# Eating Behavior



## cogswela (May 27, 2009)

Aeris is 9 weeks old today and we've had her for a week. She's very well adjusted to the home and loves playing with us! When it comes time for food she is very excited and follows me around until I have her sit or lay for her kibble but she won't touch the food without my intervention. She'll drink the water, take a bite of the food and then circle and lay next to the bowl. If I hold the food in my hand she'll eat it but I have to continually re-direct her to the bowl to get her to eat anything.

I'm currently feeding her Purina One Large Breed Dog Food and I feel like the kibble is a bit too big for her because she can only eat one at a time. 

Questions:

1. Could she not like the food?
2. Could she just be so excited that she is up and about that she doesn't want to eat?
3. I know there are a ton of threads on here about food but is there another Purina One that I could switch to that has smaller kibble bits?
4. Could there be another issue?

Thanks for your time. If you have any questions please ask!


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## onyx'girl (May 18, 2007)

Can you change brands instead of sticking w/ Purina? There are better foods out there for sure. The ingredients are just not what I would be wanting my puppy to eat.
Ingredients in Purina One Large Breed:
_Chicken (natural source of glucosamine), brewers rice, corn gluten meal, whole grain wheat, whole grain corn, poultry by-product meal (natural source of glucosamine), pea fiber, oat meal, corn germ meal, fish meal, animal fat preserved with mixed-tocopherols (form of Vitamin E), animal digest, calcium carbonate, dried egg product, salt, calcium phosphate, potassium citrate, potassium chloride, Vitamin E supplement, choline chloride, L-Lysine monohydrochloride, L-ascorbyl-2-polyphosphate (source of Vitamin C), zinc sulfate, ferrous sulfate, niacin, Vitamin A supplement, manganese sulfate, calcium pantothenate, copper sulfate, garlic oil, pyridoxine hydrochloride, Vitamin B-12 supplement, thiamine mononitrate, riboflavin supplement, Vitamin D-3 supplement, menadione sodium bisulfite complex (source of Vitamin K activity), folic acid, calcium iodate, biotin, sodium selenite._


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## cogswela (May 27, 2009)

> Originally Posted By: onyx'girlCan you change brands instead of sticking w/ Purina? There are better foods out there for sure. The ingredients are just not what I would be wanting my puppy to eat.
> Ingredients in Purina One Large Breed:


Yes, I can. I was just sticking with what the breeder was feeding







My vet recommended iams but I haven't tried to feed her anything else. Money really isn't an issue either, I can afford more expensive food. Do you have a suggestion?


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## roxy84 (Jun 23, 2007)

it happens very often.
breeder feeds purina
vet recommends iams
people you would think would have a least a rudimentary knowlegde of what else is available. if i mention orijen or natures variety or any other non grocery store food, i always get a "hmm, never heard of it, ill look into it." of course, they never look into it.


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## onyx'girl (May 18, 2007)

If you can get Orijen or Acana, this would be my choice for a pup, recent threads on diet for pups are many, worth checking out.
Even if you local shops don't carry them, it is worth asking if they will order it for you. Many shops don't have the space or overhead to carry the better brands but can get them-sometimes you have to pre-pay.


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## cogswela (May 27, 2009)

> Originally Posted By: roxy84it happens very often.
> breeder feeds purina
> vet recommends iams
> people you would think would have a least a rudimentary knowlegde of what else is available. if i mention orijen or natures variety or any other non grocery store food, i always get a "hmm, never heard of it, ill look into it." of course, they never look into it.


Is that what you're recommending, Orijen / Natures Variety? I'd love to switch as I only want the best for my pup! Is there specific brands I'm looking for? (Web page links work great for me!)

Something like...
http://www.amazon.com/Orijen-Large-Breed-Puppy-Formula/dp/B000W5N24O perhaps?


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## cogswela (May 27, 2009)

> Originally Posted By: roxy84it happens very often.
> breeder feeds purina
> vet recommends iams
> people you would think would have a least a rudimentary knowlegde of what else is available. if i mention orijen or natures variety or any other non grocery store food, i always get a "hmm, never heard of it, ill look into it." of course, they never look into it.


Also I'd like to add that with the sheer number of threads that are floating around in the puppy forum that it is almost impossible to pick out just one dog food as everyone has their own opinions. A great resource for us new dog owners would be a sticky that says:
*
MOST PEOPLE ON THIS FORUM USE X FOR DOG FOOD BETWEEN AGE X AND X. 

AT X AGE THEY SWITCH TO RAW OR X FOOD.*

I've learned SOOOOOOOOO much from these forums but the only thing I was confused on was food because, again, of the way the information is presented. Please teach me! I'm like a sponge, I want to absorb it ALL!!


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## JeanKBBMMMAAN (May 11, 2005)

Unfortunately...there is no such information because it all depends on what works best for your dog. Not even a first time puppy person, I had to start the research process all over again-and it was not easy! I know what you are saying-I tried to read threads that said that-what is the best food-kind of thing. 

I think Orijen Large Breed Puppy looks like it could be the best food, but my foster puppies' systems did not think so. AT ALL! 

So now they eat California Natural, a limited ingredient food with grains and it seems to work. And they are eating the adult food. 

I think people do need to look at those calcium/phos ratios carefully. And I wish we knew more optimal amounts of fat...

What I try to do is go through ingredient lists, and info panels and get a few foods to consider. Then start trying them based on what I am seeing in the dog. 

