When to change food

[chocolatesaltyballs22]

I have an almost 6 month old puppy, small cross breed. He's still on the kibble which the breeder had him on but am sensing he's a bit bored of it and he has to be coaxed to eat a lot of the time. He's a breed prone to having a sensitive stomach so I'm a bit nervous about switching him.

When's the best time and does anyone have any recommendations? I'd like to stick with dry food ideally, not keen on the idea of wet/raw.

[Girlintheframe]

You could move him now, just transition him over slowly mixing a little of the new kibble with his old each day until all he is getting is the new stuff.
Our dog is prone to sensitivities and fish based products work the best for him.
You can usually buy kibble in smaller bags so you can try before committing to a large pack.

[Handsfullofholes]

We changed ours when our pup was around 3 months - we did read that it wasn’t advisable, but the food he came on from the breeder was really poor quality so we wanted to switch him. We followed the guide of mixing them together little bits of the new over the course of a week before swapping entirely to the new stuff. I think you’ll be fine swapping over now.

[coffeecupsandfairylights]

Whenever you want - just make sure you do it slowly!

Dry food alone can be pretty dull for dogs though - it's certainly not a diet I would ever feed mine unless I had no choice.

[chocolatesaltyballs22]

Thanks. Any recommendations? I don't even know what to switch to.

[Soubriquet]

What is he one now

[coffeecupsandfairylights]

What does he get fed now?

You could start by changing the flavours around.

[chocolatesaltyballs22]

He's on Hills puppy kibble, think there's only one flavour.

[MarmiteCoriander]

I never realised food shouldn't be changed till later on! We changed ours soon after getting her. I added the new kibble and mixed them in- but my mini poodle would pick out and only eat the new kibble! I used the below site and now buy gentle dog food kibble, which is cold pressed and comes in a small bites version for smaller dogs. I also give her butchers puppy tins or trays. As a treat, she will have cooked chicken (sometimes with her wet food) inside a conch- which will keep her amused for ages.

www.allaboutdogfood.co.uk/

[FuckingHateRats]

We just got our puppy yesterday but want her off the Purina stuff we were given. Like the previous poster, we've bought Gentle kibble which is really nutritious.

I have no idea if this is 'right' or not but we are planning to give her mostly the dry food but with something tasty through it. I can't imagine how boring it is to only eat dry food, however nutritious. She had scrambled egg in her dry food this morning (has had it with her breeder at breakfast time before) and I'll give her a wee flavour of sardines / tuna / chicken /beef mince with her dry food to keep it interesting.

[coffeecupsandfairylights]

@chocolatesaltyballs22

He's on Hills puppy kibble, think there's only one flavour.

Have a look on www.allaboutdogfood.co.uk - you can filter by type (wet, dry, raw), age, flavour, budget etc. and find something that you can afford and that is suitable for your dogs' age, breed and lifestyle.

We feed Harringtons - the biscuits are chicken flavour but we bulk-buy their wet food - he gets a mix of salmon, duck, chicken and turkey flavour and we just rotate through the flavours, so he gets salmon for a few days, then chicken etc.

He loves it and never skips a meal, but different food suits different dogs so it's just a case of trial and error for the most part.

[chocolatesaltyballs22]

Thanks everyone.

[Soubriquet]

Please do look into some variety though.

It will be very boring to eat the same flavoured kibble every day

[chocolatesaltyballs22]

@Soubriquet

Please do look into some variety though.

It will be very boring to eat the same flavoured kibble every day

Yeah I definitely will

[MarmiteCoriander]

As a side to add variety and activity, my 9mth old mini poodle loves chasing a brussel sprout, round of sweet potato or piece of carrot. She will eventually eat it- after amusing herself for an hour of flicking it in the air and chasing after it!

[Spanielsarepainless]

My puppy was the same. It turned out he was sensitive to chicken (it's the way the birds are reared these days) and since he has been on a fish-based kibble, he wolfs it down and tummy problems are no more. I swapped him over about four months.