Decent food for fussy dog (that doesn't need fridge or freezer)

[PhoebeMcPeePee]

My dog is currently on pedigree chum and kibble but I can see now this isn't great food so looking for something more nutritious. I have a tiny fridge & freezer so fresh/raw type feeds aren't suitable and DDog isn't particularly food driven or at least not when it's just sat in the bowl - make a game of it and he'll get through the lot.

Any suggestions? I tried a pate type one from the pet shop but he really didn't like it. We tried Butternut box which he liked for about 2 weeks then stopped eating so went back to pedigree chum 😩

Just put the food you want him to have on your plate first..
He will eat it..

Look at better dry food then just top it with the wet so .it's getting more dry than wet . Which dry are you using?

Mine eats Forthglade both wet and dry, it's taken over 6 months to find something he will eat that doesn't upset him.

I feed raw, but I add Gentle Dog Food kibble, which is highly rated on All about Dog Food and reasonably priced compared to so many others https://www.allaboutdogfood.co.uk/dog-food-reviews/0782/gentle-dog-food and Lily's Kitchen for emergencies. I think this has recently gone down in their ratings so will probably find something else as they are really expensive https://www.allaboutdogfood.co.uk/dog-food-reviews/0533/lilys-kitchen-tins-adult

So many people rave about Millie's Wolfheart https://www.millieswolfheart.co.uk/dog-food

Mine loves his pooch and mutt

Good discount online, you can get at pets at home too.

He has dry and their own wet too and is a happy healthy shiny chap.

Wolfworthy kibble is excellent.
Don't leave it down all day. 10 minutes maximum and if not eaten remove until the next meal time

Is there really a need to take up the kibble if it's not eaten?

My dog was never especially greedy, has kibble down 24/7, grazes and stays an excellent weight for his size. It seems that because he has faith that food will always be there when he wants it, he only eats when he's actually hungry. Sometimes the food bowl runs empty, so he'll paw at the bowl until it's refilled, sniff it, find it to his satisfaction and then walk off without eating any of it - just secure in the knowledge that it's there when he wants it.

We fell into this system of free feeding, but it works for us.

Obviously with wet or raw food there would be hygiene and safety issues, but not with kibble. Likewise it wouldn't work with a greedy lab - but that's not OP's dog!

Is there really a need to take up the kibble if it's not eaten?

Set meal times help with things like toileting, maintaining a healthy weight and being able to tell if your dog is unwell or off their food, or in pain with their teeth etc.

Of course it's not compulsory and plenty of people free feed with no issues, but it can help fussy dogs as they soon learn that if they don't eat their breakfast (for example) then they won't get anything else until dinner, which can encourage them to eat what they're given.

Thank you. I was tempted by the Gentle Dog food but they don't sell sample sizes so trying the Wolfworthy Kibble. DDog is very much take it or leave it with food so something we can leave down for a few hours is preferable - he's just not food driven enough to whisk it away after 10 minutes.

You may find he learns to be food driven if it's not something he has constant access to. It's one of the many benefits of doing set meal times.

A dog who knows he can eat whenever he wants is unlikely going to care about food in the same way as a dog who has to wait or work for their meals.

It's why puppy owners are often encouraged to use kibble as a training tool - because it reinforces the idea that food is good and desirable.

Some good brands that offer sample bags:

innocent hound

millies wolfheart
Fish4dogs
Wilson’s cold pressed food

Harrington's is a good one. Not too expensive mine has the dry with the wet on top he likes it and seems healthy enough.

Mine like Butcher's wet food and Royal Canin dry food. We put the dry food in a snuffle mat so they think it's a treat. It sounds ridiculous, but when they are being fussy we pick up their plates and pretend to eat the dog food with lots of "mmmm"s and that seems to convince them to eat it

We've settled on fourthglade, fussy dog seems to like it.

We use Skinners Muesli Mix Field & Trial. It's dry food, but more textured than kibble pellets. It's aimed at working dogs (so VAT free and really reasonably priced), but our lab is very active, so it suits her (she seemed to get bored of other dry food but not this one). We do usually chop a bit of cucumber / butternut squash / similar on top for a bit of variety too.