# Pup doesn't eat kibble very well...



## Annichka (May 14, 2009)

Ok, I feel kind of stupid. A couple of questions:

My puppy (8 wks) really doesn't seem to want to eat her kibble. I've been feeding her 3x a day, per a book I have. For a pup her size, the dog food suggests about 2 c a day (I'd say she weighs 15 lb but I haven't weighed her). I give her about a half cup of kibble at a time, and she eat some of it, but never in one sitting. Well, that's a problem, because my older dog will eat it if I don't confine one or the other of them. She frankly doesn't seem that interested in it.

So, it makes me wonder if I am feeding her too much or if she doesn't like the food that much. OR - and this seems like a real possibility - she fills up so much on training treats that she isn't hungry for her dinner. So, how do I avoid that if that's the case? Can I just give her kibble as treats rather than feeding her regular meals? The thing is, I seem to be having a lot of success with her training at the moment. She listens really, really well...

This puppy business can really make one feel clueless! My older dog was already 18 mo. when I got him, and he was a trainwreck - I had to do a lot of work with him. But this is soooo different...


----------



## allieg (Nov 4, 2008)

You can try to add canned food in.Or wet it and make a gravy.What are you feeding her?


----------



## Annichka (May 14, 2009)

"Nature's Recipe" puppy, dry kibble. I tried wetting it, because that's how my older dog likes it, too. I think she actually likes it better dry. But she still doesn't really like it. Should I try something different? Do some dogs really only like canned?

I know the breeder was feeding meat in addition to kibble. I could do that too, but to do it every day seems expensive.


----------



## allieg (Nov 4, 2008)

Would she eat if she was put in her kennel where the older dog won't get it?She may not like it and you may need to switch.I'm not familiar with Natures recipe.


----------



## Annichka (May 14, 2009)

We don't have a kennel, but we do have a small laundry room where she could be confined. 

I've never used Nature's Recipe before, myself - Augie eats Kirkland (Costco brand) food. I didn't have time to go to Costco to get puppy food on the day I needed it, so...Nature's Recipe. I intended to switch her to Kirkland gradually, though. Maybe I should just star switching her now?


----------



## Taylor (Apr 7, 2009)

If your other dog is eating Kirkland Adult, your pup can eat that too. Its just fine for her to eat Adult food. Kirkland is a great food for the price. She doesnt HAVE to have puppy food. Good luck.


----------



## allieg (Nov 4, 2008)

Since I have back up I will agree puppy food is not necessary.Your vet may argue but most people here have never fed puppy food.She just might need to eat more then the weight recommendation on the bag.


----------



## ArmyGSD (Apr 27, 2009)

By feeding adult food your puppy will get more nutrients than in puppy food....or so I think. Your adult blends will have more of a balance for an adult dog, but your puppy should have no issue with it what so ever.


----------



## Annichka (May 14, 2009)

Really? Hey, that's great! Thanks!


----------



## Barb E (Jun 6, 2004)

Depending on just how many treats you're giving, the pup may be full







They really do have tiny tummies at this age!

Where did you get your pup from?


----------



## Cassidy's Mom (Mar 30, 2003)

> Originally Posted By: AnnichkaCan I just give her kibble as treats rather than feeding her regular meals?


Of course! In our puppy class they wanted us to do that. I did feed some of Halo's meals in the bowl, for breakfast I didn't have time to do any training, but I was coming home mid-day and we did some training then, and then again when I got home in the evening. All of her lunch and most of her dinner was hand fed as training treats. 

It may be that she likes the treats better than her kibble. What are you using? When I use treats for training I use VERY tiny pieces so I can use a lot of them, but it's really not that much food.


----------



## Annichka (May 14, 2009)

Yeah, I might be giving her too many treats! I use Bil-Jac liver-flavored and also Mother Hubbard puppy cookies, but I do break them up (the Bil-Jac ones are HUGE so I cut them in 3 slices). She ate her breakfast ok this morning, but she never eats even CLOSE to what the bag says she should eat in a day. Tons of energy, though, so I guess she's getting nourishment. So maybe we'll start using kibble and not worry about feeding her out of a bowl. I'm a graduate student, and am home all day, so we're pretty much constantly training every minute we're together. It seems to be working out great.

I got her from a very small-time breeder in White Salmon (Forest Lane Kennel). I really liked this lady, and Sigrid's parents were beautiful and gentle dogs.


----------



## Cassidy's Mom (Mar 30, 2003)

I have no idea how big the Bil-Jac treats are, but if they're huge I'd cut then into much smaller pieces. I like the Old Mother Hubbard biscuits but I only use them for housebreaking treats or when puppy goes into the crate, (times when they're just getting one treat) but even then I'll often break them in half. 

I like the Zuke's Mini Naturals, which are about the size of a pea, and even THOSE I'll break into 2 or 3 pieces. I cut up Natural Balance rolls into pieces that are about 1/4" square. Solid Gold Jerkey is good too, and the are in flat pieces that are about 1" square. I cut them in one direction into 3 pieces and then cut each across into 3 or 4 pieces, so out of that approximately 1" square I get either 9 or 12 itty bitty pieces. If you're going to spend 5 or 10 minutes on a training session you really don't want treats any bigger than that. 

But using kibble is fine, especially at home. If you plan to put her in a class you may need something more high value to keep her attention, or you can mix some good stuff with her kibble and keep it in a ziplok bag so the treats flavor the kibble. I do like to feed SOME food out of a bowl so I can work on self control by having my dogs sit or down with the food bowl on the floor before being released to eat, (work up to this VERY slowly by releasing to eat the second the bowl touches the floor, pick up the bowl and wait for a sit again if puppy breaks) but you only need a small amount, so I'd usually give Halo 1/2 cup in the bowl for her evening meal and use the other cup for training before she got the rest.


----------



## Annichka (May 14, 2009)

Thanks for the tips. We've been working on that - sitting before dinner. She's caught on remarkably quickly, though I have to keep a light touch on her chest to keep her from breaking the second the food touches the floor. She's only 8 weeks though (but just got her Monday, and on Tuesday when we first tried this she squirmed and wouldn't sit still. This morning she took a second to remember what we were doing and then was admirably still for the split second I asked it of her. Are all GSD's that quick to learn? It's almost scary. I don't want to teach the wrong thing!).


----------

