eating

[Ron Asker]

  when we feed Oliver his dinner he doesn't eat it immediately.  Should I be worried?  or is this completely normal and just a trait? 

[Charlotte and Bo]

Bo picks all day long, unless he gets some chicken or something else he values with his dinner :-)

[Rachel and Ollie]

My Oliver is the same way. He will wait so long that sometimes he throws up from an empty stomach. Ridiculous dogs. 

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Perfectly normal. After poop issues, "picky" and/or reluctant eaters is the most often discussed topic in the Food Group. Lots of info there.

[Rachel and Ollie]

Karen, my vet says it's a poodle trait, is that true? 

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Not in my experience. My purebred poodles were all major chowhounds who ate everything and begged for more. Fruits, vegetables, you name it. My pickiest dogs have been JD and my Schnoodle.

[Lori, Daphne, Lucy & Pippa]

My poodle would eat anything, anytime! Daphne ...Hahaha. She doesn't see the need to eat unless something wonderful is on top of her food. Even then, she doesn't always eat it right away. Pickiest eater I have ever seen. I just bought her a new bag of Fromm and got a different flavor to entice her (Duck & sweet potato). She just sniffed it and turned and walked away!

[Lisa, Daisy & Dexter]

Daisy eats her food and a normal pace I think, until it's gone. She then walks over to me to get her 3 little treats, usually bite size dehydrated chicken or liver. She does not eat again until dinner, no little treats than but usually around 8 she gets a treat of some sort right before bed.

She does have Daisy friendly bite size treats in a jar at work, if the UPS or FedEx guys come they usually get her one from the jar. As of late the new mailman has been wanting to treat her as well...I am going to have to get diet treats soon.

[Joanne ~ Spud*]

I wrote this out in another discussion.  This question is often asked.  So, I have copied and pasted my response here ( some may not make much sense because the question was different but most will apply here.   A lot of us have dogs who don't eat in a traditional manner   :)

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My Spud is a good weight, and really he eats what I think is a good meal every three days. He will  have a 1/2 cup here and there on those off days. No big deal.  That is all I leave for him in his dish. I am fortunate enough to be able to leave his dish down but I never keep it real full. Someone is home all day and night so we watch. I am also fortunate that he is able to tell me it is time for a big meal. He SLAMS his bowl around like a toy. If he starts playing with the bowl or brings it to me, then I know  :)   One reason, I am afraid to give up this old plastic bowl. What am I going to do with a glass or metal bowl? Ugh.

My vet once explained, by nature, this is how they eat in the wild.  They don't go out and capture food each day and have a big meal.  Every few days they hunt and feast. Made sense to me.

He also has a sensitive stomach, so we make and serve only homemade liver treats. 

I never force him to eat and he is thriving. 

It is a relief in some ways as he never steals our food, never begs, but it was so strange as I was used to big giant dogs who SCARF down food as if it was the last and only meal they will ever have.

Serve food. Let it go. Watch the weight. Really, they do just fine with homemade treats and dog food.

[Lee Seidman]

Our Lexi makes us happy if she eats at all.  She is a finicky eater and requires lots of encouragement to get her to eat.  I no longer worry if she misses a few meals,  she is gorgeous, healthy and a perfect weight. As long as Oliver is active and alert, playful and affectionate, he will be just fine.

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

Do NOT fall into the trap of letting your dood be a picky eater.  In other words don't keep changing brands or adding stuff in to encourage the dog to eat.  First you need to decide if you are over feeding.  Your dog may be a light eater.  Then you have two choices: 1. Leave what they haven't eaten down and if they haven't eaten, add the second protion at dinner.  2.  If the dog hasn't eaten in say 10 minutes, pick it up and serve it at the next meal.

I have two dogs who eat immediately and I have one that didn't.  If I could, I left it down but if we were in our RV and I couldn't, then I picked it up after a bit and he just had to wait until the next feeding.

[J and Riley (and Luna)]

When Luna was little she used to do this - the only thing I found that would get her to eat immediately without making her "picky" was adding a tablespoon of water to her food.  I think it helped bring out the flavor of the kibble, but without adding extra calories or "tasty" things that could make her a picky eater.

Now at the age of 2, she eagerly awaits her kibble half an hour before mealtime and gobbles it down in about a minute.  It is a different brand of food from the one she used to eat as a puppy - she really likes her current food (Acana).