# My Puppy isnt Finishing his Food



## Rusty (Jan 3, 2012)

Hello fellow GSD/dog owners, Ive been feeding my puppy Orijen Large Breed Puppy since ive got him and he seems to have been liking alot until the past 3 days he nibbles at his food and doesnt eat 1/2 of it he isnt skinny the vet says he is very healthy, Is he not eating his food because he doesnt like his food? His stools are Very solid and hes 8 weeks old? Is there a way to make his food more appealing also should i be adding alot of water to soften his food up because Orijen Large Breed puppy food kibbles are Huge and hard 
The Breeder was feeding him the same food aswell
Thanks alot hope you guys can help!


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## Lucy Dog (Aug 10, 2008)

How much are you trying to feed per day and per meal? 

How much is he actually eating?

How long have you had him? Has he been doing this since you got him?


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## Rusty (Jan 3, 2012)

Im Feeding him 1 Cup Breakfast 1 Cup Dinner and there is about 25% food leftover ive had him for a week and 2 days so hes actually 9 weeks now. Thanks for the fast reply!


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## TrooperK-9 (Jan 18, 2012)

*GSD Eating*

I had the same issue with my dog at 5 months old. All my fellow handlers suggested to put 1 scrabbled egg in his food. It worked great and he now eats like a Champ....


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## Rusty (Jan 3, 2012)

Sounds like a good idea will have to try it sometime


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## Lucy Dog (Aug 10, 2008)

I'd speak to the breeder and ask how his appetite was when he was with them. He's in his new home now and may need time to adjust. He's out of his comfort zone, away from his brothers and sisters for the first time, and it may just take some time.

For a puppy his age, feed him 3 times a day. Morning, afternoon, and dinner. Feed 3/4 a cup per meal. Put the food down and give him 10 minutes to eat it. If he doesn't finish his meal in time, pick up the food and don't feed until the next meal time. When that time comes, drop the food and do it all over again. You're training him that when the food hits the ground, it's meal time. 

If the vet says he's healthy and his weight looks good, don't worry about it too much. A healthy dog will not starve himself. Try what I said and give him time to adjust. Some dogs just aren't big eaters, especially in the beginning.


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## Lucy Dog (Aug 10, 2008)

TrooperK-9 said:


> I had the same issue with my dog at 5 months old. All my fellow handlers suggested to put 1 scrabbled egg in his food. It worked great and he now eats like a Champ....


No need to scramble it.. just feed it raw if you want. I wouldn't do it with every meal though. I usually give about 2 raw eggs per week on top of the kibble.


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## Rusty (Jan 3, 2012)

Sounds perfect ill give the breeder a call tomorrow im in the military and on leave for the next 2 weeks ive planned to spend alot of time with my puppy and now that ill be home most of the day i can feed him 3 times a day i hope when hes 11 weeks he can adjust back to 2 meals a day because i wont be able to come home for lunch as i work in pearl harbor and i live pretty far away. Ok so just raw egg in his food ill give that a try aswell and 3/4 cup 3x a day sounds like a great idea the vet says his in good shape they also recommended science diet but im thinking thats because they have it all over there store haha! Mayi ask how much he should be in lbs for 9 weeks? i know we weighted him last week at the vet and he was 15.5? Thanks alot for the very useful information and quick responses !


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## MustLoveGSDs (Oct 31, 2008)

You can also pour chicken broth over the kibble and try that, never had a dog refuse it  Also, Science Diet is a HUGE step down in quality from Orijen, Vets are not nutritionists...stick with the Orijen


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## Rusty (Jan 3, 2012)

*Sounds good*

Sounds like an awesome idea and as for science diet not gunna happen haha!
For chicken straight out of the can, sorry new to this haha


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## doggiedad (Dec 2, 2007)

i got my pup when he was 9 weeks old.
i fed him 1 cup in the am, 1 cup noonish
and 1 cup in the pm. he also had a snack
throughout the day. one 2 different occassions
my pup stopped eating his food. i switched brands
and he starting eating as usual. maybe your
dog doesn't like what you're feeding him. as far as
toppings for my dogs food i use:

organic yogurt.
salmon oil (human grade).
canned food.
various fish in a can. (in water,
no salt added).
fresh fish.
apples, pears, blueberries (all fresh).
raw egg.
whole egg (grind the shell).
cooked boneless and skinless chicken breast
4 oz pattie of fresh ground beef (raw).
table scraps when appropriate.

i always add warm water to my dogs kibble.
sometimes i feed my dogs kibble plain (nothing
but kibble and water).


