Reluctant eater with occasional diarrhoea!!....please help!!

[Laura & Naboo]

Dear doodle friends,

Naboo is our 9 month old golden doodle....he is adorable and weighs 52lbs. He has Natural balance food, dried with just a spoon of wet food mixed in. He is the fussiest eater ever...rarely eats in the morning then need coaxing to eat mid-morning and in the evening...rarely finishing his meal. He has no table food with biscuits/chews and training treats but only after he has eaten. He seems to like a food for about 3 days then seems to be not bothered about eating at all...I think if I left him he wouldn't eat somedays. He occasionally has diarrhoea..may be once a month just for a day or so and I can't really relate this to anything different happening.

I have started giving him small bully sticks lately but have just cleaned up a very mucous type poop with a few very grisly lumps in it so I'm wondering whether this could be undigested bully stick. Perhaps this is a different issue to the whole eating thing but wondered if others have had this reaction?

I've spoken to 'pet 'nutritionalist' in Petco and we have tried a couple of other good quality foods but this hasn't made him keener to eat. We have tried Holistic and Solid gold. I'm not sure whether to switch to another new brand and if so which one. I've never had a dog before who needs encouragement to eat and find it very frustrating as I know he needs good nutrition. He is otherwise active and very healthy. Can anyone please give any advice?

thank you!
Laura.

[Anne G.]

First off, Naboo is adorable! We had some eating issues with Murphy but have settled on a diet that has worked so far (knock on wood!). We give her Natural Balance dry mixed with a scoop of cottage cheese in the AM and Natural Balance dry mixed with a variety of high protein wet foods in the evening. After being a fussy eater and often leaving some or all of her food, she now cleans her bowl with every meal. Maybe it is just luck as I'm no food expert, but that's what is going on with our 7 month old. Good luck, I hate it when they don't eat or don't eat enough. It's very worrisome!!

[Laura & Naboo]

Thank you Anne for your suggestions. I'm so glad you've found a good solution for Murphy and I hope I do also with my Naboo....I can't wait for the day when he cleans his bowl. He is however healthy and active so I guess he is getting adequate nutrition but the 'not eating' thing just is horrid!!...thanks again..xx

[Kaytlin and Cooper]

Some dogs just arent big eaters Im afraid, but you could try giving him something with high protein (lots of meat, not corn) such as Orijen or Acana, (above 30%) and rotate flavours each time you buy a bag to keep interest. Maybe try a different protein to what your dog is used to (red meats for example).  Try and stay away from toppings as they can start to get expensive with a bigger dog, and the dog then will often refuse to eat food without it (it can create an even fussier dog).

 

A dog will never starve itself. Sometimes you have to just be firm and wait it out. They will eat when they are hungry.

 

It is quite common for a dog to not eat one day. Cooper does this quite often. Also, at 9 months, maybe your dog has slowed growing and doesnt need as much food as he used to. Cooper will also have diarrhea once in a while, for no particular reason. I think thats pretty normal.

[Laura & Naboo]

Hi Kaytlin,
Thank you for your advice which sounds very good and makes sense. I've a lot about the Orijens brand and it's success with 'fussy' eater so I will see where I can get some to try. I know he won't starve but just hate it when he doesn't eat. Some days I am stronger than others with him.....you know how those big eyes can be very persuasive..haaha! He has definitely slowed in his growth too so I need to acknowledge that he doesn't need as much now...
thank you again..xx

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

I agree with Kaytlin. I would switch to a grain-free, nutritionally dense food like Orijen. Natural Balance is very low in protein. Dogs who are picky eaters need a food that packs a lot of punch per cup, so they get a lot of nutrition in a small amount of food. You won't find Orijen in Petsmart or Petco, you'll need a private pet supply store for most of the really premium quality foods.

Another suggestion would be to rotate formulas every bag, tio keep her interested in her food. So if you switch to Orijen, once she's adjusted to it, try the 6 Fish formula one bag, the Regional Red formula the next bag, and the Adult formula after that.

