Going back to kibbles

    • Gold Top Dog

    Going back to kibbles

    Ok......so I tried home cooking for 2-3 months.  I like to go back to feeding her dry kibbles.  The thing is, she don't like solid gold, natural balance or nature variety.  I also don't want to go into raw feeding as well.  What other food brand do you suggest?  JJ also have allergies.  Aside from that, I had tried leaving her food sitting there for days.  She usually take a sniff, walk away and end up throwing up days later because of a empty stomach.  I had spend money on dog food that just went to waste because she won't eat them.  The vet also isn't much of a help, they usually suggest that I get the supermarket brands.  In search of a kibble that JJ actually eats!! 
    • Gold Top Dog
    Have you tried Timberwolf Organics (they have a fish formula, Ocean Blue), or  California Natural (they have a Herring & Potato formula).  California Natural also has a lamb and rice that comes in small bites for small breed dogs too (it only has lamb, white and brown rice).  

    Also, if you have trouble finding a kibble your dog will eat, why not just feed canned with a tiny bit of kibble?
    • Gold Top Dog
    What is JJ allergic to?
     
    • Bronze
    There is Nutro Ultra, Wellness, Chicken Soup for the Dog Lover's Soul, Newman's Own Organics, Artemis Fresh Mix. This are just some of the dog food you could try.
    • Gold Top Dog
    She tried Nature Variety, Merrick, Solid Gold, Natural Balance, Fromm, wellness can food.  She haven't try Avo, Innova, California Natural, Canidae and Abady.  Most of the time, the smell of the kibbles smells bad and I'm wondering if that is also something that makes her don't want to eat the kibbles.  Adding warm water, mixing with pumpkin, adding some vege, still won't interest her.  She don't like rice, sweet potato and sometimes even fruits won't interest her.  Never thought food could be such a hard thing to figure out what she would like to eat and what's best for her.  I had to go back to trying out one brand by one and leaving it sit there for days.  I'm just mostly worry about her empty stomach.
    • Gold Top Dog
    ORIGINAL: Fureverjen

    She tried Nature Variety, Merrick, Solid Gold, Natural Balance, Fromm, wellness can food.  She haven't try Avo, Innova, California Natural, Canidae and Abady.  Most of the time, the smell of the kibbles smells bad and I'm wondering if that is also something that makes her don't want to eat the kibbles.  Adding warm water, mixing with pumpkin, adding some vege, still won't interest her.  She don't like rice, sweet potato and sometimes even fruits won't interest her.  Never thought food could be such a hard thing to figure out what she would like to eat and what's best for her.  I had to go back to trying out one brand by one and leaving it sit there for days.  I'm just mostly worry about her empty stomach.

     
     
    Try adding some canned to her dry.. maybe that will stimulate her appetite.
    Also, FYI, if you go to the California Natural website and email them, if you request some samples of their food, they send them to you. I just got some. One of mine like it, one dont.
    Another thing too, is that when mine didnt seem to be eating their dry, I would sprinkle just one liver treat over the food or some Missing Link and they usually then ate it all for some reason.
    • Gold Top Dog
    Did you try Eagle Pack?   Our Ollie got really picky about food and since he has been on Eagle Pack he eats every drop.  BUT we cook a little meat and put on top...and try some plain yogurt, our dogs (Bubblegum AND Ollie)  love it.   In the AM, they get a raw egg which they hound down.   Lately I have been adding cooked canned unsalted veggies,,,but does Bubblegum love those. We always love to watch to see what Bubblegum eats first....the meat, yogurt, egg etc. But if you put carrots on top,.they are gone first.  She then eats all her kibble and licks her bowl for minutes afterwards.
    • Gold Top Dog
    I add jarred baby food to my dog's kibbles to get her to eat. I know she would probably eat them if I left it for a while, but I don't like her to be hungry because then she throws up bile.
     
    If you get any meat/veggie/fruit baby food and coat the kibbles with it, i bet your dog will love it. Its kind of like canned food, only healthier becuase its human grade.
    • Gold Top Dog
    Well, she has to eat and if all else fails, go ahead and  try the grocery store brands  And maybe you can little things to it if she likes like cottage cheese, boiled beef, chicken, etc, etc.  Depends on what she likes and what she is allergic to.  Mine eat Purina, but they also  get meat and veggies added every night.  Last night they had chicken hearts boiled with sweet potatoes with their little bit of dried.    Tonight they will get canned mackeral, canned (unslated) green beans and carrot slices.  Other nights they get boiled beef liver, chicken livers or gizzards or if I have luck fishing, fresh caught baked fished.  In the mornings they get mostly dry with the canned food 'Pill meatballs".  They each get a multivitamin, an EsterC and a Fish oil.  The 11 year old golden gets a couple of MSM/Glucosamine for his little of arthtirits and a thyroid for this low thryoid which he was diagnosed with about a year ago.   The almost 7 year old golden gets a synoviG3 and an MSM/Gluco because at at 16 months she had one knee operated on for luxating patellla, a year later her other for the same reason and we are trying to delay/lesson the severity of the arthritis when it hits. 
     
