Crazy Eating Patterns...With my two doodles.

[Lake Girl, Lizette]

I know this is going to sound crazy. I have always had problems with Molly's eating. I know she is a mini but she eats very little Evo with chicken mixed in. I even tried making home cooked meals for her. Second day lost interest. Since I lhave Nestle now and she is a small labradoodle and eats good...I make two cups and separate it evenly on two flat plates. I have given up worrying about their eating habits and after an hour I pick up what they don't eat. I have noticed Nestle is watching Molly and follows her lead. Molly eats....Nestle eats....Molly doesn't eat....Nestle doesn't eat. Crazy I know but I guess Molly is the leader of the pack. I have decided to stick with Evo and mix chicken or gound meat in it. I have decided now that if they are hungry they will eat. It has been frustrating simply because I have yet to find anything that makes my dogs excited with meal time. I also cannot afford to keep trying new brands...as well as...the runny stools Molly and Nestel get when trying something new. I also noticed that they eat less in the am than pm.

[Jenny]

As long as you know there are no health issues associated with the picky eating, I wouldn't worry about it... they will not starve themselves... eventually get the point... eat what is being fed...

[Richard Crowe]

Dogs will not starve if there is food available. The only thing which we watch is when we have one dog who is a slow or finicky eater and another that is a food hound. We ensure that the food hound doesn't gobble down the slow dog's portion. We have one dog whom we feed in a separate room since she is such a slow and careful eater. We also feed Holly (our Doodle) separately from our Maltese.

We are lucky now in that except for a slow eater, all five of our dogs (4 Maltese and Holly) are good eaters.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

I have been getting advice on this from Shannon @ IDOG RRR, as she is helping me with some other issues I have been having with JD, who I honestly believe could easily win first prize if there were a contest for "World's Pickiest Eater, Canine Division." She absolutely advises picking up the food after a reasonable amount of time. Dogs will not starve themselves unless they are too ill to eat. Adult dogs can go a day or more without eating with no ill effects, but I don't know about puppies. Would it be possible to separate them when Nestle is fed? That would be my only concern.
I have been told that part of the reason for the picky eating is caused by the fact that food is always available to them. If they learn that there is a limited opportunity to eat or they will have to wait for the next meal, they may start to eat better when they have the chance and enjoy their food more. I am told that many people have changed their picky eaters this way.
Jack is so out of control with this that he has now started refusing the $1.00-an-ounce cage-free raost chicken and duck jerky that I give him for treats, and also for glucosamine & chondroitin. I am running out of options with him, other than shoving more pills down his throat.
Lizette, I so understand your frustration. I think you are doing the right thing by limiting feeding time. Just like with kids, I guess sometimes we have to be tough for their own good.

[Leslie and Halas]

I think I could win "World's Pickiest Eater - Human Division"

[Lake Girl, Lizette]

Karen,
I know you understand. When I first joined the food group 5 months ago I was experiencing problems with Molly's eating. I really just do not think that some dogs (ie Molly) are food motivated. This also poses a problem when training .... treats(???)....all she likes is a cheese. How is our Jack a doodle boy doing? Are his allergy issues doing ok? I have been thinking about you guys.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

I will post an update on how things are going with JD soon; don't want to "hijack" your discussion, lol!
Yes, some dogs are definitely not food motivated, and it definitely impacts training. It's just not practical to try to use a ball as a reward for "stay"!

[Leslie and Halas]

Halas doesn't usually get too excited about his food either. But he has a Buster Cube (link below), and I'll sometimes put his Innova Evo and/or Orijen kibble in that. Then he eats it. It's a toy, so that seems to make it more fun. I don't worry about it too much when he doesn't eat, but if I feel like he really needs to, I'll put some in his Buster Cube, and he'll push that thing around until he gets all the food out.
http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2753808

[Sandra]

Glad to hear there are other finicky eaters out there and love cheese too. Ozzie would live on treats if we would let him. I have changed food three times already and have tried mixing with wet food and without. I am now using diamond kibble with chondroitin. I have learned to pick up his food in a half hour if he does not eat because I am tired of throwing out food he will not eat. He does go a day or two without wanting his kibble mix and then eats like he is starving when he finally decides to eat. He will be two in April. He weighs 61 pounds now and goes for walks almost every day and plays fetch when I get home from work.