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## Anthony8858 (Sep 18, 2011)

The Orijen daily requirements list a puppy up to 3 months, requiring 1.75 -2 cups a day.

If you say that he's leaving 25%, I wouldn't worry about it.

Hint:

So many people complain about loose stools. And so many times, it's because of over feeding.
You have an 8 week old pup, with firm stools, eating 75% of one of the best foods money can buy.

What you may have to do, is make his meals smaller, and more frequent. 8 week olds, should eat 3X a day. If you spread out those 2 cups over three meals, it might make a difference.
Maybe his little stomach can't handle a whole cup yet.


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## Rusty (Jan 3, 2012)

*Sweet*



doggiedad said:


> i got my pup when he was 9 weeks old.
> i fed him 1 cup in the am, 1 cup noonish
> and 1 cup in the pm. he also had a snack
> throughout the day. one 2 different occassions
> ...


Sounds like a great idea to feed him 3 times a day. Looks like I need to head to the Grocery store and do some Food shopping!



Anthony8858 said:


> The Orijen daily requirements list a puppy up to 3 months, requiring 1.75 -2 cups a day.
> 
> If you say that he's leaving 25%, I wouldn't worry about it.
> 
> ...


Yup he is having solid poops and ill try the 3x a Day as every 1 suggested and ill try some toppings aswell to see if he will like Orijen Large Breed puppy more


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## Clyde (Feb 13, 2011)

Lucy Dog said:


> For a puppy his age, feed him 3 times a day. Morning, afternoon, and dinner. Feed 3/4 a cup per meal. Put the food down and give him 10 minutes to eat it. If he doesn't finish his meal in time, pick up the food and don't feed until the next meal time. When that time comes, drop the food and do it all over again. You're training him that when the food hits the ground, it's meal time.
> 
> If the vet says he's healthy and his weight looks good, don't worry about it too much. A healthy dog will not starve himself. Try what I said and give him time to adjust. Some dogs just aren't big eaters, especially in the beginning.


I would follow this great advice. Anything else is just going to create a picky dog no need to add extras to the food everyday if your puppy is healthy.

My biggest pet peeve is people who complain about how picky their overweight dogs are Of course I do not mean you right now but adding extras and switching food just because the dog doesn't seem to like it will likely lead you down that path in the future.


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## Holmeshx2 (Apr 25, 2010)

I would do the smaller meals 3 times a day right now hes on an awesome kibble and you REALLY don't want to create a picky eater at 9 weeks old. Are you doing any training with him if so maybe take part of the kibble and instead of putting it in a bowl just use it for rewards for sitting or looking at you place some kibble on the ground for him to scavenge around for. You get to feed him and wear his little brain out which in turn gives you a quiet tired puppy and lets you keep your sanity longer lol. 

You really REALLY don't want to create a picky eater this young if he ate it fine at his breeder and still eating it just let it go maybe he's full and just doesnt need more just keep an eye on his weight if hes not losing I wouldnt be worried.


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## Rusty (Jan 3, 2012)

Clyde said:


> I would follow this great advice. Anything else is just going to create a picky dog no need to add extras to the food everyday if your puppy is healthy.
> 
> My biggest pet peeve is people who complain about how picky their overweight dogs are Of course I do not mean you right now but adding extras and switching food just because the dog doesn't seem to like it will likely lead you down that path in the future.


