog - I've found that the key is variety. So he has Butchers, Lily's Kitchen and Wainwrights wet food, as well as raw food and I give him a different one each meal.

I also occasionally give him some tuna, or sardines, mashed potato or a boiled egg. He loves these treats, and I mix them in with his normal food to keep up his interest.

It has taken me years to figure this out. He'll probably lose interest again in due course, but at the moment he's wolfing down 3 meals a day which is unheard of!