(I would also be careful about taking nutritional advice from a clerk at Petco. Keep in mind that there is no formal academic program for canine nutrition other than a veterinary specialty degree, and most of what store clerks know about pet nutrition, they learned from sales reps. Some of them may have attended a seminar or two, also usually arranged by someone who is selling something.)

Bully sticks are very hard on most dogs' digestive systems. My guy is almost 7 years old and has a very good digestive system, and bully sticks can even upset his stomach from time to time.

Vomiting occasionally is normal. My guy vomited his whole dinner this evening. I'm not worried about it.

I also agree with Kaytlin that a healthy dog will not starve itslef, and not eating for a day or so is perfectly normal. At 9 months, your dog is very close to full skeletal growth, especially if she's a smaller sized doodle who isn't expected to hit 80 lbs. She doesn't need as much food as she did when she was experiencing rapid growth. A lean dog is always healthier than one who is overweight.

 

[Laura & Naboo]

Hi Karen,

This is very good advice and I feel reassured by it. I am going to see where I can get the Orijens food for Naboo to try and shall certain do the rotation suggestion. I really wasn't sure about the bully stacks but got them as he gets through all kinds of other chews very quickly and loves something he can really get 'stuck in to'....it did seem a bit of a coincidence that he got an icky tummy after eating one though. may be I will try him again when he gets a bit older and I have sorted out his basic eating.

Thank you again...xx

[Jackie]

I can't give Beckett bully sticks. He either gets loose poops or he vomits. He can't have flossie sticks either.

[Laura & Naboo]

Hmmmm.....Definitely no more bully sticks for Naboo!!

[Amy, Cubbie & Ollie]

Laura, I understand where you are coming from.  We were always trying to cater to our super picky dog, Cubbie and it got to be very frustrating but I always felt bad when he didn't eat.  I finally got to the point where I decided that I had done enough and that he would eat when he is hungry and stopped buying all kinds of different canned food toppers.  I started giving him some salmon oil (the Grizzly brand) on his food to help with some dry skin and he really LOVES the taste of it.  He will literally lick the bowl clean.  I was trying to help his skin and just stumbled upon something that makes him excited about his food. 

[Laura & Naboo]

Glad you found that solution for Cubbie...what s teak of luck!!...I shall add that to my list for a trial!..thank you!

[Ozzy Bob and Leanna]

Laura,

I can definitely relate to your "reluctant eater".  My dog is a fussy eater too.  We made the mistake by giving him bites from the dinner table and have ruined him!  I've tried all kinds of food, but he's not interested in dog food UNLESS I crumble up a cooked hamburger, chicken with it.   It worries me so much that he's getting too much protein, but he acts like he feels fine and has good bowell movements.  I'm going to do what Anne G suggested and try some cottage cheese on his kimble in the AM and some wet dog food in the PM.  Hopefully, this will help me from cooking up chicken and hamburger to crumble on his food!  Geeeeez, I do as much for Ozzy as I did my children nearly! ha

We have alot in common it seems as Ozzy is 9 months old too and weighs 49 lbs.  Birthday is Dec 1st, 2010, when is Naboo's birthday?  Could they be brothers?!?!  ha

Good luck with Naboo! 

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Leanna, as far as too much protein goes, it would be very hard for a dog to get too much protein; it's their natural food. There are only three macronutrients, protein, carbohydrate, and fat...all calories must come from some combination of these three. We know that too much fat is not good, and dogs do not really need any carbohydrates...they can make energy from protein and fat alone.

Also, cottage cheese is a protein source...anything that comes from an animal is primarily protein, including dairy products. So depending on the amount and type of cottage cheese, chicken, beef, etc. you may not be cutting any protein by substituting cottage cheese for other types of protein in Ozzy's food. dairy products can also cause diarrhea in some dogs. You might want to try just adding a tablespoon of plain non-fat unflavored yogurt to his food; the probiotics are an added benefit.

You can also use scrambled or chopped hard-boiled eggs as a food topper; if you keep hardboiled eggs on hand, it's easy and quick food topper that doesn't involve cooking.