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Canidae - Maddy doesn't eat much

PamH

Well-known member
I have Maddy on canidae lamb and rice. She has this very strange habit. She will take one little kibble out of her bowl and take it over to the dining room rug to eat it. It takes her forever to eat just a few kibbles. Not only that but she doesn't seem that interested in it. If I use it as a training treat she will eat it, but only a couple.
I have tried mixing it with a "gravy" the dog bakery gave me to try.
I have tried mixing it with scrambled eggs etc.
She just doesn't seem to like it mixed with stuff. She picks out the scrambled eggs and she didn't like it with the gravy at all!
I don't know what to do as she needs to gain a couple of pounds.
I have been giving her some cottage cheese, chicken etc. but that really just seems to compound the problem and make her even less interested in her canidae.
Perhaps she is bored with it? Should I try switching her? I have given her canned puppy food and she did eat that so she is hungry! But I prefer dry food.
Pam
 
First off: does the vet feel she is underweight? Puppies grow at different stages and tend to eat what they want and need. I wouldn't worry about her needing to gain weight unless her vet feels there is a problem..

I'd also just pick a kibble and stick with it -- change if you want to try something new now and then or introduce variety, but not to try and cater to her tastes as what is likely to happen is she will eat the new one a few days then stop in order to get the attention that comes with it and to see what comes next and the situation will just escalate.

You might try feeding her in a treatball or cube, sonmething that would make eating fun and a challenge and also this will feed the way she seems to like -- kibble by kibble. :)

Why not alternate meals -- give her morning kibble in a cube and then canned or kibble well mixed with some additions?

PS I never find it any surprise that dogs pick out the good stuff around the kibble. It is like eating the fruit and milk and leaving the shredded wheat. :) Kibble alone is a pretty dull prospect for any dog -- a highly processed, bland food that has to have the vitamins put back in that are lost on the processing of the food. But to get her to eat the kibble when you add good stuff -- mix it well.
 
I have Maddy on canidae lamb and rice. She has this very strange habit. She will take one little kibble out of her bowl and take it over to the dining room rug to eat it.
Kodee does this and has done it on 2 foods she's been on. she also has the habit of only eating her cookies in the den on a mat in there for her. Yet other treats you give her she eats where given. Puppies are strange sometimes - that is what makes them so cute to watch! Other than that, I'm going on Karla's suggestion, it does appear she is not 100% happy eating out of a bowl - less hungry; more fooling around carrying it, hungry; who cares if its in the bowl she its it all.
 
I have Maddy on canidae lamb and rice. She has this very strange habit. She will take one little kibble out of her bowl and take it over to the dining room rug to eat it.

My Beau will do this with some foods too unless I confine him to a small area when eating. He seems to do it with the food that he kind of wants but isn't really eager to eat. He will snaffle the good bits & then sort of play with the other bits. He does eventually eat it but it does take longer.
 
Bodie is also on Canidae. Some days, she eats like she has not had a morsel for a week. At other times, she will not eat all day. She is very happy and healthy, and she always eats when she's ready. Of course, she would prefer some nice chicken or pumpkin rather than the dry food. If that type of food does not show up in her bowl, she will eventually eat the kibble. Just like a kid who prefers ice cream and cookies to fruit and vegetables. She also likes to take a piece or two into another room to eat on her favorite rug, as she does with ice cubes. Looking for a change of scenery, I suppose. She loves to eat her kibble from a treat toy. She probably imagines she is a great hunter stalking her prey.
 
Thanks for all the ideas. We decided to go with canned food in the morning and put out some kibble later in the day. At least then we know she has had one good meal (the canned food).
The breeder actually told me she needed to add a few pounds when I took Maddy to see her a few weeks ago. Her "waist" is very very narrow.
But she is healthy and happy.
I will also try the kibble in the treat ball. I am glad to hear I am not the only one with a rug as a secondary eating area!
Thanks again.
Pam
 
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