Adding to food?

[Amanda and Wheatley]

I was just curious.. ever since I bought my doodle, she has been a really picky eater. She has never been the type to dive right into her food. We always try the "if you don't want it then you don't get it approach" and it generally works, but now I'm starting to think she's getting on the thinner side. She's really not THAT thin, but it seems like with her frequent walks and high activity, as well as not eating as much as I'd like her to... I feel like she really should be eating more... I've been giving her the recommendations on the bag and sometimes I even add a little more, but she always turns her nose up at it. I try many different types of foods, I've tried the different flavors of Orijen/Acana, the TOTW, Instinct, etc (I transition her slowly don't worry) and she really doesn't seem to care for any of them. The only thing she LOVES is the crap food (of course) that contains all the fillers and is sprayed with fat, but of course I'm not going to feed her that. So the next best thing I can think of is to add stuff to her food like cheese and a little meat. Of course she gobbles all her food up then! But now i can't get her to touch her dry food without it! Now I would love to go the raw food it route and all but i really can't afford it, and I'd rather just stick with dry kibble. Should I just continue taking her food away until she gets hungry and not worry so much? She really isn't that thin, I cant see/feel her ribs or anything, she just seems to be on the thinner side to me...

[Carol and Banjo]

I've had good luck mixing Banjo's kibble with a bit of chicken stock.  I always have some in the freezer.  This is a real treat in his mind!

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

If you can't feel her ribs, she isn't too thin. You should be able to feel the ribs of a dog who is a healthy weight. Standard poodles have very lean builds, and she may have that kind of body structure. Very few dogs will starve themselves.

She may be more of a grazer who like to eat a little at a time. If that's not a problem and there isn''t any other dog in the house that will eat her food if it's left out, I'd just "free feed"...leave the food down and let her eat at her own pace.

I would also try giving her less than the recommended amount on the bag. It's kind of like with kids who are picky eaters, sometimes they feel overwhelmed by too much food. I use the guidelines on the bag and then adjust up or down, depending on if the dog always leaves food in the bowl (feed less) or they always gobble it up and look for more (maybe give more).

There's nothing wrong with adding toppings to help her appetite, though, if you don't mind having to always do that. You can use a small amount of chopped hard-boiled egg (easy to boil eggs ahead of time and keep them in the fridge) . Some people sprinkle grated parmesan chees on top of their dog's food. Broth is another good suggestion, just make sure you get the low sodium kind.

[Allyson, Peri & Taquito]

I can feel Peri's ribs...vet says you are supposed to feel 3-5 by pressing lightly. Peri is perfectly healthy and probably on the leaner side, but that is a good thing.  I give her less than the recommendations on the bag and she gobbles it immediately.

 

Just a suggestion:  instead of meat or cheese, how about adding a bit of canned no-salt-added green beans or carrots?  I heat them up for about 20 seconds in the microwave, cut them up, and add to Peri's dinner most nights.  These are healthy additions and Peri goes absolutely nuts for the "treat"!

[Sue, Murphy and Bella ()*o*()]

A little fat-free plain yogurt works great. Even using some ripe fruit or left over veggies from your dinner. They LOVE tuna fish and I just bought the packs for .50 on sale and can get 2-3 meals out of one by just adding a tablespoon and the juice maybe once every week or 2 weeks. There is so much you can do that is minimally time consuming and very cost effective. Personally I don't blame our little furry friends for being bored with dry kibble all the time. I have always added other ingredients just to be "the Italian Momma" as food = love where I was raised. My 2 would eat anything anytime so I didn't do it for that, but it really is a joy to watch them be so delighted with their food. I love watching their tails wag as they eat! So maybe I do it more for me than for them?  :)

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Great idea. I use canned tuna and canned salmon as a topper for JD's food, and he goes nuts for it. And it's very convenient, all you have to do is keep a couple of cans handy. They even travel well...before they're opened, canned fish doesn't have to be refrigerated. The extra fatty acids are a big plus, too.

I buy the chunk light in water for Jack. It has half the mercury content of Albacore.

And plain, low-fat yogurt is not only appealing to most dogs (JD won't touch it, though), it's also a wonderful digestive aid.

[Allyson, Peri & Taquito]

i had never thought about this. I always have chunk light tuna in water. Great idea. Thanks Karen.

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

We continue the eat it or don't even though Ned is not a big eater.  Ned prefers to eat by himself so we leave his kibble down.  Our other two dogs eat their food right then, but leave Ned's alone until he wants it.

[Amanda and Wheatley]

It sounds like the general consensus is to leave her as be! I shouldn't say I CANT feel her ribs... I can technically feel them but they aren't obvious. I think I'm just a worry wart cause she looks thin but it's probably just the poodle body. I'm guessing I will just continue free feeding.. that's what we were doing before as we only have one dog. I just like to add stuff because she gobbles it all up and it makes me happy to see her eat!