I understand thanks for the advice, I just fed him this morning 3/4 Cup and he downed it pretty fast so i hope he will eat during lunch time ( Giving this 3x a Day thing a Try )



Holmeshx2 said:


> I would do the smaller meals 3 times a day right now hes on an awesome kibble and you REALLY don't want to create a picky eater at 9 weeks old. Are you doing any training with him if so maybe take part of the kibble and instead of putting it in a bowl just use it for rewards for sitting or looking at you place some kibble on the ground for him to scavenge around for. You get to feed him and wear his little brain out which in turn gives you a quiet tired puppy and lets you keep your sanity longer lol.
> 
> You really REALLY don't want to create a picky eater this young if he ate it fine at his breeder and still eating it just let it go maybe he's full and just doesnt need more just keep an eye on his weight if hes not losing I wouldnt be worried.


You are right he is on a awesome kibble, i do training with him alot and use his kibble for his reward and he seems to love it so yea maybe im not giving him enough Exercise to be super hungry any recommendations on how far to walk or run with a 9 week old pup? I do play Fetch with him and he seems to love that and just walk around the block and he is very energetic!

Thanks for all the input!


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## Holmeshx2 (Apr 25, 2010)

On leash I wouldn't push it however off leash it's amazing how far they can go. I LOVE off leash at this age look on here for videos from Maggieroselee she has lots of pics of bretta and glory from when glory was a tiny pup. I have some videos of Jinx when she was the age of your pup and our off leash hikes. Not sure how far we went but we'd go hiking for a few hours at a time. On leash its more forced so you cant go that long but off leash they can speed up and slow down as they want, they can stop and take breaks just make sure to go at the puppy's speed. We would stop to let her play in sand stop for lots of little water breaks, lots of pets and praise, have her re-do something that was great for confidence building (climbing over a log, going over wobbly rocks, going through a dark tunnel etc..) They have the natural desire to be right with you at this age so its a great time to give the foundation of being off leash and not running off. Great time to have her run between hubby and I with lots of treats and praise for working on her recall etc... Such an awesome age for learning and setting a great foundation.


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## mebully21 (Nov 18, 2011)

if you are using his kibble for training rewards he is just getting full faster which is probably why he doesnt eat all his food.. i would not put any human food on his kibble, you might create a super picky eater.. if you use his kibble as training treats that is fine, and if when you feed him after training he doesnt finish his food that is fine too. you can get regular treats for training, this way he will respond faster to a better treat then just plain ol kibble...

mine get buddy soft chews broken in half for training treats, and on nights i train they get half a cup less of kibble since i make up the half cup in training treats lol...


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## doggiedad (Dec 2, 2007)

what's a picky eater?? i give my dog his kibble which i change
bag to bag. i have sevral different brands of can food on hand.
as you see i mix my dogs food with several things. he eats everything
i feed him. is he being picky??? giving your dog different things to
eat might not lead to a picky eater. i've always fed my dogs lots of different things. all of them eat what i feed so i dont see the picky eater.



Clyde said:


> I would follow this great advice. Anything else is just going to create a picky dog no need to add extras to the food everyday if your puppy is healthy.
> 
> My biggest pet peeve is people who complain about how picky their overweight dogs are Of course I do not mean you right now but adding extras and switching food just because the dog doesn't seem to like it will likely lead you down that path in the future.


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## Clyde (Feb 13, 2011)

doggiedad said:


> what's a picky eater?? i give my dog his kibble which i change
> bag to bag. i have sevral different brands of can food on hand.
> as you see i mix my dogs food with several things. he eats everything
> i feed him. is he being picky??? giving your dog different things to
> eat might not lead to a picky eater. i've always fed my dogs lots of different things. all of them eat what i feed so i dont see the picky eater.


Maybe you dont have a picky eater but that doesn't mean they don't exist and the advise given is the way they are created. I am not saying you can't feed your dogs yummy human food my guys can go from a raw meal one day to kibble the next or just a can of dog food and some rice if I was bad and ran out of food. The difference is I am giving these different foods because of my schedule and not in response to what my dogs want which is what the OP would have been doing.


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