    However, sometimes in the mornings I add an egg done in the microwave and a little cheese.  this morning I was out of regular cheese, so added some cottage cheese and they loved it.  I also put in a large spoon of applesauce.
    • Gold Top Dog
    If all else fails and you really want to do kibble, try Bil-Jac dry.  Many people don't like it because of the by-products (which are not the cheap feathers feet and beaks, it's organ meats) but I have fed it throughout the years in rotation with other foods and my dogs do very well on it.
    Bonus is the taste- all my picky eaters would eat it with no questions.  They still devour it today.  And it fills tummies .  I like to put a splash of warm water over it and boy does it ever smell yummy.
     
    Good luck, picky eaters are a pain.
     
    • Gold Top Dog
    Yes, Bill-Jac dry is what the kennel (attached to the vet I work for) feeds picky eaters and they ALWAYS eat it.....if it's a serious pickiness case, they use Bil-Jac frozen.
    • Gold Top Dog
    May I ask why you want to stop homecooked?  I'm just curious because I just started my dog on homecooked and not sure I am doing it right.
    • Gold Top Dog
    I raised a Dane/Shepherd on BilJac frozen, the kibble hadn't even been invented by them yet.  But Cindy lived to 13, a great age for such a big dog.    The man I used to work for started his dog Bailey on BilJac kibble when he woudn't eat, and he started eating everything.  
    I told Mike (my son who owns Ollie) that if Ollie starts allergy trouble again he should try BilJac Frozen.   I do like the food, but I know its not available everywhere.      I think the dogs like the kibble because it has corn syrup in it.  If my dog was not eating I would try ANYTHING!!!!
    • Gold Top Dog
    Thanks for all the wonderful advise / ideas.  [sm=wink2.gif]  
     
    Sometimes I feel soo stuck at what to make for her to eat.   I use to buy JJ the supermarket brand can food and she would eat it and lick the bowl dry.  Then I stopped that after knowing how it's not really a good dog food for her.  So I started buying the can food from the holistic pet store.  The thing with those food, she don't like eating them.  Then I try mixing with kibbles and she still won't eat them.  The thing is that she don't like any can food that I find at the holistic pet store except Merrick.  I got to the point that I'll just do homecooking for her.  So it was fine, she eats them but lately she would leave the food sitting there before taking a small bite.  It's actually not good for her tummy because sometimes it takes 40 minutes and sometimes she would walk over to the food 2-3 hours later.  Then somedays she just would take a small bite and days later end up throwing up.  I figure either get food that she eats or get food that can sit there without getting spoil.  I even tried adding a spoon of yogurt, and vege, she would just take a sniff and walk away.  She isn't feeling too well because of the allergies and her poop is getting softer.  Just yesterday she had diarrhea, I think from eating some junk on the street. (need to put a muzzle on her)  [:'(]  I am planning to take her to the vet to get it check out but I know he will suggest supermarket brand to me aside from giving her some medicine and etc.   At this point I haven't been able to find a vet that I can really connect with in terms of asking questions and being sastify with the service.  So I am dealing with her not eating, having diarrhea, allergies possibility from the envoirnment that is bothering her causing her an occasional episode of reverse sneeze .  In the mean time, her tummy can't go without food.  And so I had tried home cooking and some days it's working, some days it's not.  This is when I decided to switch back to kibbles. 
    • Gold Top Dog
    Try the Timberwolf if you want a kibble, like the bison or Ocean Blue. I also have a dog with severe intestinal problems allergies, etc. but I had luck with a company called Urban Wolf, it's a powder pre-mix and you add the meat, raw or cooked. My dogs all loved it, it Timberwolf doesn't work for me this time around, that's what I'll have to feed.  it's nice because it's easy to make, it's powder, and you could whip it up easily. Plus it's moist and soft and has no grain. You might find your pup is allergic to grains, and this is great for that. You can even bake the batch and cut it up to make it like a kibble or as a cookie. Try one of those 2 and let me know. You have to buy your meat separately but you can use eggs i week (inexpensive), lamb another, beef another etc. This may even help you determine what your dog can be allergic to.
    Let me know. Any other info. just ask.[:)]