Goldendoole won't eat at home.

[Felix]

My goldendoodle Mulligan has been the sweetest puppy, but lately I felt like she has the "only child" syndrome.  My neighbor babysit her while we are at school, and they have two dogs.  She would inhale her food (or the neighbor dog's food) at their place, she can finish a whole cup in less than 2 minutes.  But at home, she would not even touch her own food.  She is only 9 month old and had only gained one pound for the last month.  What drives me crazy is that at home her food is good organic food with no preservatives and high concentration of meat, and the neighbor's dog food is a low quality, full of by-product cheap brand.  I even bought the same food for her at the neighbor's house, but she wouldn't eat her own food but only the neighbor's dog food.  The only time she would eat a little bit at home is when she gets really really hungry and there are no other options.  What should I do?  

[1xar0x2rcx0li]

Under most circumstances a healthy dog won't starve itself. Dont worry. Your pup may be eating so fast next door because they don't want the other dogs to ear it, not due to hunger. At home there is no urgency. She'll eat if hungry. How's her weight?

[Felix]

Thanks for replying!  She has been gaining a pound or two every week since we got her in October.  But for the last month and half she had only gained 0.7 pounds.  And after her haircut she looked extremely underweight.  It is so hard to watch when she's not eating.  She's 9 month old and weights 45 pounds.

[Suzann, Rosey & Bandit]

I would politely ask that your neighbors not feed her.  She needs a good quality food and in the right amount, many suggestions are made on the Food Group here on DK. http://www.doodlekisses.com/group/thefoodgroup I would want to know how much she is eating and if she is tolerating it.  How much does she weigh?  They do start slowing growth around 9 mos and she may not need puppy food anymore, unless she needs to gain weight.  Good Luck!!

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

We had a discussion in the Food Group about the reason dogs go crazy for poor quality dog food some years back; the answer is that many of the cheaper kibbles are sprayed with rancid fat to make them irresistible to dogs. To this day, it's hard to tear JD away from the bags of Science Diet stacked up in the pet supply store.

We do have lots of tips in the FG for ways to get fussy dogs to eat; But I do agree with Todd, a healthy dog will not starve herself and will eventually eat what's served. I also agree with Suzann, at 9 months, your pup may have reached full skeletal growth and doesn't need as many calories as she was previously getting.

[Kaytlin and Cooper]

Why does a child choose to eat Macdonalds and fries rather than steak and boiled potatoes?

 

She is probably so full of the fillers in the cheap food she is no longer hungry. Tell the neighbour to not feed her, and not let her eat the other dogs food. She will eat at home when shes ready.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

From a Food group discussion back in 2008:
"Do the dog food companies put something in the crap foods & treats to make dogs like them? Is there some kind of scent enhancer or flavor booster or something that attracts Jack to the crappiest stuff at the pet supply store? Or is it just him?
At Pet Supplies Plus today, he was just mesmerized by some bags of Science Diet kibble stacked in the middle of the aisle. I couldn't pull him away. Then, while cruising the bins of bones, rawhides, etc., he chose a big roll of some kind of chopped up yellow rawhide that was clearly marked "Made in China". At the bulk biscuit bins, he started gobbling up some hard bone-shaped biscuits like he had never eaten before- he stuck his whole head in the bin. (He is indulged by the staff, as they hear the cash registers ringing every time he walks in the door...they know Mommy is a sucker.)
Anyway, I looked at the ingredients in these biscuits, and almost barfed...(wheat, more wheat, pork fat, 'animal fat' (one wonders what animal, if they could not even name it) etc.
All-natural gourmet dog biscuits from the specialty dog bakery, he spits out on the pantry floor. Unknown animal fat, gimme some of that. $40 a bag holistic kibble, ehhhh. Science Diet, yummy! And as I said once before, I notice more of an appetizing aroma coming from the crap stuff. Is there something to this, or is it just my nutcase?

Reply by LynneNJ on December 13, 2008 at 4:18pm
From page 12 of, Foods Pets Die For, "Fats can be sprayed directly on pet food or mixed with other ingredients. Fats give off a pungent odor that entices your pet to eat the garbage. These fats are sourced from restaurant grease, which is often rancid and certainly unfit for human consumption. Another main source of fat comes from the rendering plant. This is obtained from the tissues of mammals and/or poultry in the commercial rendering process." (Do you know what really happens in rendering plants?) The grease removed from the rendering process is used to entice a hungry dog or cat. All of it is disgusting and should be criminal."

[Felix]

This is really helpful.  I've always wondered why she never likes all the organic food I bought her but the ones that just smells like grease.....

[Jennifer and Jack]

Jack is a very picky eater, he can go a day or two without eating much, but put another dog in the room with him and he scoffs his food right down.  When we were staying with my friend that had three doodles, Jack at each meal ate his food right down. I think it was like he needed to eat it or someone else would, At home, he knows no one will touch it so he doesn't eat.

 

I really like Jack to chew on the bone marrow bones it is so good for his teeth. When I buy some for him, I always buy some for my neighbors dog as well. This way when I want Jack to eat one, I go get my neighbors dog and I give them each a bone. Jack goes to town on it, cleans his teeth real well,

 

As soon as I bring the other dog home, he won't touch the bone....

 

My Jack also goes ape for the junk food, when we walk pet smart, Kibbles and Bits, I can barely rip him away from the bag and it is a bigger distraction for a heel position then a cat!! I am not kidding. My neighbor much to my dismay feeds all her animals what ever dog food is on sale at the food store that week and the first thing Jack looks for when we go there is the cat food and if he can't find that he goes for the dog food... I have to be careful.. I believe with my whole heart they put crap in there that makes them crave it.. just like me with white carbs but worse

[Eva (Lilo and Rocky)]

perhaps try alternating between a couple of different (high quality) foods, or add something interesting, like cooked green beans, cottage cheese, tuna fish, cooked chicken, chicken stock, carrots, etc etc. Eating the same foods every day gets boring, even for dogs. I'm guessing your dog likes the neighbor's food simply because it's different.

[Felix]

I've got her Wellness for puppies, Blue Bufflo large breed puppies, Nutro lamb and rice puppy food and now Organix.  She would only eat those when she's really hungry.....I didn't really want to change her diet too often, since it might upset her stomach.  But no matter which one I gave her, she loves it the first day, after a trip to my neighbor's house, it's like she wouldn't even care to look at her own food anymore......

[Adina P]

She is probably inhaling her food at the neighbor's house because there is competition for food there--in the sense that other dogs make her want to eat her food faster.  Plus even kids like McDonald's if they have the option to eat it no matter HOW healthy their parents cook at home.  So I wouldn't worry.  If it's possible it would be nice if your neighbor would feed the dogs separately so she couldn't eat the cheap food and didn't have to worry about inhaling her food either.  Is it a possibility for your neighbor to feed your dog separately and not let the dogs rejoin again until the other dogs have finished their food?  Or is the food left out all day?

[Felix]

I bought a bag of her food and left it at my neighbor's house and asked them kindly to feed her her puppy food.  She wouldn't eat her own food, instead she would starve all day, and they would feel bad for her and give her the big dog's food.  She gets her food in her own crate separately from the other dogs.