# Ms. Picky



## Gongjoo (Dec 9, 2012)

Hi Everyone, 

So I am getting a bit frustrated with my little one. She was on a bland diet for a while as her old kibble wasn't agreeing with her. Well we finally (2.5 weeks later) have transitioned her off the bland diet and onto her new kibble (Fromm). The problem is...she wont eat the kibble by itself :blink: She wants me to mix a little something extra such as rice, chicken, or wet food. I even tried mixing the kibble with water...and nothing. 

I'm tempted to be as hard headed as she is and just wait it out; I'm sure she will get hungry enough and finally throw in the towel :innocent: But at the same time, it kills me that she is not eating; its not healthy! I really prefer my dogs to be on dry kibble vs wet food; no particular reason, just a personal preference. So does anyone have some helpful hints for me that will make me as well as Khloee happy campers...pretty please!


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## Grace'sMom (Feb 22, 2012)

Hi Kaylla,

A quality wet food is actually better than kibble. But personal preference.... yeah, I can understand that.

Honestly you will get many opinions here.... Some think tough love is best, some will say to put in the little extras if she wants it.

After going through everything I went through with Grace, and seeing some other puppies here have similar "picky" eating habits and then later go through related health issues... When I have a puppy again, I won't do the tough love thing.

I guess I'd start asking questions...

Does she eat every day?

Does she eat all of her kibble if you do put things in her food?

Does she eat every meal? Or is she pickier in the morning and holds off a long time before eating?

Is she a good drinker?

How often does she go potty?

Are her poops normal and regular?

What happened with the other food?

I know that seems like a ton of questions for just this one thing.... but honestly, I went through pickiness with Grace... and I came here thinking she was just a picky puppy. I tried changing foods, hand feeding, tough love... Tough love just got me a hypoglycemic puppy after 2 days of not eating. Turned out her liver problems were the cause of the pickiness.

So if she isn't a good eater, is "picky", her poops aren't regular or normal, etc... I'd suggest having labs done to make sure her liver levels are okay.

May seem paranoid and dramatic... but IMO, majority of dogs are not picky. If they are picky...it is for a reason. The food may disagree with them, or other health reasons.


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## gopotsgo (May 21, 2009)

Tori gave you some great advise. I don't know how young your dog is or where you got the pup from but the younger it is the more I would worry about genetic health issues. I also concur that wet food is by far superior to dry kibble. I feed my dogs a raw diet with some home made additives and IMO it is the best thing you can do for your pet. If the dry factor is a major convenience for you, you may consider dehydrated raw. My previous picky eaters are just that, previous picky eaters on this diet. My fosters get the same and everyone licks their plate clean. I mean pristine clean. Good luck and I hope you have no major health issues.


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## Gongjoo (Dec 9, 2012)

Grace'sMom said:


> Hi Kaylla,
> 
> A quality wet food is actually better than kibble. But personal preference.... yeah, I can understand that.
> 
> ...


Hi Grace, 

Thanks for taking the time to be thorough and ask questions! Let me go question by question 

Khloee does eat everyday, 2x a day (14 cup each meal). I think she is equally as picky with breakfast as she is with dinner; no real zeal for either (unless there is something "additional" in there lol) 

She drinks a good amount of water. Not so much where I'm concerned its a result of something (i.e. UTI), but a healthy amount. She goes potty about once every hour, but that is also because I take her out every hour, just in case (we are still potty training). 

Her poops are very normal; firm and good color, not overly stinky... I know this to be especially true because I've been watching her like a hawk since we started transitioning food. 

With her last kibble, she was throwing up about 1 time a day. As soon as we switched to the bland diet, she was perfect. So then I re-introduced her kibble (old) and the vommitting episodes continued. Since she has been on the Fromm, she has not thrown up one time...so I think there was something in the old kibble not agreeing with her.

She is very enthusiastic about her food if I put a lil something extra in it; gobbles it right up. She will also eat if I hand feed her. I honestly have no idea but ever since yesterday morning she is turning her head at her food. She will take a couple of bites and be over it ??? 

I don't think your paranoid, and I really appreciate you sharing your experience with little Miss Grace  After all, tts better to be safe than sorry, so perhaps I should get some labs run on her


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## Grace'sMom (Feb 22, 2012)

I can't say if she is like Grace was, especially since this is your first post about her being picky.

I'd continue trying to feed her, try to stay to a routine. If she will hand feed, that is okay. I know some pups here went through a phase of hand feeding - their people just used the kibble for training and games instead of doing the whole meal thing since they weren't interested in a plate or bowl of food.

The amount may be too much. But if she eats it all, maybe not. I guess that part is fuzzy... she does eat all her food?

If you left it without adding anything, would she just refuse to eat?

How quickly did you change from the bland diet to the Fromm? I'm glad you changed her and hope you can figure out what was in the other food that disagreed with her.

Grace used to eat if I added things. But I had to always add new things, or she'd turn her nose up. Then I had to hand feed, but she would be very picky about what she would take. It progressed quickly to where I was getting so frustrated because she wasn't eating well or at all. Yet, she was still growing.

Her potty habits were pretty normal up until she got pretty sick. But keeping an eye on her potty habits is a good idea  Constipation or not going is a good early sign of a problem that needs further looking into.

How old is Khloee again? ... Labs before 16 weeks can be hit or miss. But if she does continue to be picky I'd get her checked, then possibly rechecked 4 weeks later just to be safe.

Make sure you take Dr. Center's notes on how to do a proper BAT test if you decide to do one of those (which if she continues with pickiness I would), because most vets do them wrong.

But it doesn't sound like anything I'd worry over right away... I'd just sit and watch it for a week or two. If it continues to get worse, then I'd take her into the vet just to be safe and reassured it is just pickiness or a possible food intolerance.


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## aksm4 (Nov 28, 2011)

Hello To the picky eaters club LOL

in all seriouseness please listen to Tori she knows , and Becky was lie this also so for the moment just try to feed her i would personally put something extra to get her to eat if she keeps throwing up even pnce in a while i would consider bile acids just to be sure and have a baseline for futur reference .


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## maggieh (Dec 16, 2007)

My girls will eat dry if I add hot water and let it soak for about 5 minutes to cool and also bring out the aroma of the food. I use dry Fromm's Salmon Tunalini for breakfast with the water added and they gobble it right up. For dinner, they get FreshPet Vital Salmon and Whitefish.

Have you tried adding in just a bit of carrot or a few peas? Those vegetables are good for our fluffs and can add variety to their meals. You can cook those ahead of time and just and a few pieces when you feed.


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