This website has some good information (and some biases-all these food sites and people seem to







) on the left hand side about choosing foods: http://www.dogfoodproject.com 

And this is a thread about chosing the CA Natural: http://www.germanshepherds.com/forum/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=1130432&page=1#Post1130432


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## cogswela (May 27, 2009)

Thanks for the reply Jean, I appreciate yours and everyones time.

Lets say I was going to go with Orijen LBP, how long would you feed them the food? I'm understanding the difference between fillers and non-fillers and what the dog should really eat but I'm not sure if a switch would ever be required because most importantly she will not be a puppy forever!

I was also looking at http://www.naturesvariety.com/prairie_dog and its in my price range for a months supply. If I was to switch to NV would that be something that I would eventually feed down the line at say 6 months?

Bah, my head is spinning. Sorry for all the questions...I'm just trying to understand!


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## BowWowMeow (May 7, 2007)

It IS confusing and there are so many more foods out there now...which is a good thing but makes it that much more confusing.









Nature's Variety should be fine for a puppy. If you do choose Orijen (my favorite kibble for sure) then you'll want to switch her very slowly to minimize digestive issues. I'd also recommend buying some cans of Merrick to mix in with the dry food. That can really get them interested in their food! 

Here is a little article to help educate you about the food choosing process. http://www.whole-dog-journal.com/sample/how-to-choose-dog-food.html

Good luck!


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## JKlatsky (Apr 21, 2007)

I've seen some dogs that do well on Orijen and some that do NOT. The coats would look fabulous but the dogs would be skin and bones and have a hard time putting on weight, and their owners would say It can't be the food! I feed Orijen! It's the best. You can't be in that mindset because I think sometimes you have to try it and see how it works for your puppy. I know people who feed SD and their dogs look great with no problems. Personally I prefer not to go Grain Free right away unless I have to, because money is an issue for me sometimes. 

I remember trying Chicken Soup for Anka when she small and she got a really weird smell when she was on it. We went to Candidae which worked very well until they changed formulas. 

Right now I feed Wellness LBP to my 2 pups and I'm very happy with the results. 

The dog food analysis web site is a good place to check things out...I'm usually happy feeding anything 4 stars or above.


Also, I find that when my puppies are small I need to crate/kennel or basically leave them alone with no toys. They want to play SO much that they forget about eating. I leave them alone with their food for about 15 minutes, and when I come back I take up what has been left. After a meal or 2 they're usually eating pretty well. 

Also, what are your expectations for feeding? Some people are very concerned when their puppy isn't eating as much as they feel they should be. I've always found my GSDs are way below the bag recommendation for feeding. My 92lb male eats about 2.5 cups a day...the bag would have him eating somewhere between 3.5-4.5. If I feed him that much he'll quit eating. Likewise with my female, she's about 2 cups a day, and the puppies who are growing like weeds are somewhere between 3-4 cups/day. If they look healthy and have good energy they're eating as much as they need to.


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## BowWowMeow (May 7, 2007)

One more thing: I don't think you really need to go grain free right away. Many dogs digest grains without a problem. And as others have said, Orijen and some of the other high protein foods are just too much for some dogs' systems to handle.


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## cogswela (May 27, 2009)

> Originally Posted By: BowWowMeowOne more thing: I don't think you really need to go grain free right away. Many dogs digest grains without a problem. And as others have said, Orijen and some of the other high protein foods are just too much for some dogs' systems to handle.


I see. Looks like I have a lot of reading to do. Thanks for the info everyone!!







I'm sure I'll be back to ask more questions.


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## Kurys Mom (Oct 11, 2008)

http://www.dogaware.com/dogfeeding.html#commercial

Wonderful information. Covers many aspects and kinds of food.


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## cogswela (May 27, 2009)

looks like I'll be reading instead of playing the DS during breaks today 

With puppy food how long would you feed them it? Assuming I decided to go with say the Wellness mix?
http://www.petco.com/product/108011/Well...r:referralID=NA


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## Tbarrios333 (May 31, 2009)

I think until about one year old?
I'm not 100% sure though









You can feed puppies adult foods sometimes. You just have to watch for the calcium level. 
1.3% is nice, 2% is believed to be too much.


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## Kurys Mom (Oct 11, 2008)

Lot's of reading for sure...

Myself, I feed LG Breed Puppy until 5-6 months, others do it differently.


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## cogswela (May 27, 2009)

> Originally Posted By: Kürys Mom
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Can I ask what you feed after 5 - 6 months?


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## Kurys Mom (Oct 11, 2008)

Currently I feed my Goldens and GS Ty LB Innova Adult. Ty was eating LB Puppy Innova. I also feed some raw. Other days add Merrick canned to the kibble. All my dogs will eat Innova without anything, they just love it. 

I like the results for my dogs, they have beautiful, soft coats, great teeth, great weight, etc. 

It was my main concern to provide Ty with great nutrition that would allow him to grow as slowly as possible. He is huge and his growth rate was extreme, (finally slowing some). He is big boned also. 

It's a learning process, some dogs don't do well on certain foods, some are ok with grains and some not, some need a single protein not multiple proteins, etc. there is just no one size fits all so to speak.


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## Barb E (Jun 6, 2004)

My rule of thumb (For what it's worth







) is to feed an All Life Stages food from the get go unless I choose to feed a brand that doesn't have an All Life Stages and the adult food isn't appropriate for our pups like Orijen.


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